Princeton Review MCAT Hyperlearning

Your Princeton Review tools

• 3,000+ pages of comprehensive, up–to–date materials (delivered via forklift). Each subject set includes content review, practice questions and practice passages
• MCAT Physics and Math Review: Close to 500 pages
• MCAT General Chemistry Review: More than 300 pages
• MCAT Biology Review: 500+ pages
• MCAT Organic Chemistry Review: In excess of 300 pages
• MCAT Verbal Reasoning and Writing Review: 400+ pages
• Science Workbook, hundreds of MCAT–style practice passages and questions with complete explanations (900+ pages)
• Verbal Workbook,about 300 pages, including dozens of MCAT practice passages and four full–length Verbal Reasoning practice tests with complete explanations
• In–Class Passage Compendium, the equivalent of five MCATs' worth of additional test questions
• Science Review Questions and Solutions, hundreds of practice questions designed to make sure that the basic science concepts are firmly embedded in your brain.
• Access to LiveGrader^sm for feedback on your essay from an MCAT essay specialist

19 full–length practice tests including all officially released AAMC exams
22.5 hours of verbal prep–the most in the industry

MCAT Study System

Resources
• Register TPR live on-line Course ($1,799, less $200 Google coupon?, Good for # sittings?): 1-877-877-6687: http://www.princetonreview.com/mcat-liveonline.aspx
o This is at least a 6 hour per day commitment, sometimes up to 9 hours (m-f, s,s?)
• (If on-line course, do I still need?) TPR's Hyperlearning books from Princeton Review Actual Course ($1,999) (clean, not marked, non smoker)
• (TPR on-line course includes?) AAMC Actual Tests: Full Length (FL) #3-5 and 7-11 (AAMC #6 is not available at the moment): http://www.e-mcat.com/starttest.aspx?cmd=displayfile&file=buy
• MCAT 3 month Study Calendar: http://studentdoctor.net/reference-materials/3-month-mcat-study-schedule/
• Register SDN (RRAN4U, rudy123) and request a TPR Course actual study schedule from a current student
• Get complete EK 1001 series.
• Take AAMC free test under timed conditions for self-diagnostic
• Topic Outline of each science subject for Hat Trick: https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/preparing/
• Use AAMC Topic Outline to determine areas of weakness
• Lastly, sign up for your MCAT as soon as possible. Seats fill up months in advance, & get all the above 1-2 months ahead of schedule
• Begin studying ExamKracker 1-2 hours per day by topic for 6 weeks, prior to TPR on-line class?

Notes:
- Do NOT retake old practice material
-The key to MCAT success is not content review, it's taking tons of timed practice passages and thoroughly reviewing those passages.
- Thoroughly review ALL of your practice problems. Review your problems the day AFTER you take them. Don't even look at the answers until then. If there’s a break day, review your problems on the day after your break.
- Remember to round like crazy for any math problem
- Always use process of elimination with your answer choices
- Before you begin this schedule, count the number of verbal practice passages (101 from EK + however many in the TPR Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook). Divide the number of passages by 70 (total days - the number of break days AND FL days). That number is the number of verbal passages you should be taking per day. I’m hoping that number breaks down to at least 3 passages per day. Ideally, you should take 4-5 verbal passages per assigned day. You do NOT take verbal passages on break days OR FL days.
- If you don’t want to get the EK 1001 series, spread out the second 1/3 of BR practice passages over 2 days. Again, I recommend you get the EK 1001 books that are listed.
- If your practice test score is not within your target range after 4 tests, you should consider delaying. If you delay, go over your weaknesses again and complete an in-depth analysis of what went wrong.
- If you have enough money, you could adjust the schedule to fit in more practice tests. I didn’t include that many to keep the cost down.
- If your test is in the morning and you're not a morning person, start getting used to waking up early when you start taking practice tests.
- Try to practice under as realistic as possible conditions when you take your practice tests. In other words: wake up early enough to be able to drive to your center; eat a meal you would eat before a test; follow the proper timing; and if you're really into it, you could even drive around for about the same time it would take you to get to your test center.

General Guidelines for Reviewing:
- Go over EVERY question. Both the ones you got right and the ones you got wrong.
- Reviewing should take 2-3 times longer than taking the timed practice problems.
- If your tests are fluctuating, it is due to the different topics on the various tests. In other words, you have some glaring weaknesses that when targeted, nail you, badly. You have to find out what those weaknesses are because they are evident by your scores. Do NOT dismiss any wrong answer as a "stupid mistake." You made that error for a reason. Go over your tests again.
- You might want to consider making a log for all of your post test results where you work through the questions below. Doing so, you'll be able to easily notice trends.

