Question for those that have done the 3 or 4 month SN2ED Schedule

[ridethecliche]

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I know it depends on the person and the day of the schedule, but on average how long did you spend studying on any given day for the 3 month or 4 month schedule?

I'm currently trying to get a schedule set up for my april exam and deciding between going for the 4 month schedule or just extending the 3 month one. It comes down to time per day so any help would be really appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[411309]

Im doing the 3 month one. On the days you do one chapter + 1/3, it takes me anywhere from 1-2 hours, depending on how hard the chapter is for me. On the days you reread all the chapters, about 2-3 hours. The days you do second 1/3s around 2-4 (i like to reread explanations sometimes for questions that are confusing)

 

[ridethecliche]

Hey thanks for the response.

That sounds like not that much time. Does anyone else have any input?

That's way more manageable than what I did last time, even if I double your time. This is a retake, so stuff will come back pretty fast from the May test.

 

[SN2ed]

Most take much longer than a couple hours. Lots of people that have closely followed my schedule said it's really intense and generally don't recommend it with school work. You can get a rough idea of the bare minimum by looking at the timing for the practice material and the time allotted to thoroughly reviewing your practice material. It should take you a minimum of 2X longer reviewing the passages than taking them. If it doesn't, you aren't doing a good job reviewing the material and are wasting resources. Other than that, the timing is person dependent.

 

[ridethecliche]

Thanks for the comment.

I'll spend time this weekend looking the schedule's over and seeing if I want to expand the 3 month to a 4 month schedule to have more break days or if I can just do the 4 month as written.

I've already done the EK in class exams and such, so I don't think I'd get a lot out of those or the EK1001's (which I have). I'm planning on using strictly TBR and going to EK if I need additional practice. Last time I made the mistake of not doing enough passage practice so I'll avoid that this time.

If anyone else has any info on how much time they spent on the lecture days, then that would be really helpful.

Thanks!

 

[411309]

hm honestly I i usually understand/get right at least more than half of the questions so there isnt usually too many to review for me that I dont understand. I guess it all depends on the person and their weaknesses.

 

[Penguin89]

Most take much longer than a couple hours. Lots of people that have closely followed my schedule said it's really intense and generally don't recommend it with school work. You can get a rough idea of the bare minimum by looking at the timing for the practice material and the time allotted to thoroughly reviewing your practice material. It should take you a minimum of 2X longer reviewing the passages than taking them. If it doesn't, you aren't doing a good job reviewing the material and are wasting resources. Other than that, the timing is person dependent.

But HOW exactly should we be reviewing?

 

[SN2ed]

But HOW exactly should we be reviewing?

Below are the general tips in my sticky thread. This should give you an idea about what you should cover.



General Guidelines for Reviewing:

- Go over EVERY question. Both the ones you got right and the ones you got wrong.
- Reviewing should take 2-3 times longer than taking the timed practice problems.
- If your tests are fluctuating, it is due to the different topics on the various tests. In other words, you have some glaring weaknesses that when targeted, nail you, badly. You have to find out what those weaknesses are because they are evident by your scores. Do NOT dismiss any wrong answer as a "stupid mistake." You made that error for a reason. Go over your tests again.
- You might want to consider making a log for all of your post test results where you work through the questions below. Doing so, you'll be able to easily notice trends.

Some things to go over when reviewing:

1. Why did you get the question wrong? Why did you get the question right?
2. What question and passage types get you?
3. How is your mindset when facing a particular passage?
4. Are you stressed for time?
5. Where are your mistakes happening the most? Are they front loaded? Are they at the end? All over?
6. What was your thought process for both the questions you got right and the ones you got wrong?
7. For verbal, what was the author's mindset and main idea?
8. Did you eliminate all of the answer choices you could from first glance?
ex. You know an answer should be a positive number so you cross out all of the negative number answer choices.
9. What content areas are you weak in?
10. Why are the wrong answers wrong and the right answer right?
11. How can you improve so you don't make the same mistake again?

