The MCAT is so easy it is a joke...

[BennieBlanco]

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Let me start off by saying I haven't taken the MCAT.

I just wanted to offer everyone some perspective, in pursuing the site I read a great post called, "worst/lowest point in medical school MS1"

Here are so quotes:

Funny that people say studying for Step 1 was the worst. I was definitely very relaxed during that time. I knew I'd put in the hours in M1 and M2, so I just needed to brush up. I studied about 8.5 hrs/day, exercised 6x/wk, and my parents fed me great food!

I thought Step 1 studying was the worst because it wasn't relaxed (isn't relaxed, cuz it's not done yet). I did well my first two years and was in the top 1/2 of my class, but I do (did) not feel well-prepared for Step 1 material, so unfortunately, for me, it was more than simply reviewing or brushing up on material. I felt like I was learning under pressure vs. reviewing, which is something that is a lot more difficult. I'm studying close to 12 hrs per day and doing nothing else and nobody is helping me, least of all the those who you'd think might be able to. Other than that it's going okay.

Step 1 is the worst. I only had 5 weeks. 7 days a week with 10+ hrs a day studying. I only took 1 day off (the day before the test). What made it so bad was having no weekend, nothing to look forward to. I don't think I'll ever be able to focus like that again...

Either studying for step 1 (we got 4 weeks, which, for me, consisted of 12-16 hour days in front of a book/computer cramming information, some of which was completely new to me... thanks lecturers who felt that presenting your esoteric research was more important than giving me the pathology/pathogenesis of COMMON CONDITIONS)

Dreaming/hallucinating about body parts and names. Getting an email from the dean saying they are concerned about my recent performance and they would like to talk to me about how they can help <--- low point. Step was much easier by comparison. Only 5 weeks. 8am to 6pm, then 8pm to 10pm every day. No late nights. No other demands on your time. Simply focus on one test.

This was not a selective sample, I just posted the first 5 people who listed how they studied.

Here is a summary of Step 1 study:

- 8.5 hrs a day (6 days a week) - 43 hrs a week
- 12 hrs a day - 50-72 hrs a week
- 10 hrs a day (7 days a week) - 70 hrs a week
- 12-16 hrs a day - 60 -80+ hrs a week
- 12 hrs a day - 60 hrs a week

Now if I go into a "How I scored 30+ on the MCAT" post, I will typically find people studying 3-5 hrs a day for a few months. I rarely if ever see more than 5 hrs a day (I do realize that people have other things to do).

It is just interesting to see that the bar to ENTER medical school is a lot lower than the bar to be excellent in medical school. Remember, these were randomly selected all inclusive quotes. I didn't chose the people who studied a lot. They are easily working twice or three times harder than the people taking the MCAT.

Interesting, isn't it?

Now lets hope I don't get a 22N on my MCAT. lol.

 

[engineeredout]

Interesting, isn't it.

Nope.





Big surprise, med school is harder than studying for the MCAT. Thats like you made a thread going "OMFG KINDERGARZDEN IZ HARDER THAN CRAPPING YOUR DIAPERS IN TEH CRIB!@!"

Things get progressively harder, you don't suddenly get thrust into it. This is not a new concept.

 

[0Complications]

I think what's interesting is that you're calling an exam you probably haven't even seen before a joke.

You should save this post and revisit it after your first practice exam.

 

[Doodl3s]

Well yea, if you go back to high school and tell them you're studying everyday for 5 hours a day for the MCAT... they'll be like "YOU'RE CRAZY"... they're probably doing 3 hours every other day for the SAT.... Work as you get older gets exponentially harder. But you grow up too and adjust.

 

[BennieBlanco]

I think what's interesting is that you're calling an exam you probably haven't even seen before a joke.

You should save this post and revisit it after your first practice exam.

Don't assume, I've taken practice exams and done well. I just haven't take the actual exam.

This post is more to encourage the people studying to study hard, rather than to upset the people who didn't do well on it.

 

[BennieBlanco]

Nope.





Big surprise, med school is harder than studying for the MCAT. Thats like you made a thread going "OMFG KINDERGARZDEN IZ HARDER THAN CRAPPING YOUR DIAPERS IN TEH CRIB!@!"

Things get progressively harder, you don't suddenly get thrust into it. This is not a new concept.