Some things to go over when reviewing:
1. Why did you get the question wrong? Why did you get the question right?
2. What question and passage types get you?
3. How is your mindset when facing a particular passage?
4. Are you stressed for time?
5. Where are your mistakes happening the most? Are they front loaded? Are they at the end? All over?
6. What was your thought process for both the questions you got right and the ones you got wrong?
7. For verbal, what was the author's mindset and main idea?
8. Did you eliminate all of the answer choices you could from first glance?
ex. You know an answer should be a positive number so you cross out all of the negative number answer choices.
9. What content areas are you weak in?
10. Why are the wrong answers wrong and the right answer right?
11. How can you improve so you don't make the same mistake again?

Timing:
- ALWAYS complete your practice problems under TIMED conditions
- For BR passages: 6-7 minutes per passage, work towards 6 minutes
- For the EK 30-minute exams….well 30 minutes
- EK 1001, except Bio series: 30 seconds to 1 minute per question
- EK Verbal 101/TPR Verbal: 6-7 minutes per passage, work towards 6 minutes
- AAMC FLs: Use their timing

Why do you review previous days passages instead of reviewing the same day?
There are a couple reasons why I advise reviewing passages the day after. First, it helps to go over the material again, especially in regards to the sciences. Secondly, directly after you take a set of practice problems, you aren't in the best mind frame to then analyze said problems. Your mind is too focused on what you completed and is unable to grasp the big picture. You need that day for your thoughts to settle in order to approach the analysis with the right mindset. It's similar to how you may make a decision one day. Then the next day, you realize that it wasn't the best choice. Yet, on the day you made your choice, you would have probably found justification for it rather than actually analyzing its pros and cons. Another example would be with proof-reading your own papers. Right after you write your paper, when you proof-read it, you'll probably miss plenty of mistakes. However, checking it the next day allows you to approach the paper with a clear mind and find more mistakes.

Hat Trick:
Get a hat and write every single MCAT PS and BS topic onto a piece of paper. Then, when you're ready to practice PS, put all the PS topics into the hat. Draw two or three pieces of paper and connect the topics together. In addition to connecting them, come up with what a passage might look like and what kind of questions you might get. If you can't do this, go back and review each of the three sections. Rinse and repeat.

The hat trick days are important because they aid you in synthesizing the various topics together. On the MCAT, you utilize this skill for every passage because MCAT passages combine topics. Furthermore, you may also discover content weaknesses that you will need to go over.

For the hat trick, how specific are the topics you write down supposed to be? For example, is it better to write "electron structure," or go more in-depth and write each of the numbered topics (ie. orbital structure, ground state, etc)?

It's really up to you and how you want to utilize the Hat Trick. A good starting point would be writing down all of the bolded topics. Then, when you're doing the Hat Trick, you should think about each topic more in-depth. Remember, you're trying to think up an MCAT style passage. In other words, the passage won't be simple; it will involve some of the complexities of each topic.

Here's a rough example using Distillation, Mendelian Genetics, and Lipids:
You are studying a Mendelian inherited recessive genetic defect of a lipid receptor. A defect in this receptor prevents the uptake lipids in the body and can cause several negative effects, such as, atherosclerosis due to fat build-up in arterial walls.

To test for the concentration of lipids in a patient's blood, you design a distillation experiment.
1. Given a couple where the male is Ll and the female is ll, what is the chance the child will have the defect?
2. What kind of solvent should you use to test the concentration of lipids?
3. What type patient would have the highest boiling point elevation?
4. If the trait exhibited incomplete dominance, which patient is likely to be Ll? Boiling point information here.
5. Which cell component requires lipids?

My verbal strategy...(I bombed on the real thing comparatively to my practices. I avged 12-15 on practices, scored a 12 on my diagnostic, but an 11 on the real thing. That being said, I'm still ecstatic!)