 

[PingPongPro]

The "average" time varied too much depending on the day, but the entire schedule took around ~550-600 hours total for me.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

The "average" time varied too much depending on the day, but the entire schedule took around ~550-600 hours total for me.

.... That's 6 hours of study a day.

 

[Pisiform]

.... That's 6 hours of study a day.

Call me dumb or whatev ... but sometimes 6 hrs a day is not even enough lol

 

[Ssina]

Call me dumb or whatev ... but sometimes 6 hrs a day is not even enough lol

👍

 

[411309]

6 hours? How long did it take you guys to read the chapter?

 

[djkim]

Call me dumb or whatev ... but sometimes 6 hrs a day is not even enough lol

LOL i am with you on this one. Man that BR Ochem chapter 1... 🙁

 

[Blaughable]

I have a few tips for the SN2ed method

1.) Take the time to go over all you questions, correct and incorrect (you may have accidentally gotten one right without actually knowing the science behind it)

2.) Keep a log of all your mistakes so you can see trends

3.) Find a way to be able to teach people while you learn. I was part of the skype group and i think that helped a lot. You retain 10% of what you read, but 90% of what you teach

4.) Don't have other distractions. No school, job, keep hanging out with friends to a minimum. Stay focused. It's 3-4 months of your life that can help determine your future. It's not much of a sacrifice at all.

5.) For every fact you learn, learn why. Example, ortho/para and meta directing groups. understand the electron flow, and why they direct to where they do. This can not be stressed enough. The MCAT does not test memorization, it tests the concepts.

6.) In addition, try to know EVERY concept NOT every fact. I feel like a lot of the people who succeed may be saying "yeah i studied everything real hard and tried to know everything but then when I got to FLs I realized you don't need to know that much" that's because in trying to learn everything, the general concepts end up seeming like "not that much." Also this will ensure that you're not leaving it up to the MCAT writers to hopefully not put something you're not comfortable with. Be in control of you MCAT score.

7.) One thing I wish I did more of, read scientific journals. They will help with the BS section. I had been scoring extremely well on the AAMC FLs, but the real thing got me because I wasn't comfortable with some of the terminology and trying to understand complex systems that I knew nothing about.

And just so you know I'm not talking out of my butt. MCAT Aug 18th - 35 (14/10/11)

 

[MedPR]

I know it depends on the person and the day of the schedule, but on average how long did you spend studying on any given day for the 3 month or 4 month schedule?

I'm currently trying to get a schedule set up for my april exam and deciding between going for the 4 month schedule or just extending the 3 month one. It comes down to time per day so any help would be really appreciated.

Thanks!

I'm starting on December 18th and have a seat reserved for the April 5 exam. I did the math and, if I remember correctly, that's about 105 days. I work full-time and will be taking two classes, but I will have Christmas break, a week of spring break, and I'll be taking off for a couple of weeks before the MCAT to really focus.

 

[ridethecliche]

I have a few tips for the SN2ed method

1.) Take the time to go over all you questions, correct and incorrect (you may have accidentally gotten one right without actually knowing the science behind it)

2.) Keep a log of all your mistakes so you can see trends

3.) Find a way to be able to teach people while you learn. I was part of the skype group and i think that helped a lot. You retain 10% of what you read, but 90% of what you teach

4.) Don't have other distractions. No school, job, keep hanging out with friends to a minimum. Stay focused. It's 3-4 months of your life that can help determine your future. It's not much of a sacrifice at all.

5.) For every fact you learn, learn why. Example, ortho/para and meta directing groups. understand the electron flow, and why they direct to where they do. This can not be stressed enough. The MCAT does not test memorization, it tests the concepts.

6.) In addition, try to know EVERY concept NOT every fact. I feel like a lot of the people who succeed may be saying "yeah i studied everything real hard and tried to know everything but then when I got to FLs I realized you don't need to know that much" that's because in trying to learn everything, the general concepts end up seeming like "not that much." Also this will ensure that you're not leaving it up to the MCAT writers to hopefully not put something you're not comfortable with. Be in control of you MCAT score.

