When to Start Studying for MCAT

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pillowfighty

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I'm sure there are tons of other threads about this, but I wanted to start a fresh one.

I'm a freshman at a community college with a guaranteed transfer to a really good UC in 2021, and fast tracking things by taking classes during the summer. My first classes are in Spring 2019.

I had a really tough time in high school and graduated early due to missing 2 years cumulatively. I did take 3 AP courses and got a 3 and 4's, so I know I'm capable of handling tough material on top of missing so much school. I'm really good at standardized tests and have always done really well, so the test anxiety is not a bother for me.

I know the MCAT is so daunting of a test and I want to be ultra prepared and not be one of those pre-meds who think they can get a 520 automatically.

Math is really the toughie on this one, and so I was wondering if I should focus on that and then when it comes closer to the date I focus on the other subjects and brush up on math as well? I'm currently studying right now to be able to jump up another level in math and transfer sooner, so I'm thinking I should focus on that being part of the MCAT studying since it's already outside of my coursework.

I saw another thread that mentioned pre-studying a year or two in advance was helpful, and I also wanted to know if that has been helpful for anyone else who has done it, or if you think it leads to more burnout. Thank you!

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@pillowfighty
My biggest suggestion is to take time planning out a schedule, and try your best to stick to it. The MCAT seems daunting at first but as you begin to grind away at the information/practice you get into a groove and it becomes part of your life haha. The math required for the MCAT is not too rigorous, and it is more about calculating a number very close to the actual answer. Since you do not have that much time on the MCAT, they're not trying to give you 6-step math problems, but rather can you take the information and apply the right formula. I would suggest brushing up on some old basic mental math if you haven't done it in a while because of calculators, especially working with big numbers and significant digits. You should be able to do this as you work through General Chemistry and Physics problems because it will give you practice.
 
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One thing that I regret from undergrad, is truly trying to understand the material in classes. This will help reduce time when doing content review. Since you are a freshman, I would probably emphasize more on learning the material. Buy the bookset if you want to and skim over it along with some of your classes. I would truly start preparing for the MCAT maybe 3-5 months prior to the exam date. Half the time for content reivew and the other half for practice. Good luck!
 
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I'm sure there are tons of other threads about this, but I wanted to start a fresh one.

I'm a freshman at a community college with a guaranteed transfer to a really good UC in 2021, and fast tracking things by taking classes during the summer. My first classes are in Spring 2019.

I had a really tough time in high school and graduated early due to missing 2 years cumulatively. I did take 3 AP courses and got a 3 and 4's, so I know I'm capable of handling tough material on top of missing so much school. I'm really good at standardized tests and have always done really well, so the test anxiety is not a bother for me.

I know the MCAT is so daunting of a test and I want to be ultra prepared and not be one of those pre-meds who think they can get a 520 automatically.

Math is really the toughie on this one, and so I was wondering if I should focus on that and then when it comes closer to the date I focus on the other subjects and brush up on math as well? I'm currently studying right now to be able to jump up another level in math and transfer sooner, so I'm thinking I should focus on that being part of the MCAT studying since it's already outside of my coursework.

I saw another thread that mentioned pre-studying a year or two in advance was helpful, and I also wanted to know if that has been helpful for anyone else who has done it, or if you think it leads to more burnout. Thank you!

I started about 6 months ahead of time, but I was working part time and a full time student so I needed to spread my studying out. The above poster is right, just focus on killing these classes and really absorbing the material so when you see it for MCAT prep you're just remembering.

I'm terrible at math and it was the most daunting thing for me for the MCAT. Truth be told, MCAT math isn't too hard to learn. You could start practicing some of it now.. I'd highly recommend Leah4Sci videos on youtube. They helped me a lot. Takes some time learning the math by hand but frankly those skills are good to know even outside of the MCAT so prob couldnt hurt to do that right now. The rest of the material? Wait until you're a few months out, get a good schedule and stick to it. Good luck!
 
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I started about 6 months ahead of time, but I was working part time and a full time student so I needed to spread my studying out. The above poster is right, just focus on killing these classes and really absorbing the material so when you see it for MCAT prep you're just remembering.

I'm terrible at math and it was the most daunting thing for me for the MCAT. Truth be told, MCAT math isn't too hard to learn. You could start practicing some of it now.. I'd highly recommend Leah4Sci videos on youtube. They helped me a lot. Takes some time learning the math by hand but frankly those skills are good to know even outside of the MCAT so prob couldnt hurt to do that right now. The rest of the material? Wait until you're a few months out, get a good schedule and stick to it. Good luck!

Thank you! I'll definitely check her out :)
 
I'm sure there are tons of other threads about this, but I wanted to start a fresh one.