1) Practice under harsher timed conditions than you will encounter on the test. You will have about 8.5 mins for every verbal passage. Get a stop watch and a verbal workbook, and practice finishing every passage in 6.5 mins. When I started doing this, two things happened: 1)Even though I was using less time, my scores did not decrease. They stayed the same. 2) When I became really good at answering the passages quickly, I found that I had time to refer back to the passage on every question. Now, since I can read the passages much more effectively (meaning faster) when I see a question that I'm not sure of, I have time to go back and quickly re-read the 3-4 sentences that pertain to the question. At this point, my scores started to increase.

2) Attack every single paragraph. Read very quickly, but read very actively. Don't try and go too slowly to remember every detail, this will kill you. What you should do is Gather themain idea of every paragraph, and make sure you're always thinking about the POINT of the passage. Eventually, when you've done enough verbal practice, gathering the idea of a section or paragraph will come very naturally. As a byproduct, you will start to gain a sense of the types of details that are important to remember, and you will begin to remember them automatically.

3) When doing the read-through, DO NOT re-read a sentence if you think you weren't paying attention. Try this on any reading material: Try reading very actively, but force yourself not to re-read sentences you just read or to go back on the first read through. If you are actively reading, its amazing how much you retain without having to re-read. Your brain often tricks you into thinking that you didn't understand something, when in fact you did.

4) You should be categorizing the paragraphs in your head. Remember that the reading material on the verbal section is always written so that the information is organized in some logical way. The AAMC specifically picks passages that are not haphazardly organized and written. "Categorizing" means that you should be thinking about the general subject of each paragraph so that you know where in the passage to look for information when you need to refer back as you answer the questions. It does not mean stopping and summarizing every paragraph in your head as you read. This way you don't waste time re-reading large sections of the passage (or the whole passage!) to find helpful information when you do need to refer back. Instead, your categorical map of the paragraphs will give you a general idea of where that information should be located. This will save you important time when you reach one of those questions that you don't know right off the bat. Lastly, the categorical map you create as you are doing your first read through should be in your head. This means you are really just making mental notes that point you in the right direction, and not summarizing.

5) Answer every question in order, do not skip questions. I think that this particular point works really well because often the questions themselves are ALOT of reading! If you read a question, decide that its too hard and skip to the next, you'll then have to come back and re-read the question on your second attempt thereby wasting time! Make a mental note of and use the CBT's "mark" function on the questions that are iffy so that when you do go back and review all of your answer, you know which questions you should focus more time on.

6) Be aware of the different question types on the verbal section. The princeton review book has a list of these, and I think the Kaplan one does as well. In addition, when you are reviewing your practice exams you should make your own list of what you think the different question types are. As to HOW to answer every question type; This is one of the major areas where practice comes into it. As you get better, you'll begin to realize the types of things that look like 'correct' answers, and you get a feel for the types of things that the examiner is looking for. Check out the "process of elimination" section (number 8 in this post).

7) Do heavy post-game analysis. You must, must, must go back over your verbal questions and ensure that your thought process was correct for the questions that you got right. Figuring out what exactly you were thinking when you answered a question incorrectly is absolutely essential. That way, when you find yourself thinking in a similar way on a future exam, you might stop and think twice about your answer. Do not ever say, "Oh I totally should have gotten that question! It's easy!" If you missed a question, you missed it for a reason. Instead of passing it off as a "stupid mistake" make sure you understand exactly why you made that mistake, and what you were thinking when you made it. Then, you should try and figure which types of questions you are most often missing and analyze your thought process to see what wrong thought caused you to pick a wrong answer. Then, be aware, and fix that thought process.

8) Learn to use process of elimination (POE). There are a few tricks you can use to POE the hell out of some verbal questions.
- Extreme sounding answers are almost always wrong. Exception: If the passage itself sounds extreme. You should still make sure that your answer choice fits with the logic of the question and the passage itself. For instance, the question could ask, "Which of the following is NOT representative of the author's stance of issue X". In these types of questions, the extreme answer might be right.

- In questions that ask you to describe the 'mood' of the author, or any question with 'one word' answer choices, answers that are similar or say the same thing are almost always both wrong. Check and see if you picked an answer that sounds very similar to another one, and make sure you know exactly why you chose that answer. The MCAT will never be cut and dry, so just make sure your logic about an answer choice is clear.
- Watch out answer choices with identical or similar vocabulary to the passage. A very common trick is that often words that were used in the passage will be transplanted into an answer choice with either: 1) a cause and effect relationship reversed so that it is wrong, 2) a fact from the passage taken out of context, 3) a hypothesis that is mis-stated, 4) a slight twisting of the author's logic, 5) an incorrect detail has been inserted into the answer choice. Watch out for these, and when you see an answer choice with alot of identical words to the passage, be very sure to dissect it so that you understand its meaning. As you practice more and more, you'll begin to find other curious aspects of answer choices and question stems that stick out at you.