7.) One thing I wish I did more of, read scientific journals. They will help with the BS section. I had been scoring extremely well on the AAMC FLs, but the real thing got me because I wasn't comfortable with some of the terminology and trying to understand complex systems that I knew nothing about.

And just so you know I'm not talking out of my butt. MCAT Aug 18th - 35 (14/10/11)

Noted on the reviewing everything bit. I'm actually going to do that because it matters a ton.

While I would love to make studying a full time job, it's not a reality. Unless of course, you want to pay for my food and rent.

This is a retake for me, so I'll say that much. If you want to get anywhere with this test or elsewhere, you have to find a balance. The rest of your life won't wait around if you decide to disappear for 4 months only to study.

You'll have a life when you're a med student and a resident too. If you don't, you'll suffer more than you should. That was what was told to me by those that have recently been or are currently in that position. This test is important because you should learn how to balance everything else while you're preparing for it as well.

That's a lesson that's important to learn.

Congrats on your score. Very very well done. Your advice is noted 🙂

I'm starting on December 18th and have a seat reserved for the April 5 exam. I did the math and, if I remember correctly, that's about 105 days. I work full-time and will be taking two classes, but I will have Christmas break, a week of spring break, and I'll be taking off for a couple of weeks before the MCAT to really focus.

Yeah, I'm planning on taking 'vacation days' to study.

The one thing I remember from studying the last time is to just get everything in order to give myself more quality time to study.

I'm doing the SN2ED schedule right now, but realizing that it might not be the best for me because I start doing practice problems at 9:30 PM after working all day and studying for 4 hours. I might have to do my own thing and study during the week, do as many passages as I can at night, and do the bulk of practice/review when I'm awake and alert on the weekends.

My time will have more quality to it. So it goes when you have to adapt something to the real world.

Luckily, I started early enough so I still have time to figure this all out without it being deleterious to my studying et all.

I'll warn you not to take out too much time JUST before the MCAT since that makes burnout worse in my opinion. Give yourself a week (atleast) between the time you finish intense study and when you take the test. You'll be exhausted after you take a couple of weeks off to study.

You can get a LOT done during that time. Just make sure to do something fun in there somewhere too so you don't go nutso.

 

[brisingr]

I'm actually in the exact same position. I'm a retaker and I've decided to do the SN2ED schedule this time but I'm working now so I'm worried about having enough time. I'm actually at work right now trying to see how I can fit everything in lol. I think I could manage about 4 hours a day and then put in some more time on the weekend. But like you said, best to figure out how to balance things now because I will eventually have to participate in life instead of just hiding in a cave and studying for 8 hours a day.

 

[SN2ed]

When most medical students talk about balance, they aren't typically referring to balancing a job, research, school, etc while studying for a major test. It's more about finding personal time to do the things you enjoy and not be stuck studying or working the entire time. If medical students only worked and/or studied, they would get burned out REAL fast.

If you want to take an analogous situation to studying for the MCAT when you're a medical student, it's studying for the boards. Let me tell you, barely anyone holds a full or part time job while studying for the boards. That's the focus of your life for that period of time where you'll easily sink in 8-10 hours per day studying. I would bet if you asked any medical student if they could balance a job while doing well on the boards, they'd say not likely. Heck, the vast majority of medical students while in school do not have a job or have time for one.

To me, the MCAT is the most important test you'll take. It sets everything up because once you get into a US medical school, chances are very good you'll become a doctor. While one can try to work, go to school, etc while studying for the MCAT, it just isn't a good idea considering the importance of this test. You're only setting up hurdles for yourself which you very well might not be able to jump. That said, if you have to work to eat, that's one thing. Yet, needlessly making the MCAT artificially harder by giving yourself multiple time consuming commitments and claiming you're "balancing" your life is foolish and isn't the type of balance people mean.

On SDN you'll constantly see people posting, "well I scored a 40 with a week of studying, so you don't need more than a couple weeks" or "hey I did well on the MCAT while working, researching, and going to school." While that may have worked for that one person, it probably doesn't apply to most. A stat to keep in mind while reading all these claims people on here make: about 75% of all test takers last year scored under 30.