I'm a freshman at a community college with a guaranteed transfer to a really good UC in 2021, and fast tracking things by taking classes during the summer. My first classes are in Spring 2019.

I had a really tough time in high school and graduated early due to missing 2 years cumulatively. I did take 3 AP courses and got a 3 and 4's, so I know I'm capable of handling tough material on top of missing so much school. I'm really good at standardized tests and have always done really well, so the test anxiety is not a bother for me.

I know the MCAT is so daunting of a test and I want to be ultra prepared and not be one of those pre-meds who think they can get a 520 automatically.

Math is really the toughie on this one, and so I was wondering if I should focus on that and then when it comes closer to the date I focus on the other subjects and brush up on math as well? I'm currently studying right now to be able to jump up another level in math and transfer sooner, so I'm thinking I should focus on that being part of the MCAT studying since it's already outside of my coursework.

I saw another thread that mentioned pre-studying a year or two in advance was helpful, and I also wanted to know if that has been helpful for anyone else who has done it, or if you think it leads to more burnout. Thank you!

@pillowfighty - I agree in large part with what's already been said, but just two quick points that I'd like to stress.

1) You have to take an incredibly light course load the semester you're studying for the MCAT. It's simply not possible to take hard classes and study for the MCAT for 99.999% of students. I've tutored and taught for years, and it never fails me that the students who raise their hand saying they're taking a harder course load are the ones post-poning or retaking. You just can't do it. Plan your schedule accordingly. I took 20 credit hours the semester before I took the MCAT so I could take 12 hours the next semester when I took it. This also applies to some extent with part-time jobs. That's harder because you do need money, but again, it's super tough if you're spending 20 hours on a job + 15 or 20 hours in school, + 60 to 80 hours studying for the MCAT. School should be the first thing that gives.

2) I recommend you have 4 months for studying. The first month should just be for CARS, learning the strategies and taking passages. Then, when you're three months out from your test day and start studying for the sciences, you can just let your CARS practice sort of be on auto-pilot with you just putting in your time doing and reviewing practice passages.

Wishing you the best of luck and I"m happy to talk more!
 
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@pillowfighty - I agree in large part with what's already been said, but just two quick points that I'd like to stress.

1) You have to take an incredibly light course load the semester you're studying for the MCAT. It's simply not possible to take hard classes and study for the MCAT for 99.999% of students. I've tutored and taught for years, and it never fails me that the students who raise their hand saying they're taking a harder course load are the ones post-poning or retaking. You just can't do it. Plan your schedule accordingly. I took 20 credit hours the semester before I took the MCAT so I could take 12 hours the next semester when I took it. This also applies to some extent with part-time jobs. That's harder because you do need money, but again, it's super tough if you're spending 20 hours on a job + 15 or 20 hours in school, + 60 to 80 hours studying for the MCAT. School should be the first thing that gives.

2) I recommend you have 4 months for studying. The first month should just be for CARS, learning the strategies and taking passages. Then, when you're three months out from your test day and start studying for the sciences, you can just let your CARS practice sort of be on auto-pilot with you just putting in your time doing and reviewing practice passages.

Wishing you the best of luck and I"m happy to talk more!

Thank you! That makes a lot of sense... my sophomore classes are all Ochem, physics, and calculus, but only 2 or 3 of them at a time. I’m going to try and do some good pre-studying for my classes in math since it’s my weakest at this point. It won’t be complete MCAT studying as a previous SDNer said to focus on your classes and doing well as part of your preparation. Just mainly focusing on math so I do well in my classes and can transfer that knowledge into the MCAT studying.

I don’t know my junior year class schedule since I’m transferring then but I’ll definitely keep in mind what you said about a light course load. I’ll free up my 2nd semester junior year and study then, I think that should be good! Thank you! I’ll hit u up if I have any more questions :)


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I just posted about my prep experience, so to avoid being redundant, I'll give an abbreviated timeline. I spent a week in December evaluating what materials I planned to use. I read a bunch stuff at reddit and SDN, I spoke to my big sib and her friends, and I looked through their books. Once I was set on the books to anchor my studies, I casually used them in conjunction with my course reader as I took O chem and physics from January to June. I learned their tricks and it helped me in my classes while learning MCAT style. Once June came and classed ended, I had a little over three months to grind through the books, do AAMC material, and take 8 practice exams. Because I started part time while in school, I was able to finish early and actually needed some extra items here and there. If you start lightly studying for the MCAT while taking O chem and physics it will help. Borrow books you think you'd like to use for the MCAT and read them while you take the classes. Then buy the one you like best. For those two subjects I found TBR to be the best by far. But other books are best for other sections of the exam. Do your homework.
 
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