Note taking vs Reading

[SirZaitsev]

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I think there may be some threads on this already, but how do you guys tackle content review? I would like to hear from some of you guys who are scoring 505+ on FLs and those who have actually had success on the real thing 510+. I find myself taking notes (usually typing them out in word doc), but I feel like I spend too long on the chapters. I got all As in pre-reqs, and most of the content seems familiar (just needs reiteration), but I am looking for some tips on getting proficient in the sciences and social sciences. I am also aware that the MCAT is not all about the minutia, but I still feel like I get practice questions wrong due to a content gap. I have TBR, Kap, and EK. I have been using TBR now and it seems to help since it is very in depth, but I would like to know if you guys are reading the chapters or taking notes throughout (or taking notes on important details)? Also, what are you guys using for practice questions along with content review since kaplan books don't have passage based questions based on the chapters, and TBR does.... There are the EK 30 min exams, but I seem to like the Kaplan books for the content, but there end of chapter questions are awful.

Sorry this is a very broad thread, but any feedback will be appreciated, Thanks.

 

[dushash]

I never took notes for any of my classes and managed to get all A's too. That been said I think it's a good idea to write down concise notes as you go and read each chapter. Mostly things you will forget, details that you won't keep in your mind after first reading. The goal IMHO is to write down only needed stuff, not too much and not too little. Only things that are important and you know you will need to come back to them and re-read them to get the concept pushed into long-term memory. IMHO content review should be done at least twice. Second time it should be done while you are doing FL's. So on days between FL's I usually pick 1 subject and go chapter by chapter - reading concept summary page (at the end of each chapter). If I stumble upon something I don't remember good enough - then I go to my notes and if that is not helping i go re-read chapter portion that relates to my problem. Also during this time I incorporate review of my weak spots that I discovered during FL. Also, do read that HYPSG book - it has all high-yield material for every chapter of every subject. I use that book as well between FL's. So eventually I end up revisiting most of concepts several times until they are deposited into long-term memory. On weakest areas I resort sometimes to Khan videos - that helps too from time to time. So essentially, as for passages I mostly using Kaplan FL's so far. When I'll be done with all of them - I'm planning to quickly do couple of TBR/EK/NS ones before the exam, just to make sure I don't have any real gaps or weak spots.
It's all IMHO.

 

[StudyLater]

I've got 50pgs for bio and biochem. ~10pgs for physics and 15 for chem/ochem. 30pgs for psych/soc.

Took about 2 months to get it all together. I just remembered a high scorer on here posting about doing outlines and only having to go through them fully once before taking AAMC FL, and a second time before killing the exam. I went through my content once, then went back and covered all the memorization **** I figured might help me before taking EK and getting a 70%. Ironically I did not feel ready whatsoever the day of that practice.

Note if you're messing with TPR/Kap/TBR they're going to go into minutiae like crazy. I'll bet it has maybe some small benefit, but it really just isn't how our test is going to be, as the recent takers have verified.

 

[lmladdno84]

I personally think taking notes is an enormous waste of time. I just made sure I understood everything I read. If I genuinely understand the concepts of what is happening, I'm not going to forget it. Maybe that's just me.

 

[SirZaitsev]

I personally think taking notes is an enormous waste of time. I just made sure I understood everything I read. If I genuinely understand the concepts of what is happening, I'm not going to forget it. Maybe that's just me.

Yeah, I feel like that at times, but when I stumble upon a topic, I find myself going back to the old ways and I jot down everything I read or feel is important

 

[SirZaitsev]

I've got 50pgs for bio and biochem. ~10pgs for physics and 15 for chem/ochem. 30pgs for psych/soc.

Took about 2 months to get it all together. I just remembered a high scorer on here posting about doing outlines and only having to go through them fully once before taking AAMC FL, and a second time before killing the exam. I went through my content once, then went back and covered all the memorization **** I figured might help me before taking EK and getting a 70%. Ironically I did not feel ready whatsoever the day of that practice.

Note if you're messing with TPR/Kap/TBR they're going to go into minutiae like crazy. I'll bet it has maybe some small benefit, but it really just isn't how our test is going to be, as the recent takers have verified.

****, I just don't know because some successful takers have gone my route, but then I hear other successful stories of another method. I guess I'll just see how it goes......

 

[StudyLater]

I guess I'll just see how it goes......

