studying or practice the mcat?

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amberkas11309

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Since the MCAT is mostly reading a passage and answering questions regarding the passage...why is studying for it so important? wouldn't just doing a ton of practice passages be better than actually studying forever? anyone have an answer for this?
 
Since the MCAT is mostly reading a passage and answering questions regarding the passage...why is studying for it so important? wouldn't just doing a ton of practice passages be better than actually studying forever? anyone have an answer for this?

Um, doing a ton of practice passages IS studying.
 
Since the MCAT is mostly reading a passage and answering questions regarding the passage...why is studying for it so important? wouldn't just doing a ton of practice passages be better than actually studying forever? anyone have an answer for this?

I am of the same mindset, but I also realize that there are

a.) standalone questions
b.) general assumptions of knowledge that you've had

Specifically, Phys I, Ochem I, Gen Chem I, and Bio I. Small amounts of cell bio, biochemistry, and genetics would also be very useful (specifically, cellular doctrine, genetic processes, properties of amino acids, inheritance, metabolism, and the endocrine system).
 
Like others said, you need both.

You need a very solid knowledge of the material in order to apply it to broadly to concepts you may never have seen (which are actually fairly simple on the inside).

You also need to know how the MCAT will phrase questions and what kind of answers it's looking for.

Practice tests/passages/questions IS studying.
 
1. There are stand alone questions.
2. Not all of us paid attention in physics.

👍

Not all of us remember everything from physiology either (yeah, I know it's not a med school pre-req, but it sure helped with the MCAT!).
 
of u know the material, you won't need to read the passage - or atleast most of it (saves time)

there are stand alone q's.

most passage questions require extra knowledge to actually answer the questions.
 
👍

Not all of us remember everything from physiology either (yeah, I know it's not a med school pre-req, but it sure helped with the MCAT!).

Definitely agree with this. I took Physiology in the fall did well and got an A and then took the Kaplan Practice Exam after the new year and I couldn't tell you how many times I came across a question related to physiology that I just couldn't remember. It was quite a sad moment for me.
 
they are both very important considering the fact that there are discrete questions ("stand alone" questions). also, knowing some of the background knowledge may help understand some passages a little better
 
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