Point of diminishing returns (theoretical discussion)

[mitch8017]

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Do you believe there is a point of diminishing returns in your MCAT studies, and if so, when do you believe that point is? I have felt that after running through each book once and taking 3 exams I am not budging my score. It is like any class I have ever taken, 1 hour of studying can land me an 85-90, but a 95 or better would take me 5-6 hours of study (4-5 hours extra to improve on only a couple questions). What do you all think about this?

P.S. no, I am not looking for the lazy, easy way out of putting in the work for the test, just interested in seeing what other people think about this and hoping for a decent discussion

 

[curvesetter]

Yes, diminishing returns is a real thing. We see it in behavioral economics all the time. Best example off the top of my head has to do with healthcare delivery - as more services are provided, the marginal benefits decrease until they actually turn into harm. This is what leads to the “moral hazard” of being insured on a good plan since people will use services they don’t need.

I think if you take a few AAMC practice tests or real exams for that matter and you see no improvement despite increased studying you’ve reached that point. The only way you can improve past that point in my opinion is to completely re-invent the wheel which would include potentially restarting MCAT prep with different materials and tools.

 

[Examkrackers]

Each person's plateau will be in a different place. We can each only cram a certain amount of material into our heads in a given period of time. Knowing if you're at your plateau has most to do with consistency in scores between practice tests (of a similar type!), but depends on a lot of factors. Further, once you reach your plateau, that doesn't necessarily mean you can't still take actions to further improve your score. One example would be if, in your exam debriefs where you go over your missed Qs, you realize that many of your missed questions were missed because of strategy errors (misreading questions, ran out of time, not understanding the AAMC style of question, etc.). In this scenario, you could still potentially improve your score if you get a better grasp on MCAT strategy without having to break through your content plateau. Conversely, if your plateau is in terms of the fact that you just cannot get a better handle on AAMC style questions, you can try to deepen your content knowledge base so that your greater familiarity with the material will hopefully let you focus more on deciphering what the AAMC wants out of you.

So, in short, it depends on what you're plateauing in, content vs. strategy.

 

[Zenabi90]

Absolutely.

1. Your brain can only hold so much information. That is one plateau you will face.
2. You can only optimize your strategy so much. That is another plateau you will face.
When you reach both of those plateaus is when your maximal performance is achieved.

Many students understand that the strategy plateau exist. Many refuse to believe that the retention plateau exists. While the information we can store in a lifetime is thought to be so much as to approximate limitless, due to the short timespan allowed for study of the high volume of MCAT material, it is often useful to compare your brain to a bucket under a faucet. After a certain point, the bucket will fill up, and any new water/info you try to push in forces what is already within the bucket out. This is the retention plateau, and for many, this occurs after 2-3 months of serious content review. For some, they max out at 2 months, for others, 4 or 5 months. The issue is we don't know when you'll max out. It's not like we have something akin to a fuel gauge on your skull that goes "and that's a full tank, go go go."


On a side note:
But even when you achieve your state of maximal performance, you must contend with the fact that the MCAT is a somewhat random experience.

A. Not all topics will be covered equally, and if your retained information matches up with the topics on that particular test, you will make maximal use of your knowledge base. If it doesn't line up well, then you will not score as high as you could have.
B. Test conditions, as much as they are controlled, are still random. Your fellow test takers are random, mindsets and emotional states are fickle things, and negative events like computer failures and food poisoning occur randomly.
C. Test takers are random. You are compared to all the other people who answered that particular question, and you are compared to all other people taking that particular MCAT. If you test with people of comparable or lower performance than you, your score will be inflated. If the reverse is true and you test with people of higher performance than you, your score will be deflated.

So in other words, to maximize your score, you must be at the peak of your retention, fully optimized strategy, receive questions that line up with your knowledge base, experience no negative testing events that break concentration and hinder performance, and you must be taking the exam when a majority of your fellow takers are poorer performers than you.

 

[mk04447]

While the concept is possible, I can virtually gaurantee you haven't reached it. Ask any 2nd year medical student if they studied for the MCAT. With that, I guarantee you haven't met the threshold, keep studying.