Working full time, should I use an MCAT prep class

[DrXman]

Hey everyone, its been a year since I graduated from school and I'm currently working full time on average 50 hrs a week. I'm debating about taking the MCAT sometime in the fall but I'm not sure how to best prepare for it. How do you balance working a sometime stressful full time job that requires a lot of thinking (i.e. computer programming) w/ studying for the MCAT? I've considered just paying for an MCAT prep class so that I can have people help me with my schedule/motivation but those classes are at least $2000. The frugal part of me feels like maybe I can wing it if I study by myself but just from working for the past year I know that after a long day at work I don't want to think about anything at all. How did some of you deal with this issue and what would you recommend?

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[Pathobio1]

I work in a research lab doing stats work for 50-60 hrs/wk and I've seriously struggled balancing it with MCAT.

I tried the prep course method first. The amount of prep material is nice but the problem is keeping up with the coursework. The classes only help if you stay on schedule but it was super hard for me to cover all the homework they wanted completed in between classes. Overall it felt like a waste of money to me.

I think if you're self-disciplined and had a good understanding of the content in undergrad then you can definitely do well without a course. <<< I'm still working on that but I think it's working better for me to study topics on a schedule that's more convenient for my life.

 

[ConfusedChemist]

I worked 50hrs/wk and would not reccomened a prep course while doing this
my coworker spent 3 grand on a princeton course, and spent all her time studying homework vs studying the practice tests
The other issue is that you have to maximize your time-don't study things you know! a prep course will give equal weighting to everything (
i.e. I studied literally 0 chem, but spent a month on physics because I needed to focus on that
(I got a 12/10/13 if that provides any help at all)
I also found studying in the am (ie 6-8am) worked really well because my mind wasn't tired from work....just set up your coffee maker the night before

 

[ConfusedChemist]

While its a bit dated, the ExamKrackers Audio Osmosis was a set of CDs (13 I think) that you could listen to during commuting. I had several people rave about that in addition to doing wither self study or course work. Certainly the concepts presented havent changed that much and you will get extra time to think/mull while driving.

Yeah this is good advice
even if you don't have the money for the EK version (I didn't) just download khan academy videos to your ipod/mp3/iphone!
I even listened to them at work if I was doing mundane stuff like running multiple trials(chem lab job)

 

[SpartanWolverine]

I was out of school for a few years and working full-time when I took my MCAT (second time; first was during undergrad). Though it was a pain, I paid for a class and I credit their forced structure and practice resources with getting my score up from a 29 --> 36. If you can motivate yourself, it's probably not necessary... but I personally needed the structure and schedule.

Really, if you can get a good content review done on your own, I think maybe just buying access to all the practice exams you can is key b/c my opinion is that repeated practice under exam conditions is the best work you can do.

 

[mavric1298]

I was working about the same hours (40+) as well as taking ochem and physics, and have a wife/dogs/resonsibilities, and I would say 95% I learn best on my own, excel on self study. But I would 100% recommend taking a prep course, a) for the structure, b) for the techniques etc that will come with it. I thought it was very very worth it, and I'm not that type of person at all

 

[Law2Doc]

I was out of school for a few years and working full-time when I took my MCAT (second time; first was during undergrad). Though it was a pain, I paid for a class and I credit their forced structure and practice resources with getting my score up from a 29 --> 36. If you can motivate yourself, it's probably not necessary... but I personally needed the structure and schedule.

Really, if you can get a good content review done on your own, I think maybe just buying access to all the practice exams you can is key b/c my opinion is that repeated practice under exam conditions is the best work you can do.

Agreed. IMHO these review courses are well worth the money for a large subset of test takers, if only because many aren't going to use their study time in a structured way, and left to their own devices often will focus on the areas they "like" better, while avoiding the areas where more time is merited. this is especially true if you are working rather than currently immersed in science courses. And doubly true whenever you (OP) use an expression like "wing it" to describe your own studying efforts. This is not. Field of winging it. We take measured calculated planned moves. Line all you ducks in a row and then pull the trigger.

 

[DrXman]

Thanks for all the useful advice. It seems like people are torn between the two but I think I'll go ahead and sign up for a class purely on the basis that I don't trust myself enough to be disciplined or to"wing it" as Law2Doc pointed out and because I'd want to take the MCAT in the fall so maybe having a rigid/rigorous schedule will help me realistically reach that time frame.