I need to know what were their experiences when they took the reviews of Kaplan and Princeton Review, which of the 2 is the best? What if it's worth paying between 1500 and 2000 dollars? I graduated about 8 years ago from my BS in Biology. 
The dilemma..need an advice
- Thread starter medtech36
- Start date
- Joined
- Apr 25, 2008
- Messages
- 229
- Reaction score
- 5
I took a Kaplan classroom based course. Overall, I thought their practice and review materials were decent. I really liked their enormous amount online library of practice problems, Topic sections, Full Length Exams, etc. I could really focus on improving problem areas this way. Classroom time was fairly inconsequential due to the volume of material covered my the MCAT grossly dwarfs the allotted class time. You're going to have to study on your own no matter how you prep. I did find the MCAT strategy sessions useful, but don't know if I couldn't have figured out a lot of that stuff on my own or read about it in other prep books.
The AAMC FL exams now come free with the PR or Kaplan courses, and are absolutely invaluable. Do them all, under timed conditions, leading up to your test date.
The AAMC FL exams now come free with the PR or Kaplan courses, and are absolutely invaluable. Do them all, under timed conditions, leading up to your test date.
I couldn't fit a review course into my work schedule, and I'm actually pretty happy I was forced to study on my own. I'd recommend just getting a some review books, and camping out in a bookstore and spending your money on the AAMC practice exams and coffee. Plenty of online resources to help with any area you are weak in, and the whole reference section is just a walk away. Just comes down to how you study best. I felt better prepared studying on my own. I did use the Kaplan MCAT gigantic all the knowledge on Earth study book as a foundation, and also bought some more practice exams. Best of luck!
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2008
- Messages
- 152
- Reaction score
- 4
I took the Kaplan online course, which I signed up for months in advance, but as these things usually go, I ended up preparing for the MCAT in the 7 weeks right before my exam date. It turned out well for me, but truth be told I don't think it matters so much what materials you use or courses you take. Everyone is looking for the magic bullet, some will swear by Kaplan or TPR, others Berkeley or ExamKrackers. I know people who are trying to use every one of these resources concurrently. I feel it all comes down to the work that you put into it, if you take it seriously you'll succeed no matter which choice you make; neither is wrong. If you feel that you need the structured environment of a class then by all means go for it, pick the one that fits your schedule best. If you think you're good at self-study then do that. What I found to be extremely helpful was doing lots of practice exams under real test conditions. I think more than anything that's what helped me. I didn't get bogged down in the nitty gritty details of content review either. FYI, the courses usually include access to the AAMC exams in their price. 
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2010
- Messages
- 4,007
- Reaction score
- 365
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2009
- Messages
- 111
- Reaction score
- 4
I took Kaplan's classroom course and had access to PR's course books. Kaplan's review books tend to undershoot and cover about 90% of the material you need to know for the MCAT. PR tends to overshoot and cover about 110% of the material you need to know for the MCAT.
It is possible to score in the 99th percentile regardless of what prep course you use if you're willing to put in the effort. However, don't expect either course to teach you everything you need to know while you're in the class or by doing the minimum required homework. If you want to do well, the majority of studying will be done by yourself, outside of class.
Use a classroom course if you feel that you might have problems with time management. Kaplan's classroom instruction was very... short and wasn't sufficient to understand the material. Best thing out of their courses were the practice materials they gave you. You will spend most of your time doing practice problems and going over them.
You might want to look into Exam Kracker's and The Berkley Review books/course materials as well.
It is possible to score in the 99th percentile regardless of what prep course you use if you're willing to put in the effort. However, don't expect either course to teach you everything you need to know while you're in the class or by doing the minimum required homework. If you want to do well, the majority of studying will be done by yourself, outside of class.
Use a classroom course if you feel that you might have problems with time management. Kaplan's classroom instruction was very... short and wasn't sufficient to understand the material. Best thing out of their courses were the practice materials they gave you. You will spend most of your time doing practice problems and going over them.
You might want to look into Exam Kracker's and The Berkley Review books/course materials as well.