You over simplify. Yes it is harder, that isn't the interesting thing.

Ochem was harder than Chem. I wasn't surprised.

This is like comparing a 4th grade math test to a Calculus exam in college. Yes, it is harder (we get that). I'm talking about the large difference in difficultly.

Like the NBA vs College basketball.

If you didn't become a college basketball player, you really never had a chance at the NBA.

 

[engineeredout]

You over simplify. Yes it is harder, that isn't the interesting thing.

Ochem was harder than Chem. I wasn't surprised.

This is like comparing a 4th grade math test to a Calculus exam in college. Yes, it is harder (we get that). I'm talking about the large difference in difficultly.

Like the NBA vs College basketball.

If you didn't become a college basketball player, you really never had a chance at the NBA.

Or... maybe its like comparing a college level standardized exam to a med school level standardized exam

 

[BennieBlanco]

Or... maybe its like comparing a college level standardized exam to a med school level standardized exam

lol. Pre-med students on this site are so funny. They have the proper mix of arrogance and doughebaggery.👍 Let me guess, you want to be a surgeon and you really have the desire to help people!?

 

[Pinkertinkle]

step 1 is a paper tiger, if you do well on the MCAT you can do well on Step 1.

 

[ziggyd0c]

Well yea, if you go back to high school and tell them you're studying everyday for 5 hours a day for the MCAT... they'll be like "YOU'RE CRAZY"... they're probably doing 3 hours every other day for the SAT.... Work as you get older gets exponentially harder. But you grow up too and adjust.

lol people study for the SAT?

 

[osumc2014]

Whatever, the MCAT is really easy...I'm just really dumb tho

 

[chemnerd89]

lol people study for the SAT?

No one studies for the SAT

 

[jackson1]

No one studies for the SAT

haha I sure didn't

 

[LuciusVorenus]

haha I sure didn't

If you study you get a lower grade.

 

[ensuii]

From my understanding, the USLME tests content knowledge. For me, the MCAT was more about scientific reasoning given the the testtaker has a basic science knowledge. Given that, I think that the reason why people don't put in as many hours into studying for the MCAT is because its generally harder to improve thinking methods than it is internalizing information. All in all thought, I don't think it's wise to take any sort of sampling of hours spent studying to say anything about the difficulty of either test. Let's just say they're both relatively important and you should try your best on them. Just IMO.

 

[BrainBuff]

Wow, everything I have heard about studentdoctor.net is true. You people need a dose of something. What a nasty group..

 

[osumc2014]

Wow, everything I have heard about studentdoctor.net is true. You people need a dose of something. What a nasty group..

What do you mean...are you not a long term member yourself?

 

[TehDoc]

Just make sure when you get your results you post that 38+ score OP. 👍

 

[BennieBlanco]

From my understanding, the USLME tests content knowledge. For me, the MCAT was more about scientific reasoning given the the testtaker has a basic science knowledge. Given that, I think that the reason why people don't put in as many hours into studying for the MCAT is because its generally harder to improve thinking methods than it is internalizing information. All in all thought, I don't think it's wise to take any sort of sampling of hours spent studying to say anything about the difficulty of either test. Let's just say they're both relatively important and you should try your best on them. Just IMO.

Impressive answer, and agreed.

Yet I don't think it would be impossible to improve reasoning abilities drastically. I think it is fair to put SOME weight on hours spent on an exam and difficulty.

If a test took 1000 hours to prepare or 100 hours, I would in general assume the one test is harder than the other. Just like I assume that a 100k car is better than a 20k car (again, not always the case but in general).

 

[BennieBlanco]

Wow, everything I have heard about studentdoctor.net is true. You people need a dose of something. What a nasty group..

This is kind of funny, seeing as you joined almost 2 years ago and have made 380+ posts. Like a sophomore at your college saying, "everything I've heard about this school is true." response, "dude, you've been going here 2 years." lol

I like studentdoctor.net. I learn a lot from these people.

Q of Quix'something is great. And many others. As for there being some bad apples, welcome to the real world. No matter where you go there's going to be occassional conflict. It always amuses me when people are shocked at conflict, as if in life it doesn't exist. Go watch the nature chanel and see if life involves conflict and opposition.

