Meditation, Diet, Exercise, Sleep, etc. - MCAT "Soft" Skills

[EastofEden]

Hey all,

I am planning to take the MCAT at the end of summer, 2011. I will be devoting 4 solid months of study, with no work and minimal volunteering, as I have not taken organic chemistry and will have to teach myself the relevant material.

Obviously, the more you study, and the more efficiently you study, the better your score will be. BUT, I am sure most of us would agree that there are a lot of so-called "soft" skills that go into breaking 35 on the MCAT.

What steps did you take to prepare mentally and physically for the MCAT?

Specifically, did anyone look into:
- Meditation (in my case, I would be interested in Vipassana)
- Supplementation (for example Gingko, fish oil, vitamins)
- Sleep regimens
- Exercise
- Diet
- Specific study methods (ex. context-dependent retrieval cues, mnemonics, etc.)
- Stress management/dealing with anxiety
- Neurofeedback
- etc.

If anyone specifically addressed developing "soft" skills such as these as part of their MCAT study program, I would love to hear about your experiences - what worked, what was a waste of time, what provided diminishing rewards, etc.

Also, if you didn't use these but feel they would have been helpful, feel free to chime in on what you would add if you could go back and do it over again.

Lastly, if anyone has looked into the primary research on any of the above topics, I would love to hear what you found out!

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[MCAT guy]

Hey all,

I am planning to take the MCAT at the end of summer, 2011. I will be devoting 4 solid months of study, with no work and minimal volunteering, as I have not taken organic chemistry and will have to teach myself the relevant material.

Obviously, the more you study, and the more efficiently you study, the better your score will be. BUT, I am sure most of us would agree that there are a lot of so-called "soft" skills that go into breaking 35 on the MCAT.

What steps did you take to prepare mentally and physically for the MCAT?

Specifically, did anyone look into:
- Meditation (in my case, I would be interested in Vipassana)
- Supplementation (for example Gingko, fish oil, vitamins)
- Sleep regimens
- Exercise
- Diet
- Specific study methods (ex. context-dependent retrieval cues, mnemonics, etc.)
- Stress management/dealing with anxiety
- Neurofeedback
- etc.

If anyone specifically addressed developing "soft" skills such as these as part of their MCAT study program, I would love to hear about your experiences - what worked, what was a waste of time, what provided diminishing rewards, etc.

Also, if you didn't use these but feel they would have been helpful, feel free to chime in on what you would add if you could go back and do it over again.

Lastly, if anyone has looked into the primary research on any of the above topics, I would love to hear what you found out!

One of the best soft skills I used was this: Take the pre-reqs before taking the exam.

Advice to everyone. Don't over think this test. Set aside time, learn the concepts well, buy any decent books, then get into medical school.

Remember that the MCAT is a small sliver of your app. Take it seriously but don't over do it by planning your study schedule a year in advance. If you are studying in May, then develop your plan in April. It's not that complicated.

Breaking 35 has more to do with reasoning skills and how well you learned your pre-reqs during the classes than the right plan or strategy.

 

[NickNaylor]

Whatever you do, do it regularly. Practice tests should be a routine. I did this even down to the exact snacks/caffeine sources I used so that I knew how they would affect me and how I could expect to feel. Sounds crazy, I know, but it really made a difference.

Try things until you figure out something that works, but stick with it and be sure to do it regularly. The real deal is not the time to suddenly try something new.