Sleep early and wake up at 6 to take 8 am test or ...

[reese07]

sleep later and wake up at 11 to take the 1 pm test? I dont think worrying about the test would affect me because I'd have the same time to get ready since I wake up 2 hours before the test. I want to take the aug 20 test but they only offer 1pm but the aug 19 test offers 8 am. Is it worth losing a day to study so I can take the 8 am? Which method would my brain work best at?

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[Honze55]

you want to take the test under the same conditions/times you have been studying and taking practice exams.

If you have been studying in the afternoon, take the test in the afternoon.

Your bodies internal clock has more of an effect than you might think.

 

[ru4real1666]

Agreed.

Depends on you and how alert you are in the morning. If you're used to waking up and taking the practice AAMC/FLs then do the morning. If you're used to the afternoon then do that. Habitual learning plays a bigger role than you think.

 

[tartrate]

Habitual learning plays a bigger role than you think.

I'm curious now. You must be referencing to something you've learned about when saying this? Or at least a personal experience(s)? Care to elaborate?

 

[cliffhuxtableDO]

at this point you can prepare yourself for either time. i have taken both times (unfortunately haha) and i found the 8 am to be better because you just get it over with early in the day and there isnt so much time to sit around and think about it prior to the test.

i'm not usually a morning person but the week leading up to the 8 a.m. test i woke up every day and took a FL as close to 8 as possible. a couple days i waited til about nine or so until things quieted down at the house, but i was prepared to function at an MCAT level the day of my test. the anxiety of the test will give you a little adrenaline and you'll be as alert as ever.

 

[NickNaylor]

Do you prefer mornings or afternoons? Are you usually groggy if you wake up early?

It's really not that big of a decision. Go with whatever you'll be more comfortable with.

 

[ru4real1666]

Well tartrate, most research/studies show that studying at the same time and place everyday is more effective than changing places due to associative learning and cellular/body memory which allows your body to get into the "right state of mind", allowing you to be more ready to learn. Obviously, you want to be as uniform as you can so you want to study frequently, same location, same time, wake up/sleep the same time everyday, etc so your body can get used to your schedule. If you do the same for the MCATs and realize the afternoon is when your body is telling you it is energized and focus because you're just not a morning person, then you take the afternoon MCAT. If your body tells you do better on practice tests in the morning, then take the morning MCAT. Studying efficiently and test taking are obviously skills one develops over a lifetime so just by look at your own sleep schedule, test performance, level of alertness, etc you should be able to tell which test is right for you.

Personally, since all the SATs, SAT IIs, and other standardized tests in high school were in the morning, I am very used to the morning test and feel as though I would kill myself if I had to wait around for the afternoon test.