New Member with a Couple Important Questions

[dtinker1]

I am going to take the MCAT in January of 2013.I have about 8 month till it. I have two questions.
1)Given how much time I have, when should I start studying and how often should I?
2) What is the best review guide for the MCAT?

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[Renaissance Man]

I am going to take the MCAT in January of 2013.I have about 8 month till it. I have two questions.
1)Given how much time I have, when should I start studying and how often should I?
2) What is the best review guide for the MCAT?

There is an entire MCAT sub-forum to SDN which would much better serve your question (but don't crosspost as I imagine a mod will move this over there). A search would also have been helpful.

1) 3-4 months top
2) Lots of opinions, my favorite was ExamKrackers

 

[kautionwirez]

I am going to take the MCAT in January of 2013.I have about 8 month till it. I have two questions.
1)Given how much time I have, when should I start studying and how often should I?
2) What is the best review guide for the MCAT?

1) 3-4 months, agree with poster above
2) I like EK Chemistry, TPR Bio/Ochem/Physics (TPR overall is good for review). I liked TPR passages, AAMC for test simulations.

 

[EBTrailRunner]

I am going to take the MCAT in January of 2013.I have about 8 month till it. I have two questions.
1)Given how much time I have, when should I start studying and how often should I?
2) What is the best review guide for the MCAT?

IMO, I don't think a person should need more than 4 months of dedicated studying to prep for the MCAT. However, how long you need is going to depend on how solid a knowledge base you have going in. If you're weak on one or more subjects that are tested, you'll likely have to spend more time reviewing them.

What's going to be key for you is developing an effective study plan. Luckily, there are many to choose from. I'd recommend heading over to the MCAT forums and seeing what's worked for other people who did well on the MCAT. Also, if you don't like prepping on your own and have money to spare, a test prep company like TPR, TBR, Kaplan, etc. is always an option.

There's no "best" review guide. There are many test prep companies that publish MCAT prep books and depending on who you ask, you'll hear varying opinions on which one to go with. It's not a bad idea to visit your local Barnes & Noble and browse through a few prep books to find a series you like.

TL;DR Head over to the MCAT forums, develop an effective study plan, research various MCAT prep books to find a series you like.