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Figured I'd start this one out. I'll be registering for the MCAT first thing tomorrow. Who else is taking it on this date? How do you all plan on studying over the school year?
Why are you guys shooting for anything less than a 45? 😉
Just signed up yesterday!
You've started a 3 month study schedule in November for a March test?
Talk about dedication
Making up for all those times that I should have been studying but wasn't. My GPA (3.5-3.6) ain't great so it doesn't leave me much of a choice.
GO BIG OR GO HOME!!!!
Aiming for 47W composite.
Practice tests? Those are for after content review is finished, and it's still NOVEMBER.
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Late November. I'm not following sn2ed, I'm going with a test early and often approach in conjunction with my content review.
Do you expect your tests to actually be predictive prior to completing content review? If you're just using them for practice questions that's a bit of a waste.
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similar story. i got a 23 with Princeton Review and did not take it seriously. Following Sn2ed's study schedule and hopefully the hard work pays off this time around.
So why use practice exams to do this? Why not just practice problems? Between the EK 1001 series, the TPRH Science Workbook (difficult to obtain, I realize), and the TBR books among other materials like Kaplan books, why use practice exams specifically to identify weaknesses?I'm using them to identify weak areas, which are actually turning out to be bits and pieces of stuff I've already covered. I don't really think it's wasteful- I have access to all ten gold standard exams as well as the free diagnostics and six very old Kaplan exams. My plan is to use these leading up to the aamc exams in the last weeks to really solidify my position. All told I've >25 exams available to me, of which I've taken five. Were I to jam all of my material into five weeks that's pretty much three tests every four days, burnout city for sure.
I'm hitting where I want to for the sciences but I've figured out what I need to focus on for the next few weeks. Rather than blanket all the material there is, I place more value on knowing what I don't know early on. Time and practice material well spent, if you ask me.
I should say that this isn't solely my idea- I'm taking to heart the practice makes perfect thinking that MD odyssey and Nick naylor wrote about in the 30+ thread.
So why use practice exams to do this? Why not just practice problems? Between the EK 1001 series, the TPRH Science Workbook (difficult to obtain, I realize), and the TBR books among other materials like Kaplan books, why use practice exams specifically to identify weaknesses?
Well, there are a few reasons in my mind, but to preface this I'd first say that I'm not dispensing with practice problems at all. I'm simply adding a lot more scrimmages to my training, as opposed to focusing mainly on drills and practice, if you like sports analogies. The reason for this is that when you practice problems chapter by chapter, you know exactly what you're going to see. You know exactly from which direction the puck is coming, and you can get ready for it. In a scrimmage, a game, or game 7 of the finals, it can come from anywhere.
Another reason is the type of practice that's available. I know there are tons of practice materials out there, and a wide range is available. But I think it's relatively rare to find passages that integrate various and wide ranging subject matter all at once, if they are even found in a passage. EK 1001 sciences are not in passage form, with the exception of the Bio, which is way easy and unrepresentative in my opinion. The others like BR may be good for individual subjects, but see the preceding paragraph.
A third reason uses another sports analogy. A lot of people like to liken the mcat to a marathon and say it's not a sprint (yadda yadda). In every marathon I've ever run I've run ok for the first 20 miles and then lost my pace and pretty much became unmotivated for the last six miles. You hit the wall. Life sucks, and you're trying to get through it. You happen to (bitterly, I might add) see folks striding by you without a care in the world. Those that aren't relay runners who started at mile 18 have actually run several marathons before, or it turns out they're ultramarathoners. I'm trying to overpractice, to get to the point where I can eat the MCAT for breakfast, not to be fazed by a 3 hour stretch of mentally trying questions. If you can run a 50 mile race, or are running your twentieth marathon, what's another 26.2?
Hows everyone doing with studying...Anyone else doing the Sn2ed schedule right now?
I am doing the Sn2ed Schedule. I started earlier this semester and I realized that it would not be possible to do that plus my class work and ExtraCurra and stuff. So I started this past Friday. I think the hardest part for me is going to be the physics because I did not have a good teacher and it takes me awhile to read the chapter and fully understand. I also plan on doing all of the 1001 in the physics book because that is a major weak area for me.
Oh and I'm taking 12 credits (of mostly art classes), working 16hrs/week, and still continuing to sell stuff in my online shop while studying.
Hopefully it will still be manageable. Anyone else doing other things while studying for the MCAT?
I started last week as well. I know what you mean about having other commitments and following the schedule. Im only taking one course next quarter so hopefully it wont be too bad. The hardest part for me is definitely physics too but hope with lots with of practice we should be good. Are you gonna study during holidays(Christmas, New Years) as well? Trying to decide what days are gonna be my break days
100 days people!
Starting today, technically I started a few months back off and on finished BR review books with the exception of Organic and Physics II , anyway forgot everything so starting from scratch and really dont feel like doing physics today , might just do bio , I need to get this test out of the way , I've put if off long enough 1 year....
Ok so the BR Gen Chem whooped my butt yesterday and for some reason it took me all day to do 🙁 those chapters are insanely long...I was thinking of splitting every chapter in half that way Ill have time to break it down all the way and fully understand a set of topics especially the physics ones...Of course that;ll make content review longer but this past semester was extremely rough taking Physics Ochem and Human Phys together in one semester..pulled out an A in all of em Thank God but It took a lot out of me.. I lost 6 pounds! So I really want to relax and spend time with family and also make time to study...I need opinions or advice please..Thanks yall!
I could never finish a bio chapter + passages in time, but I'm strong in chem so I spread out my bio work across 3 days 🙂 I don't see anything wrong with overlapping subjects for one day imo - you modify schedules to make them work for you.
Also, taking a day or two off for family might help you recover and be super pumped to get back to studying! Lol clearly I don't sound that gung ho about studying...I've always been of the mindset that quality >>>> quantity 😳
TBR is beyond dense How many hours do you average a day studying?
TBR is beyond dense How many hours do you average a day studying?
TBR is beyond dense How many hours do you average a day studying?
I could never finish a bio chapter + passages in time, but I'm strong in chem so I spread out my bio work across 3 days 🙂 I don't see anything wrong with overlapping subjects for one day imo - you modify schedules to make them work for you.
Also, taking a day or two off for family might help you recover and be super pumped to get back to studying! Lol clearly I don't sound that gung ho about studying...I've always been of the mindset that quality >>>> quantity 😳
Just rescheduled to this mcat date! Let's get this train rolling!
16 hours (13 of real classes, 3 research) + 10 hour/week teaching job, plus 6 hours/week working out.
I really don't think this is going to be unmanageable at all...
ohh the naive 😀
And you base this on?
Edit: Let me preempt a response. Do you think I haven't considered the issue of time? I've specifically chosen courses with the interest of time outside of class in mind. You don't know what those 16 hours are composed of, you don't know the nature of my teaching job, and you don't know what amount of free time I typically have that I can devote to MCAT prep. I don't appreciate being called naïve by someone who knows nothing about either the nature of my academic performance nor my time management. Please keep your comments to yourself unless you intend to be constructive or open-minded. If it's of real concern to you, check my MDApps in late April and see what score I get.
Lol someone sounds stressed. Ctfo man, he was only joshing you
Actually I'm quite enjoying the holiday season.
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