Congratulations. You've reached the "**** it" stage of studying for the MCAT.

 

[ElectricNoogie]

I think there may be some threads on this already, but how do you guys tackle content review? I would like to hear from some of you guys who are scoring 505+ on FLs and those who have actually had success on the real thing 510+. I find myself taking notes (usually typing them out in word doc), but I feel like I spend too long on the chapters. I got all As in pre-reqs, and most of the content seems familiar (just needs reiteration), but I am looking for some tips on getting proficient in the sciences and social sciences. I am also aware that the MCAT is not all about the minutia, but I still feel like I get practice questions wrong due to a content gap. I have TBR, Kap, and EK. I have been using TBR now and it seems to help since it is very in depth, but I would like to know if you guys are reading the chapters or taking notes throughout (or taking notes on important details)? Also, what are you guys using for practice questions along with content review since kaplan books don't have passage based questions based on the chapters, and TBR does.... There are the EK 30 min exams, but I seem to like the Kaplan books for the content, but there end of chapter questions are awful.

Sorry this is a very broad thread, but any feedback will be appreciated, Thanks.

Hi @SirZaitsev! You must understand that the MCAT, and later med school, will require you to become more efficient at studying. Plenty of my classmates during first year were used to reading their texts 3x or taking copious notes all throughout undergrad. You don't have that kind of time in med school and you typically don't want to waste that much time when prepping for the MCAT. Simply put, the methods you used in undergrad may not work for the MCAT or medical school. If it's taking you hours and hours to get through a single MCAT content chapter, something may need to be adjusted.

As for learning science, the more active you can be with the content, the better it will stick, regardless if you are a born memorizer or not. 99% of my classmates (me included) did not have any ridiculous eidetic memory yet we still did well in med school. This was due to active studying. This means doing Qs, not just seeing the material but having to think about it, work with it.

Writing down notes is not as passive as highlighting, but it's not that active. It may work for dry info like AA tables or psych theories, but it doesn't work as well for mastering relationships (e.g. physics, gen chem). If notes work for you fine, but after the notes are done, do something more active, like a content quiz, or making your own flashcard and then quizzing yourself. Vary what you study at least every 2 days or so. Develop exercises where you pick some topics out of a hat and quiz yourself on them so your brain gets used to bringing up info at a moment's notice.

You mention a content gap when you review your wrong answers, yet you claim you want more MCAT/passage based Qs. In my experience that doesn't seem right. If content is your problem, then you should seek out content reinforcing problems before you jump into another passage. The end of chapter Qs in the Kaplan books, NextStep books and others do this very well. Kaplan also has entire suites of Q banks devoted to content review but I don't know how much access to Kaplan material you have. The NextStep books have both content and MCAT passage Qs in their content books but I would say to hold off on buying any more content books for now as you already have too many. If content turns out to indeed be your issue, you can grab a hold of the old EK 1001 Q books. They are solid content reinforcing Qs with a minimal MCAT feel. You will need to be careful to avoid topics no longer on the MCAT, but you can find them pretty cheap online.

I would also recommend you review your recent practice Qs again. Ask yourself, are you truly missing the Qs due to content, or are you not recognizing the content when/how the MCAT presents it? These are 2 distinct issues with very different treatments. Many students confuse the two so that is why I ask you to look again, as your content issue doesn't quite jive with your want for more passage Qs.

If the issue is the former, do the above I mentioned regarding content Qs. If it's the latter, then you want to do topic focused MCAT style Qs, like the AAMC Q bank. and EK lecture quizzes.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

 

[SirZaitsev]

Hi @SirZaitsev! You must understand that the MCAT, and later med school, will require you to become more efficient at studying. Plenty of my classmates during first year were used to reading their texts 3x or taking copious notes all throughout undergrad. You don't have that kind of time in med school and you typically don't want to waste that much time when prepping for the MCAT. Simply put, the methods you used in undergrad may not work for the MCAT or medical school. If it's taking you hours and hours to get through a single MCAT content chapter, something may need to be adjusted.

As for learning science, the more active you can be with the content, the better it will stick, regardless if you are a born memorizer or not. 99% of my classmates (me included) did not have any ridiculous eidetic memory yet we still did well in med school. This was due to active studying. This means doing Qs, not just seeing the material but having to think about it, work with it.