 

[MedPR]

Noted on the reviewing everything bit. I'm actually going to do that because it matters a ton.

While I would love to make studying a full time job, it's not a reality. Unless of course, you want to pay for my food and rent.

This is a retake for me, so I'll say that much. If you want to get anywhere with this test or elsewhere, you have to find a balance. The rest of your life won't wait around if you decide to disappear for 4 months only to study.

You'll have a life when you're a med student and a resident too. If you don't, you'll suffer more than you should. That was what was told to me by those that have recently been or are currently in that position. This test is important because you should learn how to balance everything else while you're preparing for it as well.

That's a lesson that's important to learn.

Congrats on your score. Very very well done. Your advice is noted 🙂



Yeah, I'm planning on taking 'vacation days' to study.

The one thing I remember from studying the last time is to just get everything in order to give myself more quality time to study.

I'm doing the SN2ED schedule right now, but realizing that it might not be the best for me because I start doing practice problems at 9:30 PM after working all day and studying for 4 hours. I might have to do my own thing and study during the week, do as many passages as I can at night, and do the bulk of practice/review when I'm awake and alert on the weekends.

My time will have more quality to it. So it goes when you have to adapt something to the real world.

Luckily, I started early enough so I still have time to figure this all out without it being deleterious to my studying et all.

I'll warn you not to take out too much time JUST before the MCAT since that makes burnout worse in my opinion. Give yourself a week (atleast) between the time you finish intense study and when you take the test. You'll be exhausted after you take a couple of weeks off to study.

You can get a LOT done during that time. Just make sure to do something fun in there somewhere too so you don't go nutso.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'm actually taking 14 days off (including the day of the MCAT) and am going to use the time purely for full lengths and review. I'll be done with intense study by then.

 

[MedPR]

I'm actually in the exact same position. I'm a retaker and I've decided to do the SN2ED schedule this time but I'm working now so I'm worried about having enough time. I'm actually at work right now trying to see how I can fit everything in lol. I think I could manage about 4 hours a day and then put in some more time on the weekend. But like you said, best to figure out how to balance things now because I will eventually have to participate in life instead of just hiding in a cave and studying for 8 hours a day.

Like you I've got other, unavoidable, commitments in addition to studying for my retake. I've done some math (realistic math) and figured I could spend at least 3.5-4 hours everyday on MCAT. I can also do 6-8 hours per day on weekends and the one day per week that I don't have class. Obviously it's going to suck and I'll need to stay committed to it, but I will have the time.

 

[brisingr]

When most medical students talk about balance, they aren't typically referring to balancing a job, research, school, etc while studying for a major test. It's more about finding personal time to do the things you enjoy and not be stuck studying or working the entire time. If medical students only worked and/or studied, they would get burned out REAL fast.

If you want to take an analogous situation to studying for the MCAT when you're a medical student, it's studying for the boards. Let me tell you, barely anyone holds a full or part time job while studying for the boards. That's the focus of your life for that period of time where you'll easily sink in 8-10 hours per day studying. I would bet if you asked any medical student if they could balance a job while doing well on the boards, they'd say not likely. Heck, the vast majority of medical students while in school do not have a job or have time for one.

To me, the MCAT is the most important test you'll take. It sets everything up because once you get into a US medical school, chances are very good you'll become a doctor. While one can try to work, go to school, etc while studying for the MCAT, it just isn't a good idea considering the importance of this test. You're only setting up hurdles for yourself which you very well might not be able to jump. That said, if you have to work to eat, that's one thing. Yet, needlessly making the MCAT artificially harder by giving yourself multiple time consuming commitments and claiming you're "balancing" your life is foolish and isn't the type of balance people mean.

On SDN you'll constantly see people posting, "well I scored a 40 with a week of studying, so you don't need more than a couple weeks" or "hey I did well on the MCAT while working, researching, and going to school." While that may have worked for that one person, it probably doesn't apply to most. A stat to keep in mind while reading all these claims people on here make: about 75% of all test takers last year scored under 30.