I've learned more about pre-med process on this site than I could by buying 20 books about preparing for this career.

Good luck to everyone.

Just make sure when you get your results you post that 38+ score OP. 👍

yeah no kidding. I guess the whole motivation on this post is just to keep the long term perspective that we are at the bottom of mount everest.

 

[Vanguard23]

The MCAT is no joke. It's very important.

 

[BennieBlanco]

Total side note, but on another thread someone was talking about the credibility of Yahoo Answers and there are a few hilarious links everyone must watch if they haven't.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/i...uw6bxrus.Bd.;_ylv=3?qid=20080417100634AAc2i8V

and

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll-lia-FEIY

the you tube video is one of the funniest things I've seen in a while.

 

[BlueElmo]

MCAT is hard. What the hell are you guys smoking?

 

[Evergrey]

MCAT is very difficult, for its level. Remember that you have yet more schooling to go through, through which you will become smarter and more knowledgeable. Being able to succeed at the level of the MCAT is impressive. Succeeding at the USMLE may be more difficult, but that does not make succeeding at the MCAT easy. Remember, many people who were taking the MCAT with you, also take the USMLE....

 

[Doodl3s]

lol people study for the SAT?

No one studies for the SAT

haha I sure didn't

If you study you get a lower grade.

The MCAT is no joke. It's very important.

I Lol'd at all these

 

[caniac]

If you study you get a lower grade.

so I took it once, got a score of X. My mom enrolls me in basically SAT Bootcamp, where they "guarantee" their strategies will get me a perfect score or whatever. 12 weeks, 4 days a week. The second time around I get a score of X+40.

BOOYAH! 🙄🙄

wish my folks would've saved the money and put it in their 401k...and then removed it on November 18th, 2008.

 

[Trexate]

Try to refrain from feeding the trolls.

 

[NickNaylor]

Zomg Bennie tell me how you do good?!?!!

 

[zpiff]

Well yea, if you go back to high school and tell them you're studying everyday for 5 hours a day for the MCAT... they'll be like "YOU'RE CRAZY"... they're probably doing 3 hours every other day for the SAT.... Work as you get older gets exponentially harder. But you grow up too and adjust.

No one studies that much for the SAT

 

[BennieBlanco]

MCAT is very difficult, for its level. Remember that you have yet more schooling to go through, through which you will become smarter and more knowledgeable. Being able to succeed at the level of the MCAT is impressive. Succeeding at the USMLE may be more difficult, but that does not make succeeding at the MCAT easy. Remember, many people who were taking the MCAT with you, also take the USMLE....

I pretty much agree.

 

[acridknight]

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[KeyzerSoze]

It is just interesting to see that the bar to ENTER medical school is a lot lower than the bar to be excellent in medical school. Remember, these were randomly selected all inclusive quotes.

Randomly selected from a non-random sample... impressive.

As for your first point, it's way off. Most "pre-meds" who take the MCAT don't get into medical school, at least on their first attempt. The vast majority of US medical students who take the USMLE pass it and match into a residency position.

 

[bodonid]

this thread makes me sad inside.

 

[bamtuba]

MCAT is hard. What the hell are you guys smoking?

Nah. I agree with the OP. 🙄

THE MCAT IS EASY!!! (good luck mastering it though)

The only joke about it is the one that's on us. 👍

 

[bamtuba]

this thread makes me sad inside.

Seriously.

I think Mr. Rogers would have had his hands full making a song about SDN...

 

[austinap]

Sure, the MCAT isn't a joke, but there are also much harder things. A PhD qualifying exam comes to mind 🙂

Even relatively, I spent much more time preparing for that than the MCAT, and I did fairly well on my MCAT.

 

[Pills Of Soap]

Like the NBA vs College basketball.

If you didn't become a college basketball player, you really never had a chance at the NBA.

Kobe? LeBron?

 

[zogoto]

I have only taken the MCAT, but as a previous poster said, you can't really compare the difficulty of the two. You may study for the MCAT for 10 weeks at 4 hours a day = 280 hours or so, and for the USMLE for 8 weeks at 10 hours a day = 560 hours, but that does not mean the USMLE is harder.