9) PRACTICE!!!
No seriously, practice. Developing an MCAT intuition is like developing a muscle. You can't cram for it, and you can't practice it "sometimes" while expecting major gains. You have to practice, consistently, repeatedly, and often.

10) Closing Note
This is my entire strategy. What worked for me may not work for you, but it's worth a shot! If something different than what I've posted here works for you, then use it! (and more importantly, come back to The Studentdoctor Network and tell us about it!). I picked up a princeton review verbal workbook (I think you can only get them from the class) and I did two passages every 1-2 days starting at about 3 months before my MCAT. Toward the end of my practice test runs I was consistently getting 13s and 14s in verbal on the AAMCs. This section is doable guys. Just make sure you are practicing properly and meticulously reviewing your answers! Just doing passages isn't going to give you exponential gains in performance. You have to practice and review the right way.

You should try for the 4 month modification of this schedule which I will post later on. Stretching this schedule longer then that significantly reduces its effectiveness. At that point, you need a completely different type of schedule, one more suited for 5-6 months. Any studying done prior to 6 months before your test date is pointless (except for reading). Lastly, it's still a horrible idea to study for the MCAT while taking a heavy courseload.

I took TPR at night over a spring semester, during which I took a couple of tests to get warmed up. Once summer started I studied 10 hours a day 5 - 6 days a week. Wake up at 8, 2 hours on, 1 hour break and repeat 5 times. Each 2 hour block was devoted to a different section of the test. I used my TPR schedule to go through the material. I did a full practice test every Friday and spend Saturday doing test analysis. I never studied on Sunday to let my mind relax. During the last two weeks I modified the schedule and took practice tests every 3 days. This schedule kept me from going nuts during the 7 weeks before I took the test.

Verbal Guide
First) Try doing a passage without being timed. Read, re-read, and re-read the passage again if you need to. Write notes. Look for keywords that let you know what the authors opinion, purpose, and tone of voice is. Then spend as much time as you want on the questions. Do not mark a question unless you are 100% sure it is right. Go back to the passage and identify what in the passage makes this question correct. Finish 1-2 passages in this fashion.

Second) Spend a lot of time going over the answers. Do not just go, "oh ya" and move on. Truly identify why you got this wrong, if you got it wrong. Do you understand why it is correct? Then critique if you would be able to get this right after a week.

Third) After practicing 2 days on passages un-timed but pacing yourself so you finish within 12-15 mins per passage, try timing yourself for 8.5mins or less per passage. Are you making more mistakes? Are you spending more time on the reading or on the questions (it should be approximately equal depending on the passage difficulty)? This will allow you to key into where your biggest problem is.

Fourth) By the end of the week, re-do the first passage I told you to do un-time and try to do it under a timed condition. Are you still making the same mistakes? If so, did you review it properly? Keep a log of what passages get you the most and which are getting you the least.

Fifth) In the beginning, I recommend you do the passage types that really bug you. If you hate philosophy, do only philosophy passages for 5 days straight... if its art do that. Then after you are conformable with reading those passages, you may move on practices other passages. As a helpful hint, milk your strengths as much as possible since the test is not bias where the correct answers come from (a point is a point).

Sixth) Try different strategies and find what is best for you. Try mapping, try reading question first then attacking the passage. Try finishing the passage within 7 mins or 7.5 mins. Make sure you find what works best for you.

Map Passages
Your map should help you to pick out which paragraph to refer back to and the question/answer will have key words for you to find the sentence to answer your questions. You need to know what your skimming as in "what am I missing?" so you know to look 'here' if they ask a question pertaining to it. Think of it this way. Every single answer to a question is in the passage, so why not use it? If you have time, I would suggest that you practice mapping because it takes time to get use to. At first, it will be hard to use efficient words and not take up too much time, but eventually you'll get the hang of it.

