Thoughts on teaching MCAT for Kaplan, princeton review, EK, while in med school

[Medee]

Hey all,

I was wondering if anyone has taught or knows anyone who was taught an MCAT review course while being a medical student. I am going to be a 1st yr MS and was considering teaching a few hrs/wk for Kaplan for some pocket change/gas money. Anyone think this is too demanding/takes too much time away from ones own studying? Is there a better/ less demanding p/t job with decent pay?

Please, any advice, especially from those who have taught while in med school, is really appreciated!

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[MadHopsMD]

Hey all,

I was wondering if anyone has taught or knows anyone who was taught an MCAT review course while being a medical student. I am going to be a 1st yr MS and was considering teaching a few hrs/wk for Kaplan for some pocket change/gas money. Anyone think this is too demanding/takes too much time away from ones own studying? Is there a better/ less demanding p/t job with decent pay?

Please, any advice, especially from those who have taught while in med school, is really appreciated!

I thought teaching Kaplan during undergrad was horrible. I cant imagine doing it during med school. However, if you are a natural teacher, it might be worth it....or if you have taught the course several times before. Either way, make sure you are fair to the students...when I took the course I could tell a unprepared teacher from a prepared one easily. That's why when I taught I went all out preparing for each lecture...it was time consuming for me personally, thats why I will not teach when I start med school.

 

[alwaysaangel]

I've been teaching for PR for a little over a year, but I was out of school. The first session is HARD. Because you're writing all your lecture notes. Subsequent lectures are still time-consuming because you need to go over the notes and know what you're going to say.

I wouldn't recommend teaching your first class during medical school, if you can teach a class over summer and get your notes in gear and then do it - it will probably be worth while.

I plan to teach one class at a time (like 1 session a week) when I'm in school. Mainly so I can proctor (AWESOME gig! Sit and study and tell students to stop every hour - it pays like 15/hr). But since I've already taught the course 4 times it should be easy for me.

Definitely don't do Kaplan. One teacher does everything - that would be WAYYY to time-consuming. If you want to do anything at all choose a program that you teach one subject.

 

[artaxerxes]

I've been teaching for PR for a little over a year, but I was out of school. The first session is HARD. Because you're writing all your lecture notes. Subsequent lectures are still time-consuming because you need to go over the notes and know what you're going to say.

I wouldn't recommend teaching your first class during medical school, if you can teach a class over summer and get your notes in gear and then do it - it will probably be worth while.

I plan to teach one class at a time (like 1 session a week) when I'm in school. Mainly so I can proctor (AWESOME gig! Sit and study and tell students to stop every hour - it pays like 15/hr). But since I've already taught the course 4 times it should be easy for me.

Definitely don't do Kaplan. One teacher does everything - that would be WAYYY to time-consuming. If you want to do anything at all choose a program that you teach one subject.

If anyone has experience with Kaplan, how competitive are the teaching positions for MCAT? Once you get the position, how much training occurs and after that how much work can you generally find? Do you just assign you hours or can you request specific "shifts" and additional sessions? Finally how's the pay

 

[SomeDoc]

If anyone has experience with Kaplan, how competitive are the teaching positions for MCAT? Once you get the position, how much training occurs and after that how much work can you generally find? Do you just assign you hours or can you request specific "shifts" and additional sessions? Finally how's the pay

Just my opinion

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=5272649&postcount=3

Training is a waste of time, you get specific shifts- number of shifts depends on how many classes (ie courses) you are qualified to teach. Pay for instructors is $17-19/hr for in class, ~$10-11/hr for out of class lecture prep time.

Do it in the summer if you want (not while in school- your MS grades are of utmost importance, not the MCAT scores of med school applicants). Classes are in the evening- so this way you can couple it with doing 9-5 research in a lab, if you'd like (can help emphasize teaching skills- helps build an academically oriented CV)

RE competitiveness- depends on how many qualified people in the area are applying for the position- so this varies depending on location. Cutoff min is 90th %ile MCAT score for the section you want to teach. You can also take a Kaplan test to qualify.