It would take 560 hours to walk 1500 miles. Which would you say is harder then, the MCAT or walking 1500 miles? I would say the MCAT. With the MCAT, there is stress that you have to perform well or else you may not get into medical school. Almost everyone that is studying for the USMLE knows that with enough work, they will eventually pass. With the MCAT, when you start studying, you literally have no idea where you will end up as far as your final score goes, and if it's too low, you're in trouble.

In addition, it is much harder to increase critical thinking skills. I took the MCAT diagnostic cold and got a 35, and with 8 weeks of studying, raised it to 39. This may be an irregularity, but most people increase their scores from day 0 of studying to test day by LESS for the MCAT than you would for the boards, I'm guessing, because, like walking 1500 miles, studying for the boards is more like a straight road: you study and study and study and eventually you're there. The MCAT is like a winding road where you don't know where the end is: it may even end up being where you started.

 

[DrYoda]

I'll admit it: I was kind of disappointed by the MCAT. I didn't even have to use my scrap paper.

 

[BennieBlanco]

Kobe? LeBron?

Touche my friend touche.

I have only taken the MCAT, but as a previous poster said, you can't really compare the difficulty of the two. You may study for the MCAT for 10 weeks at 4 hours a day = 280 hours or so, and for the USMLE for 8 weeks at 10 hours a day = 560 hours, but that does not mean the USMLE is harder.

It would take 560 hours to walk 1500 miles. Which would you say is harder then, the MCAT or walking 1500 miles? I would say the MCAT. With the MCAT, there is stress that you have to perform well or else you may not get into medical school. Almost everyone that is studying for the USMLE knows that with enough work, they will eventually pass. With the MCAT, when you start studying, you literally have no idea where you will end up as far as your final score goes, and if it's too low, you're in trouble.

In addition, it is much harder to increase critical thinking skills. I took the MCAT diagnostic cold and got a 35, and with 8 weeks of studying, raised it to 39. This may be an irregularity, but most people increase their scores from day 0 of studying to test day by LESS for the MCAT than you would for the boards, I'm guessing, because, like walking 1500 miles, studying for the boards is more like a straight road: you study and study and study and eventually you're there. The MCAT is like a winding road where you don't know where the end is: it may even end up being where you started.

First of all, I must walk way faster than you because I can pull 1500 miles in only 480 hours.

So I guess we've decided the MCAT is like running a 5 minute mile, which everyone can't do. And step 1 is like finishing a half-marathon, which most can do if they put in the time.

 

[BennieBlanco]

As for your first point, it's way off. Most "pre-meds" who take the MCAT don't get into medical school, at least on their first attempt. The vast majority of US medical students who take the USMLE pass it and match into a residency position.

But this doesn't make sense.

People taking step 1 are a specific sample. They are students who have degrees and already have spent time, effort and money to enter medical school including doing a satisfactory job on the MCAT.

People taking the MCAT have graduated high school and there is no guarantee they will even graduate college.

So to compare those 2 groups with % would not make much sense.

 

[zogoto]

Touche my friend touche.


First of all, I must walk way faster than you because I can pull 1500 miles in only 480 hours.

So I guess we've decided the MCAT is like running a 5 minute mile, which everyone can't do. And step 1 is like finishing a half-marathon, which most can do if they put in the time.

I think that's a fair analogy. I'm no athlete, but I'm guessing that if you're one of the people that can get a 5 min mile, it wouldn't take as much training to get there as it would to finish a marathon or half-marathon, even though almost anyone that can get a 5 min mile (i.e. get a good MCAT score) can, with enough training, finish a marathon.

 

[usermike8500]

MCAT is very difficult, for its level.....

Honestly, I bet the You Smile will be easier than the MCAT. I'd much rather memorize a massive amount of info than worry about understanding scientific texts on the fly or analyzing esoteric philosphical verbal passages with only 1.2 minutes per question.

 

[KeyzerSoze]

But this doesn't make sense.

People taking step 1 are a specific sample. They are students who have degrees and already have spent time, effort and money to enter medical school including doing a satisfactory job on the MCAT.

People taking the MCAT have graduated high school and there is no guarantee they will even graduate college.

So to compare those 2 groups with % would not make much sense.

Good point. Remind me again why you started a thread comparing them?