Here are some tips:
1) Only write a FEW words AFTER each paragraph.
2) Don't take notes WHILE reading.. if you see something that you really think is important HIGHLIGHT it--mapping is to give you an idea of what is what in the passage
3) If the questions are based on the passage, nearly every answer will be in the passage.
4) Try practicing a few times without timing yourself and get accustomed in finding the answer.
5) I highlight only names, dates, and seemingly important texts and that's it (too much highlights distracts me)
6) Each paragraph I only map the main purpose of it (why does the author include this paragraph and not leave it out?)
7) Also a VERY IMPORTANT clue to look for is... Does the author have an opinion or not? If so, more than likely you will have a question about it. In the end write the authors tone of voice (i.e. opinionated or not).

“SPAM” Map
Main point
Attitude of author
Pupose (of each passage)
Support

MCAT STUDY TIPS
1. Wake up early and study
2. Exercise daily
3. Plan 4 mth schedule (after BC finals (Dec) – April)
• Draw a map of the body systems in the human body... start with what happens when food enters your mouth.. or what happens when air enters your nose? If you do this over and over (write it down once and practice recall), physiology will make a lot more sense to you. how does this affect the heart? stomach? lungs? etc..
• Try and relate this to fluid flow in physics, for example. As one of my engineering friends told me, imagine the body as a circuit with blood being the current.
• Know which systems normally "go together"... for ex: Nervous and Endocrine system... at times, if you don't know what a question is talking about, knowing which "things" go together can be a big help.
4. Look at the AAMC topics list and identify the topics you had difficulty with and study those mainly
5. Also write stuff like, what happens if I add a resistor in parallel to a circuit? How is current affected... just knowing stuff like this like the back of your hand will save unnecessary time. The first time I had circuit questions, I had to draw 2 resistors in parallel to check if my thinking was right.
6. I forced myself to check if every Chemical equation I saw was balanced.
7. Keep a log of the types of questions on each exam you took ..see patterns
8. Study all of the material front to back and upside down...and not just the information, but also the concepts, how the concepts interrelate to each other, and how to grasp 'the big picture'. I learned cold ever piece of information in both the kaplan and princeton books, the AAMC concept list, and on all the practice exams I did (about 20)...but this was only the first half of my test preparation. The rest of my preparation went into learning how to beat the exam itself. Learning how to eliminate incorrect answers, devising a system to finish problems at breakneck speed without doing almost ANY calculations, and using almost no paper. I went through all of my AAMC practice exams and realized that there are certain types of problems that come back again and again, and again. If you see this, you begin to see that AAMC also makes their answer choices in a certain way. Thus, on some problems even if you don't have a good grasp on the material, you can eliminate answers to get the problem right. For instance, on my real MCAT there was a question that had some organic macromolecule with a bunch of acetyl-ester groups. The question asked something that sounded really complicated and finished with, 'Which of the Acteyl groups, either A, B, C, or D would be cleaved?' I had NO IDEA what they were talking about. But because I knew that the MCAT likes to test about carbonyl carbon electrophilicity, I realized that the answer was probably the acetyl groups that were all the same and had the most positive carbonyl group. I'm sure that I got that question right. And it wasn't because I knew the material, it's because I spent alot of hours figuring out the system used by the MCAT test makers; how the exam is structured, how AAMC formulates questions, and the methods that AAMC uses to trick students. It really didn't have much to do with 'intelligence' (whatever that is!).
9. Other people have hinted at this, especially with the mention of engineering students doing well on this test. The MCAT does require a broad knowledge base, but just knowing facts will not get you very far. Once you've read up about a particular concept, be it an organ system, circuits, or chemical synthesis, try and ask yourself conceptual questions with qualitative answers. For example, suppose you've just studied electrical circuits. Consider a circuit with a battery followed by a light bulb followed by a resistor (i.e. the resistor is in series with the light bulb). Ask yourself questions like "what happens to the bulb's brightness if I increase the value of the resistor?" Answer: the brightness decreases because the net current through the circuit has decreased. What if you add an identical resistor in parallel with the first one, but still in series with the bulb? The brightness of the bulb increases because the overall resistance of the circuit has decreased. This sort of qualitative understanding can get you a long way--you aren't allowed a calculator on the MCAT and there is a reason for that. Everything can be done using either estimation or using your qualitative estimate to strike out every other option. At an absolute minimum, you can strike out some answers so that guessing becomes more profitable. As another example, learn to do dimensional analysis and know your SI units. If you are told to calculate the power dissipated by some process and there are answers in Joules, you can strike them out without thinking since you want something in terms of Watts. You should know, given an equation with a single unknown, how to figure out what the units of the unknown must be if you know the units of every other value.
10. Writing - TPR gave us a list of the categories of topics, eg. Government, Ethics, Justic, etc. I started a notebook of examples for each topic. I got a trial subscription to The Economist and Time (free 6 mths with TPR course) and read it for example ideas. If I found one relevant to a past essay prompt or topic, I would search the details on the internet. Wikipedia became my god. I found a good strategy for the writing sample was to think of your examples for thesis and antithesis first, then looking for the difference between those examples (and voila, a synthesis). The other way would be to think of the differences first, then find examples to fit it. But this was harder. In the August MCAT, I got extremely lucky with my prompts and didn't blank on the essays at all (I would've if I had gotten something related to politics or justice...boo!). I ended up using examples I mostly knew off the top of my head already and didn't really need my example book! And just to show that you don't need spectacular examples: I talked about Sex and the City on my first essay. It's all about how you say it, not what you say!

