Taking MCATs in January

[dkc12]

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[sesil]

First of all don't do too much MCAT related stuff in the summer/school year or else you may burn out come december/january. Second, the way they make the curve is pretty absurb and doesn't simply account for the january test takers but rather amalgamates data from previous sessions as well (test questions are used experimentally and then reused). All I am trying to say is don't worry about the curve.

 

[TheRealMD]

I wouldn't recommend taking a January test unless you'll been studying for a while (3 months+) simply because it takes time to absorb that much information.

Curve or no curve, compared to people taking it in later summer months, you'll have less time to prepare. Don't try to cheat the system.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

I did exactly what you propose: waited until winter break to study and sat for the Jan. MCAT. The fall semester for me was Cell Bio, OChem lab, Biochem, Physics II, and Bio Research.

After finals I was burned out and took a week to recoup. Then it was Christmas and with all the travel for family stuff I couldn't really study. I didn't really start working MCAT material until Jan 2. Then I was left with four weeks to cram. 😱

The only thing that bailed me out was my fall semester -- it was basically MCAT prep. General Chemistry was the one thing I wasn't current on. I didn't once think about the writing sample and that ended up biting me.

Can you do it and get a decent score? It's possible. Is it the smartest way to ensure you get a decent score? No way.

My point is, be honest about how much time you'll have over the break to study. It is not enough time to thoroughly cover all the material and take practice exams and adequately work on your weaknesses.

 

[TheRealMD]

To repeat what the poster about just said, at least one week between christmas and new years, you will get no studying done. I don't know anyone that could pull of studying for the MCAT in 3 weeks, and I'd rather not have someone try to pull it off and get burned.

 

[dkc12]

I think I miscommunicated my plans in my first post due to describing what I'm doing now while adding what I want to do later.

Here's the situation:

I don't know if I'm just not as intelligent as most people but when I took the basic pre-med courses, I just don't remember most of the material, especially for general chemistry and physics. I only remember orgo because I've done so well during the year but even a lot of the reactions I'm beginning to forget.

I go to a state school and just finished my sophmore year having taken these required courses along with the accompanied grade to give you an idea of what I probably do or don't know; they are listed in order that I've taken them more or less.

bio C+, A
chem B+, B+
physics A, A
orgo A, A

With that background information, I was wondering if it would be wise to go through with this plan:

I'm currently taking an MCAT prep course over the summer intended for the August MCAT but I'm not taking the exam in August. The course is with Examkrackers. My personal goal is to learn the material needed for the MCAT because I was the type of student who made my grades based on the curve aside from orgo.

I know I'm not the best standardized test taker so I'm banking on extended practicing as my main weapon. After I finish this prep course, I'm going to take a full semester of courses and activities while doing practice passages whenever I get a chance. I say whenever I get a chance because I'm usually pretty busy through the academic year and will probably find little time. When winter break starts I am plan on constantly doing mcat style practice exams, passages, and brushing up on trouble areas. Then I can worry just about the exam for a month while not trying to relearn all the fundamental concepts like most people do for the May to August exams.

This is where I'm looking for advice with insight based on experience.

Thanks in advanced.

 

[ryandote]

I think I miscommunicated my plans in my first post due to describing what I'm doing now while adding what I want to do later.

Here's the situation:

I don't know if I'm just not as intelligent as most people but when I took the basic pre-med courses, I just don't remember most of the material, especially for general chemistry and physics. I only remember orgo because I've done so well during the year but even a lot of the reactions I'm beginning to forget.

I go to a state school and just finished my sophmore year having taken these required courses along with the accompanied grade to give you an idea of what I probably do or don't know; they are listed in order that I've taken them more or less.

bio C+, A
chem B+, B+
physics A, A
orgo A, A

With that background information, I was wondering if it would be wise to go through with this plan:

I'm currently taking an MCAT prep course over the summer intended for the August MCAT but I'm not taking the exam in August. The course is with Examkrackers. My personal goal is to learn the material needed for the MCAT because I was the type of student who made my grades based on the curve aside from orgo.

I know I'm not the best standardized test taker so I'm banking on extended practicing as my main weapon. After I finish this prep course, I'm going to take a full semester of courses and activities while doing practice passages whenever I get a chance. I say whenever I get a chance because I'm usually pretty busy through the academic year and will probably find little time. When winter break starts I am plan on constantly doing mcat style practice exams, passages, and brushing up on trouble areas. Then I can worry just about the exam for a month while not trying to relearn all the fundamental concepts like most people do for the May to August exams.

This is where I'm looking for advice with insight based on experience.

Thanks in advanced.

If you need help with the material, Winter Break will probably not be enough time to study for the MCAT. If that is the case, it sounds kind of strange that you are doing EK over the summer but will wait 4 months to take the exam. Are you going to forget the material over that 4 months?

However, if you just need to bone up on everything and get your timing down, I think that 4-5 full-length practice exams plus some passage practice would "warm you up" plenty.

In my opinion, whether your plan is a good one completely depends on what you struggle with on the test. Find your MCAT weakness and leverage your advantages against that.

 

[arangatan]

I don't understand why people think that winter break won't be enough time. Isn't that exactly like taking the mcat in june? After finals are over, there are approximately 3-4 weeks left as well. Do most people take the mcat in july and that is still considered applying early?

I think your plan may not be a bad one. It just depends on whether you find the time to keep consistently practicing mcat stuff during the semester because I think if you don't you might forget what you learned over the summer. If you study at least a little bit every week, and then leave winter break for only full lengths, it might work.

 

[TheRealMD]

I don't understand why people think that winter break won't be enough time. Isn't that exactly like taking the mcat in june? After finals are over, there are approximately 3-4 weeks left as well. Do most people take the mcat in july and that is still considered applying early?

I think your plan may not be a bad one. It just depends on whether you find the time to keep consistently practicing mcat stuff during the semester because I think if you don't you might forget what you learned over the summer. If you study at least a little bit every week, and then leave winter break for only full lengths, it might work.

That's why I don't recommend taking it in June either if you are doing it in 3-4 weeks. Even MCATs during April and May become a bother because of classes but there's really no "perfect" time to take the MCAT unless you've already had your major pre-reqs done (bio, gen chem + ochem, phys) by your sophomore year so you can study that summer, take it in August, and be WAY ahead of the curve. Most people don't have that luxury however.