Writing down notes is not as passive as highlighting, but it's not that active. It may work for dry info like AA tables or psych theories, but it doesn't work as well for mastering relationships (e.g. physics, gen chem). If notes work for you fine, but after the notes are done, do something more active, like a content quiz, or making your own flashcard and then quizzing yourself. Vary what you study at least every 2 days or so. Develop exercises where you pick some topics out of a hat and quiz yourself on them so your brain gets used to bringing up info at a moment's notice.

You mention a content gap when you review your wrong answers, yet you claim you want more MCAT/passage based Qs. In my experience that doesn't seem right. If content is your problem, then you should seek out content reinforcing problems before you jump into another passage. The end of chapter Qs in the Kaplan books, NextStep books and others do this very well. Kaplan also has entire suites of Q banks devoted to content review but I don't know how much access to Kaplan material you have. The NextStep books have both content and MCAT passage Qs in their content books but I would say to hold off on buying any more content books for now as you already have too many. If content turns out to indeed be your issue, you can grab a hold of the old EK 1001 Q books. They are solid content reinforcing Qs with a minimal MCAT feel. You will need to be careful to avoid topics no longer on the MCAT, but you can find them pretty cheap online.

I would also recommend you review your recent practice Qs again. Ask yourself, are you truly missing the Qs due to content, or are you not recognizing the content when/how the MCAT presents it? These are 2 distinct issues with very different treatments. Many students confuse the two so that is why I ask you to look again, as your content issue doesn't quite jive with your want for more passage Qs.

If the issue is the former, do the above I mentioned regarding content Qs. If it's the latter, then you want to do topic focused MCAT style Qs, like the AAMC Q bank. and EK lecture quizzes.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

These tips were very helpful. And I do own the EK 1001 books, but I wasnt sure how they compare to the new exam. I didn't want to use something that wasn't representative of the exam.

 

[gothicfoxes]

Yeah, I feel like that at times, but when I stumble upon a topic, I find myself going back to the old ways and I jot down everything I read or feel is important

...which is likely beneficial, as rewriting helps memorization, but I imagine this is a waste of time. Try writing down what you don't know. Skip what you've heard before and already understand. This has helped me from getting overwhelmed with repetitive and useless notes. x

 

[mikil100]

I follow the three pass method

Skim
Read quickly, but taking notes of important and bolded words
Read thoroughly, detailing every little part, and using the internet to lookup stuff I'm confused about.

I also re-read the chapter (at a quick pace, skipping stuff) a week later, and I review the notes at LEAST once every two weeks.

Edit: scored 517

 

[DingoPingo]

I didn't take notes until I started doing practice questions and realized I didn't know anything so now I'm taking notes 🙂

 

[GrapesofRath]

This question really comes down to your 1) reasoning skills 2) reading comprehension ability 3) scientific background(in terms of being able to understand experiments. There are other factors as well but look at those science sections(particularly psych/soc and Bio) as verbal/CARs passages. Some people are able to read fast enough, quick enough and are fluid enough in research analysis and interpretation that they don't need much background knowledge on a subject. Others who can't read and make connections as fast really need background knowledge to guide them so a) they comprehend a passage related to their background knowledge much faster b) know what kind of connections to make ie: what is and isn't reasonable for the subject c) don't have to rely on the passage as much for info(Which takes up valuable time).

Imagine if the AAMC gave you a list of specific topics that CARs passages would be about(ie the reconstruction period, Picassso's influence etc). For some people it would be really beneficial if they struggle at speed reading and making connections quickly to get background in the area so they can comprehend a passage on it that is related to what they studied faster and know what are the types of appropriate connections they can make. Others simply don't need that background info; they simply can just read a passage fast enough and make the appropriate connections and have the reasoning skills needed they don't really need background knowledge to guide them.

So really how much content you need and how much time you should take on notes comes down to who you are and your own intrinsic abilities. This ultimately is why you'll find a large group of top scorers who really didn't spend that much time studying and why many people who spend months upon months studying still have problems. At the end of the day this isn't a fact based test; rather learning all the content guides you for passage reading and data analysis to a) make faster conclusions and improve your reading comprehension speed on that topic b) not get flustered and at least see the terminology before you read about it on the MCAT c) know what are and aren't reasonable conclusions to make on data. These are just 3 of many other factors to consider but they should at least paint some picture on why you are taking notes and what purpose they serve for you which is different by person and which is what this question really gets down to.