what would u have done differently to prepare for the mcat?

[bellaMD]

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after taking the mcat today, i was wondering what you would have done differently to prepare for it. for those of you re-taking the mcat, what study methods will you be using?

 

[jtorres]

the AG version of the PS had a lot of chemistry on it. the physics was not bad at all though.

 

[pmpndaflip]

after taking the mcat today, i was wondering what you would have done differently to prepare for it. for those of you re-taking the mcat, what study methods will you be using?

I would have had someone who dressed alike, who's better in verbal take the verbal for me after the PS break. They did not check for ID after the PS break only after lunch.

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

Kaplan's MCAT comprehensive review is the only source that is really necessary. Even then, the organic section is too complicated. I've found organic to be a very minor portion of the MCAT. Very, very basic organic stuff - SN, E, and nomenclature. The stuff I've found goes the farthest is the stuff normally taught in Physics II: optics, sound, and circuits. High yield stuff.

 

[NonTradMed]

Practice! Practice! Practice!

That is what I should have done more of. Oh, also more reviews of the sciences. I should have started out by using Exam Kracker's stuff first. I'm a bit rusty on my basic sciences (been a year and a half out of school and longer since I've touched bio/orgo/chem/physics) and EK really puts it in perspective.

I will be ordering the 1001 Problem Sets from EK as well as the audio osmosis and will be practicing rigorously for the August MCAT. I knew I wouldn't do too well on this one, just didnt' have enough time to study it....but I will be pushing hard for it this summer!

 

[Kazema]

Not even look at electrostatics, E&M, sound, and optics.

I spent the past two weeks going over those topics and got like 5 total questions on all those topics combined.

Yeah I know different forms had them. But I'm still kind of mad about that 😛.

 

[OnMyWayThere]

I would not have stressed out so much over it because it made absolutely no difference. They ask new questions, that you really just can't study for. I'd take it easy more and I don't know what I'll be doing different starting middle of June when I get my scores and probably start studying for August... maybe more practice passages... 😕

 

[JohnDO]

GENETICS

I would have studied more nonmolecular genetics.

 

[Cerberus]

I dont think i would have done anything differently....I dont think it would have mattered

 

[thinkpositive]

yeah I am taking it in august too and I was debating whether to take the kaplan course again, but I'll probably just study on my own and do every practice test I can get my hands on

 

[larrywalkerdds]

I essentially took the test cold and I was pleasantly suprised that it wasn't the beast everyone made it out to seem. I feared that one needed to understand every principle in a crystal clear manner to succeed which is a huge fallacy. I would have just done a lot more problem sets. The questions were not that in-depth and you don't need to have a perfect conceptualization of each scientific fact. You just need to know every equation and how to solve the most basic problems associated with each scientific principle layed out in the Kaplan book. Once you get that down, the remaining problem dealt with time management. I didn't do a lot of practice tests so I was a slow reader. I think practice tests don't teach you the material as much as they reinforce it and improve your speed. In my opinion, improving your speed both with reading and problem solving can easily raise your 8-10 points in my opinion. I'm actually looking forward to retaking the test in August. I know exactly what I need to study to succeed. In short, know all the equations and basic principle down pat. And then spend hours just doing practice sets and full length exams. After taking the exam, I really believe that anyone with above average intelligence can get a 30 or higer if they memorize all the formulas and methods to solve each problem type and spend hours practicing problems over and over. Easier said than done. Let's see if I can do it.

 

[jeanie523]

I'll probably take more practice tests to reinforce my issues with pacing. I found myself rushing on the science sections, whereas on the practice full-lengths, I had enough time to check over my answers. Gotta get rid of these MCAT jitters...

My brother scored a 41 taking it the first time around and the only advice he really gave me was to make sure you're not "afraid" of the test. According to him, that mindset alone can screw you up on the real deal. I'm suspecting that he might be right because although I walked away from the practice tests without serious issues, the Sat. test is a different story. 😳

Just know the stuff you need to memorize COLD, so that there won't be any second guessing come test day. GENERALLY, all the new information in the passages will just be background information since you'll know the science behind the questions.

 

[txguy]

I would just say study everything initially to make sure you know it. And then study your weaknesses later on. I would say each form of the MCAT tested only a few subjects over and over, so you essentially need to know everything, really well. But when I say that, I just mean know the fundamentals/basics of each subject and you'll be fine.

Above all, just be confident. That alone will probably make a +/- of 3 points or so.

Hopefully I won't be studying alongside you guys for the August administration!