 

[QofQuimica]

If anyone has experience with Kaplan, how competitive are the teaching positions for MCAT? Once you get the position, how much training occurs and after that how much work can you generally find? Do you just assign you hours or can you request specific "shifts" and additional sessions? Finally how's the pay

The answers to your questions depend on the individual center and manager. If you're in a center with a shortage of teachers, obviously you'll get paid more and have a chance to work more hours even from the getgo. Pay is generally commensurate with your experience and education level; as a PhD who started teaching for Kaplan ten years ago, naturally I get paid more than a college senior who is teaching his or her very first class. You also get performance reviews, and these can affect your pay as well. One thing that anyone who is teaching for Kaplan long-term should know is that in my experience, you have to explicitly ask them for your yearly raise. I have gotten one every time I've asked, but I've always had to ask; it has never just been given to me automatically.

OP, I continued teaching for Kaplan during my first year of med school and plan to teach a little bit during my second year as well. But my schedule is cut way back compared to what I did before starting med school. I usually taught twice per week on average in grad school; last year I taught once per week, and this year I'll be teaching only about once per month, not counting some tutoring that I'm also doing. If you've never taught before, I agree with the previous posters who said that during med school is a bad time to start. If you want to do it anyway in spite of our advice not to do it, then at least wait to start until after you take your first set of exams so that you have a better idea of what kind of time you need to put into doing well in school before you take on a time-consuming EC like teaching. to you.

 

[Medee]

Thanks guys for the much appreciated advice! Considering all of the advice, I think I will wait until after my 1st set of exams before I make any commitment to teaching.

 

[lord_jeebus]

I taught MCAT for Kaplan during undergrad, and had a good time, but I discovered in med school that private tutoring is easier and pays more. As a med student, it shouldn't be that hard to find a rich and paranoid premed to exploit educate.

 

[QuinnB]

taught for the PR while in undergrad and throughout all of med school (every year except third year). Loved it.

Like it was said earlier, It was easier b/c i had many of the lesson plans done, but I did cross train in other areas during med school to pick up more classes.

There was a lot of room to move up in the company and so I did and get paid pretty well at this point. Jeebs is right though, tutoring is the way to go. Eventually tutoring for the USMLE will make you wonder why you ever kept on going through medical school (some people pay 150-200 dollars an hour).

The payment also varies by location (manhattan pays way more than cleveland).

It can definitely be done and if you like teaching it is great for your cv.

 

[Noeljan]

Thanks guys for the much appreciated advice! Considering all of the advice, I think I will wait until after my 1st set of exams before I make any commitment to teaching.

don't do it!!!!!!

 

[Slide]

I'm in the same boat as OP. I wanted to teach for Kaplan over the summer but they kept pushing off my training till just now. Can you guys go into specifics why Kaplan got in the way of med school? How much out-of-class time did you need to prep each class and precisely how time consuming was it?

 

[SomeDoc]

I'm in the same boat as OP. I wanted to teach for Kaplan over the summer but they kept pushing off my training till just now. Can you guys go into specifics why Kaplan got in the way of med school? How much out-of-class time did you need to prep each class and precisely how time consuming was it?

You can expect to spend from 1/2 an hour to an hour or more for prep time, if it's your first time preparing. You're essentially preparing for three hours of classroom work. You can do it in less time, but it all depends on how well you want to be prepared for explaining any questions, wrong answer choices from multiple choice exercises, etc. If you teach one subject, say physics, you'll be scheduled for approx. 3 hours per week for several weeks. Now if you teach more subjects, then expect to teach several three hour sessions per week, and also, some of your weekends will be taken up proctoring mcat practice tests. Some can study during this time, but you have to be attentive, etc., so it can still be distracting.

 

[MeowMix]

Prep time is the killer. Kaplan is even more of a killer b/c they keep coming up with bogus "new" techniques and want you to learn and teach from their specific curriculum, which means even more prep time. You get paid for prep time really only once, and then not enough after that. Do not underestimate how long this will take!