How to Read Dense & Abstract Passages to Improve MCAT Verbal

Focus on The MAIN ARGUMENT/IDEA (ie, Thesis), not the DETAILS. Evidence is just there to bolster the author's case

Critical Reasoning Questions to Ask:

• What is the point or central theme of the article?
• Why did the author take the time to sit down and write this?
• What does the author means when she makes some statement?
• How did she strengthen or weaken the argument?
• Would the author agree with some statement based on her position in the passage?
• Does the author takes a side in a debate, and if so, which one and why?
• Is the author positive, negative, or neutral toward his/her subject?
• How do the evidence/details pertain to his argument? Or relate to the central point?
• What is the purpose of this paragraph or sentence? Is it background information? Is it an explanation of an opinion? Is it supporting examples?
• Can you imagine a person disagreeing with the conclusions?

For Example, to figure out the author's point of view, separate the fact and opinion. "What's the main idea?" You need to look past the facts, which contribute to the summary, but are not the point of the passage:

• "Sandra Day O'Connor was a paragon, an example to women everywhere, a perfect choice as the first female justice." Main argument : O'Connor is awesome
• "Condoleezza Rice is a classically trained pianist, a figure skater, and a football fan." Main argument : it's Rice's hobbies.

Helpful Hints

• Pretend to debate with the author and it will you focus on the arguments rather than on the details
• Once you understand a POINT, and you can make sense of it in CONTEXT, forget it and move on
• Ultimately, you should be looking for a thesis and for a structured support of that thesis. the author is not trying to make you remember a concatenation of facts--they want to convince you of the existence and dynamics of a process.
• Anything with numbers is a detail. Don't worry about memorizing or understanding them, just note where they are and what they're about.
• View all authors as attempting not to inform you, but to persuade you
• MENTALLY MAP the passage (topic/sub-topic).Circle keywords. Your map should be an outline of the purpose of each paragraph, not the details (in other words, not just a paraphrase). Also, it is absolutely essential that you write very little
• Predict your answers before you look at the answer choices
• Practice your critical reading and answer prediction skills for a few minutes every day
• Try to avoid going back to the passage and reading paragraphs over again because the time is so precious on this section of the MCAT
• If you have no clue to what the passages is getting at, move onto the next passage for now; you have no time to think on this section.
• Look for the opinion keywords
• Avoid picking extreme choices for the author's viewpoint
• You want to be sure that you find something that applies to every (or almost every) paragraph, rather than applying to only one paragraph. If the selection applies to only one example given, it is not the theme.
• Pause after each paragraph, make sure that you’ve understood the gist, and quickly decide on a couple of key words to circle. This ensures that you haven't read so quickly that nothing was absorbed.
• Try to summarize the point (purpose) of the passage in one sentence/phrase in your head.
• Remember wrong answer options are designed to look like right answers. Wrong answers are often relevant to the passage, but not to the particular question.
• Make sure that you have a (1) good handle on the overall point of the passage, as well as (2) the purpose of each paragraph within that passage, (3) that you understand the specific question, and (4) your answer does not superficially "sound good", but it is actually the right answer to the right question.

How To Study For MCAT Verbal

Map the Main Argument for each Passage

1. Identify each passage’s MAIN ARGUMENT (the purpose / overall point of each paragraph). The goal is to see each passage as not just a bunch of information, but rather supporting a central theme.
2. Map in your head each passage’s “central theme” in one sentence/phrase. Again, if you can't come up with something for this step, then you haven't done a good job of reading of reading the passage.
   
