Study MCAT and do research?

[davethebarbarian]

I landed a summership program this summer working at a lab and I'd like to pursue a MD/PhD program but MD works as well. My PI is an MD/PhD and wants me to come back next summer and dive further and train me in research because his work is a long process and doesn't submit papers often and likes quality over quantity.

Here is the issue: My plan was to hardcore study 4 months next summer at home and maybe volunteer a little at my old lab. My parents refuse this idea, and want me to go back next summer. They base it upon my family friend who did research over the summer and got 520 on the mcat at the same time but hes a genius and I'm pretty sure I'm just average. I have a high gpa at a decent school I think, but I'm pretty sure its because I worked my ass off these couple of years.

Should I just accept it and do research 40 hours a week and study for the mcat together (I honestly don't know if I'm capable; I hate multitasking), or argue with my parents and try to convince them? They said if you come back, you will find a job and support yourself. They think I'm smart but I honestly don't know if I'm smart or not or do I have no confidence in myself. I did CARs practice but I got rekt and I know I have a ton of work to improve. This summer I'm just reading magazines, daily cars, CARS passages, and reviewing psych and soc peacefully.

I was thinking of taking a gap year anyways. Should I take the MCAT the summer after I get my degree? I can't study MCAT and take a whole course schedule in the fall or winter semester either because I take a full course schedule and like good challenging courses.
What should I do (just finished sophomore year)?

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[pms_testosterone]

Sorry that your parents aren't supportive of your plan. You're right that it's not possible to study MCAT with a full courseload.

As for studying for MCAT while working for 40 hours a week, that IS possible, but you sound unsure about it. Perhaps you could start studying a little bit during the preceding terms? Or negotiate a part-time job in the lab?

 

[bae2017]

I studied for about 10 weeks this past summer, during 8 of which I also did research full-time, and I ended up doing very well. That said, if you're unsure you should probably trust your gut. Try to see if you can negotiate something part-time. It might also be a good idea to take a diagnostic test sometime in the near future so that you can get a sense for how hard the test is and how prepared/underprepared you are.

 

[AdaptPrep]

I landed a summership program this summer working at a lab and I'd like to pursue a MD/PhD program but MD works as well. My PI is an MD/PhD and wants me to come back next summer and dive further and train me in research because his work is a long process and doesn't submit papers often and likes quality over quantity.

Here is the issue: My plan was to hardcore study 4 months next summer at home and maybe volunteer a little at my old lab. My parents refuse this idea, and want me to go back next summer. They base it upon my family friend who did research over the summer and got 520 on the mcat at the same time but hes a genius and I'm pretty sure I'm just average. I have a high gpa at a decent school I think, but I'm pretty sure its because I worked my ass off these couple of years.

Should I just accept it and do research 40 hours a week and study for the mcat together (I honestly don't know if I'm capable; I hate multitasking), or argue with my parents and try to convince them? They said if you come back, you will find a job and support yourself. They think I'm smart but I honestly don't know if I'm smart or not or do I have no confidence in myself. I did CARs practice but I got rekt and I know I have a ton of work to improve. This summer I'm just reading magazines, daily cars, CARS passages, and reviewing psych and soc peacefully.

I was thinking of taking a gap year anyways. Should I take the MCAT the summer after I get my degree? I can't study MCAT and take a whole course schedule in the fall or winter semester either because I take a full course schedule and like good challenging courses.
What should I do (just finished sophomore year)?

Ask yourself a couple of questions:
What do you want to do? and what consequences are you willing to live with?
Have you taken a practice MCAT to see where you're starting at and how much you need to invest in studying to get the score you want?

 

[AdaptPrep]

Sorry that your parents aren't supportive of your plan. You're right that it's not possible to study MCAT with a full courseload.

As for studying for MCAT while working for 40 hours a week, that IS possible, but you sound unsure about it. Perhaps you could start studying a little bit during the preceding terms? Or negotiate a part-time job in the lab?

Agreed. Taking practice exams early on and figuring out your strengths and weaknesses is a great approach!

 

[DameJulie]

I am currently studying for MCAT and doing research now, and my commitment is in-between part time to over-full time.

One problem is you really have to pull yourself together after 8 hours of research and jump into MCAT studying with a lucid brain.

If you are motivated enough (time pressure to apply being one factor), you can do this.

 

[davethebarbarian]

Ask yourself a couple of questions:
What do you want to do? and what consequences are you willing to live with?
Have you taken a practice MCAT to see where you're starting at and how much you need to invest in studying to get the score you want?

I just finished sophomore year ~3.9 gpa. Its been slow this summer in research, so I've been doing CARs every day and hopefully tackle some P/S. I've already decided that I'm going to go antisocial and drop social media and get a flip phone next summer. I will plan on taking a few free mcat exams from TPR.

 

[davethebarbarian]

I am currently studying for MCAT and doing research now, and my commitment is in-between part time to over-full time.

One problem is you really have to pull yourself together after 8 hours of research and jump into MCAT studying with a lucid brain.

If you are motivated enough (time pressure to apply being one factor), you can do this.

I've decided 16 weeks hoping to tackle 30-40 hours. Is that sufficient?

 

[aymar]

You're right that it's not possible to study MCAT with a full courseload.

Totally disagree with this. I studied for the MCAT, was in 15 hours, and wrote my honors thesis all in the same semester. Granted it sucked, but I ended up doing fine. Only you can answer what you are capable of. Personally, I think I could have scored better if I had no other commitments while studying. But that is totally dependent on the person.

 

[DameJulie]

I've decided 16 weeks hoping to tackle 30-40 hours. Is that sufficient?

It doesn't matter how much time you spent on research; what matters is how much time you have set aside to study for MCAT.

If you spend 30-40 hours per week on MCAT for 4 months following the schedule, that should be okay as long as you study "smart"

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

You're right that it's not possible to study MCAT with a full courseload.

Completely disagree. Took a full course load, worked part-time, and did about 5-8 hours of research a week and pulled an MCAT score 90%+. It's all about the time management and studying efficiently.

 

[raiderette]

I took a full courseload, including learning physics and biochemistry while prepping, and did well. Make a schedule, stick to it, test yourself to check mastery.