Also, with the new CBT format, unless you took the test in that format, you will be lacking some important experience to share. A good teacher is a good teacher, but the best teacher knows the MCAT's specific little tricks and secrets.

Unless I had a lot of MCAT teaching experience, I would look for a lower-stress job that paid more by the hour.

 

[Medee]

Unless I had a lot of MCAT teaching experience, I would look for a lower-stress job that paid more by the hour.

Thanks for the advice MeowMix. I'm strongly considering doing that, however what other jobs pay as much/more by the hour than test prep? Something that doesn't require committing a lot of hours?

 

[QofQuimica]

Thanks for the advice MeowMix. I'm strongly considering doing that, however what other jobs pay as much/more by the hour than test prep? Something that doesn't require committing a lot of hours?

I really think it's a bad idea for you to plan to work at all while you're in med school, at least before you get there. It's a lot more work than college is. You're better off waiting to get to school first and seeing how much time your classes require before you even THINK of trying to get a job. If you somehow find that you're bored as h*** with nothing to occupy your time because med school is so easy, well, then by all means go find yourself a job to occupy all that free time.

 

[Overeducated]

My personal advice is that if you're going to be employed at all during medical school, the work should be consistent with your long-term career goals. Don't do it to pay the bills (that's what loans are for). You have to like what you're doing. If you're interested in being a medical school faculty member some day then teaching MCAT prep classes might be a good place to start. QofQuimica is right though... don't jump into anything immediately.

I actually worked throughout my first year of medical school in a part-time management level position with a non-profit health care organization. (I had been working for them prior to medical school). I waited until about 6 weeks into my first year of med school before officially accepting the position I was offered. I am interested in health care administration (in addition to being a clinician) and this has been a very positive experience for me... granted, many people think I'm nuts but that's the price you pay.

 

[enlightenedhick]

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[Noeljan]

For Princeton we have to make all our own lesson plans. We are not given a script or any lesson. Basically, it takes a lot LOT of time to prep. Oh and I also had to make all my own notes to give to students. They don't get a lesson book like Kaplan (I took Kaplan)

 

[AnthonyNY]

my Kaplan instructor was a first year...

 

[bjackrian]

I taught for Kaplan for about a year during MS1/2. The money was pretty good ($20ish/hr), and the hiring was easy--they wanted proof of a certain score on the MCAT (don't remember the exact number) and then they had you teach a five minute lesson (about anything you want) to a supervisor to prove that you're able to teach effectively.

That said, I did not enjoy the experience. I thought that their expectations were not made clear and that I did not get administrative support (supplies I was told would be ready for me weren't, unreturned e-mails and phone calls, etc.).

Bottom line: it was good money and wasn't a horrible thing, but it's not something I would choose to do again.

 

[Pass the Gas]

I taught every year during medical school. It's definitely possible, and the money can sometimes be quite nice. I got $30-35 an hour from Kaplan my last couple of years.

Hey all,

I was wondering if anyone has taught or knows anyone who was taught an MCAT review course while being a medical student. I am going to be a 1st yr MS and was considering teaching a few hrs/wk for Kaplan for some pocket change/gas money. Anyone think this is too demanding/takes too much time away from ones own studying? Is there a better/ less demanding p/t job with decent pay?

Please, any advice, especially from those who have taught while in med school, is really appreciated!

 

[CardiacIntensivist]

Seems like Kaplan would be much easier to teach then TPR. With Kaplan they basically give you everything you need to know for the classroom. I currently teach/tutor in the Manhattan centers and plan to during my first year. Right now would be the best time to start because they are opening the classes that start in september. These are the ones that meet once a week, which is perfect for a busy schedule.

In terms of administrative support, I've never had any real problems besides my paycheck always being wrong

If anything, become a tutor. Flexible hours, one on one time to focus on a specific topic and you get the same pay as a teacher.