I agree with you. Ideally you would study for this exam without any other major commitments like I did this past summer but the parental figures apparently set the expiration date for my mooching for the day after my exam lol. I'm hoping this time will be different though since the material will be much more fresh so I can focus more on my weaknesses and get in some more practice.

 

[geh926]

I'm doing the 3 month version currently and had a question. I read the chapters, get nearly all of the in-chapter questions right. However, when it comes to the tbr passages/ek1001, I'm only getting about half (or less) of the problems correct. So I'm having a hard time moving onto the next day/subject knowing I'm still weak at something I just covered. Any advice/tips on this? Will the Final 1/3 of the tbr passages/ practice exams really help me get these topics down? If not, how should I go about making time to go back into these topics to solidify them?

Thanks!

 

[MedPR]

I'm doing the 3 month version currently and had a question. I read the chapters, get nearly all of the in-chapter questions right. However, when it comes to the tbr passages/ek1001, I'm only getting about half (or less) of the problems correct. So I'm having a hard time moving onto the next day/subject knowing I'm still weak at something I just covered. Any advice/tips on this? Will the Final 1/3 of the tbr passages/ practice exams really help me get these topics down? If not, how should I go about making time to go back into these topics to solidify them?

Thanks!

My first thought was that you have the topics down, but you are either struggling with application or comprehending the passages. Figure out which one it is and go from there.

 

[geh926]

I think it's definitely application. I seem to grasp the passage pretty well, just when the problem comes around, I'm lost at where to start/how to solve it (especially for Physics/ Gen Chem). Any ideas on how to improve this?

 

[MedPR]

I think it's definitely application. I seem to grasp the passage pretty well, just when the problem comes around, I'm lost at where to start/how to solve it (especially for Physics/ Gen Chem). Any ideas on how to improve this?

I'm a non trad, but when I was in undergrad and when I took my first MCAT (I'm retaking it in 2012) I focused more on trying to memorize facts, rules, and patterns (for example: alkene+O3 = combination of ketones and aldehydes) rather than really understanding the concepts. I've yet to start studying for my retake, so I don't know what TBR is like, but I'd be willing to bet that memorizing the chapter is good enough to score pretty well on the in-chapter problems.

When you're doing content review, try to explain things in your head. For instance, anyone can memorize images of mitosis and name each step, but can you talk someone through what happens during and inbetween each step?

 

[Camy99]

LOL i am with you on this one. Man that BR Ochem chapter 1... 🙁

THIS. Read it today. Literally took me all day (with other things I was doing, BUT STILL).

So far I've been at ~4-5hrs a day; reading, passages, and breaks included.

 

[FightinUruKai]

Sitting on the other side (post SN2ed schedule /mcat sitting), I'll let you know my views.

I started studying in late April for my September 8 exam. I am a non trad, and haven't taken the core sciences in over 4 years. I took a diagnostic and scored around a 22. I had to work 50 hours a week, with a 1 and a 1/2 hour commute each day (round trip).

I studied 3-5 hours per day during the week, 6-10 hours per day on the weekends, with one day off of studying per week. I scored a 31S.

There were the usual unexpected circumstances (Oh no! Food poisoning! Oh no! My sister got engaged and is having a party I have to go to! Oh no! My lunch spilled all over my bag and I have to wait for my books to dry before I can read them!(CURSE YOU DELICIOUS CURRY!!)).

If I could do it over again, I would want more time. I didn't have enough time to go over as many problems as I would have wanted to, or review my responses in as much depth as I would have liked. Not necessarily more time each day, but I would have liked to have another month or so to take more breaks and reduce burnout, and to incorporate more studying. I really think if I had that extra time I could have done at least a couple points higher.

It's very difficult to work full time, and study 30+ hours a week, but it's necessary. Even if you don't think you are going to need that much prep, EXTRA TIME IS GOOD. If it is physically possible, plan an extra month of study time into your schedule MORE than you think you need. If you feel prepared, it gives you breathing room to slow down and gain confidence at the end.

It's not like you are going to say "Oh, no, I really don't need an extra point or two on my MCAT. What a waste."