 

[Revilla]

If you go to the Step 1 forum, you'll see a thread that compares MCAT scores to Step 1 scores. Some high-scorers on the MCAT do badly on Step 1 and some very low-scorers on the MCAT (<24) end up doing well on Step 1.

Different people have different strengths. Some med school seniors have said they would rather take Step 1 10 more times than sit for the MCAT again. Others believe the MCAT was easier. It all depends on what kinds of tests you're good at taking.

 

[SketchsaurusRex]

For me, the MCAT is way more intimidating than difficult. Really AAMC, you want me to take a test that will pave the way for my future career? Fair enough, but it's a timed test that's based on info i should have "learned" over the last 3 years? Wut, I have 30 minutes to provide a essay on some random topic in hopes that it will project my significance as a human being? No Thank you. I'm a data dumper, a slow reader, a closet vegetarian, and a generally stupid person. FTS, I'm going to get some burritos...

 

[stickshift]

MCAT is very difficult, for its level. Remember that you have yet more schooling to go through, through which you will become smarter and more knowledgeable. Being able to succeed at the level of the MCAT is impressive. Succeeding at the USMLE may be more difficult, but that does not make succeeding at the MCAT easy. Remember, many people who were taking the MCAT with you, also take the USMLE....

MCAT was easy in general. Step 1 was hard. Sorry to burst your bubble.

 

[MrBurns10]

It would take 560 hours to walk 1500 miles. Which would you say is harder then, the MCAT or walking 1500 miles? I would say the MCAT. With the MCAT, there is stress that you have to perform well or else you may not get into medical school. Almost everyone that is studying for the USMLE knows that with enough work, they will eventually pass. With the MCAT, when you start studying, you literally have no idea where you will end up as far as your final score goes, and if it's too low, you're in trouble.

While I'm not saying that the MCAT wasn't hard because it was for that stage in the game, what you said in bold does not paint an accurate picture of how the MCAT compares to step 1. The MCAT you can take as many times as you want, though obviously you want to keep it under 3 if possible, and other things on your application can help compensate for a lower-than-ideal score.

Step 1 is a one-shot thing unless you fail. And you do NOT want to fail. And you don't want to just pass either. The pressure of wanting to go into a competitive specialty and knowing you get one shot at this test that will be the most important part of your residency application is far greater than anything I had ever experienced in school.

Again, I'm not saying the MCAT isn't hard. It is. I'm sure I was naive to think step 1 was the hardest test I'd ever have to study for, what with specialty boards and all that in the future. But I just wanted to point out the flaw in your argument.

 

[BlueElmo]

While I'm not saying that the MCAT wasn't hard because it was for that stage in the game, what you said in bold does not paint an accurate picture of how the MCAT compares to step 1. The MCAT you can take as many times as you want, though obviously you want to keep it under 3 if possible, and other things on your application can help compensate for a lower-than-ideal score.

Step 1 is a one-shot thing unless you fail. And you do NOT want to fail. And you don't want to just pass either. The pressure of wanting to go into a competitive specialty and knowing you get one shot at this test that will be the most important part of your residency application is far greater than anything I had ever experienced in school.

Again, I'm not saying the MCAT isn't hard. It is. I'm sure I was naive to think step 1 was the hardest test I'd ever have to study for, what with specialty boards and all that in the future. But I just wanted to point out the flaw in your argument.

So is Step 1 more of a thinking/critical reasoning test or memorization test? MCAT was bit of both (though heavy emphasis on reasoning and critical thinking IMO), and I was wondering if the Boards is similar in content style.

 

[MrBurns10]

So is Step 1 more of a thinking/critical reasoning test or memorization test? MCAT was bit of both (though heavy emphasis on reasoning and critical thinking IMO), and I was wondering if the Boards is similar in content style.

The emphasis on Step 1 is definitely more memorization with some critical thinking mixed in. The reason it's so difficult is, besides the large amount of information the questions can be pulled from, most of the questions require 2-3 steps.

For example, rather than ask you what drug you would use to treat condition X, they would ask:

"A patient presents with symptoms Y and Z and physical exam finding W. What is the mechanism of action of the drug you would use to treat this condition?"

So you have to correctly diagnose --> come up with drug of choice --> remember its mechanism of action. There are more critical-thinking based questions but it's all based on content you have to know. Hence the 12 hour study days.