3. Do not focus on the detail(s) supporting the argument. Details build on the central idea, but it is background information, supporting opinions, and a list of examples. Once you understand the point, and you can make sense of it in context, you can forget it and move on.
4. Goal is to analyze each passage for clues to tell you what the author’s overall “bias” is. The author must have some sort of interest, or he wouldn't bother to sit down and write the essay.

• What is his purpose for writing each Passage?
• What is his purpose for writing the Essay? What is he trying to convince you of?
• What is his overall attitude ((positive, negative, or neutral?)

Circle Key Words

1. "EMPHASIZING” key words. Is he stressing it to support his general argument?
2. “OPINION” key words: "I think" or "personally", also: clearly, obviously, on the contrary, simply, everyone, no one, pervasive, etc. These can help you find out what the author thinks.
3. “TRANSITION” key words. These help you follow the structure of an argument. Some of these overlap with the above set, but here you’re looking for ways to follow how the author builds his case, more than what exactly the case is. Some of these might be: then, however, also, but, primarily, further, in contrast, etc

Tricks

1. Speed read – use fingers/pen to follow words
2. Pause after each paragraph, make sure that you’ve understood the overall gist
3. Summarize each passage’s “central theme” in one sentence/phrase.
4. Don’t just pick an answer because it sounds good. Wrong answer options are designed to be tricky. They're written to look like right answers. The final answer must fit the overall central theme of the passage/essay.
5. The main thing to remember for inference questions is that the right answer MUST be true based on the passage. If it may or may not be true, then it is not correct.
6. Use process of elimination to reject weak answer options that does not fit the central theme of the author’s argument.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=223930

A Scientific Dissection of the MCAT

The MCAT is sold as this enormous, all knowing, all encompassing test that not only tests every single bit of information you've ever learned about biology, chemistry, and physics. It's also sold as a test that takes all day long to take. But let's take a closer look and find out how much of each of the sciences are really involved in this sucker.

1. The Essay Section is just a pair of 30 minute essays where you'll have to present a well out-lined 5 paragraph essay in each, with a central idea and 3 points to back up that idea. Subjects on biology, chemistry, and physics are excluded purposefully.

2. The Verbal Reasoning Section is akin to every other stardardized passage based test you've ever taken in your life. It's curved harder that the other multiple choice sections, so you'll still be pulling your hair out from the stress but again, subjects on biology, chemistry, and physics aren't the emphasis.

4. The Physical Science Section includes subjects on General Chemistry & Physics. Take in the fact that this section only has 52 questions, break that down a little more, and you get roughly (exactly?) 26 multiple choice General Chemistry questions and 26 multiple choice Physics questions.

5. The Biological Science Section includes subjects on Biology & Organic Chemistry. The same is true for this section as was true for the Physical Science section, 26 questions for each. But from what I can tell, this section will be the most loaded.

"Biology."

Four semesters of chemistry (2 semesters of Gen. Chem. and 2 semesters of O. Chem) have been split in half, but Biology stands alone. How many biology classes have you taken? Off of the top of my head I've taken: Human Anatomy, Human Physiology, Microbiology, Introduction to Biology, Organismal Biology, Developmental Biology, Genetics, Ecology & Evolution, Comparative Anatomy, Immunology, and Histology (and Animal Physiology & Epidemiology to be taken this semester). Now take all that and squeeze it all down into 26 multiple choice questions.

!!!

As far as your scientific career as a student and as far as all your scientific knowledge is concerned, your fate on the MCAT, and potential future as a doctor hinges on 104 multiple choice questions.

http://2medschool.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2008-01-14T15%3A16%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=50

"On avg, how many hours are spent studying for MCAT"

I figure if I spend 8 hours a day dedicated to MCAT prep (which is the same as a full day's work), reviewing the basic sciences is easily within reason. And at that time, I'll take a practice MCAT and begin the Kaplan course and begin again -- this time over a longer period of time, with in-class tutors, online resources, and time in between to take even more practice MCATs.

My Summer Schedule (with information included from Kaplan's Sample Syllabus which you can find at their website HERE.

• Week 1: Examkrackers MCAT Physics
• Week 2: Examkrackers MCAT General Chemistry
• Week 3: Examkrackers MCAT Organic Chemistry
• Week 4: Examkrackers MCAT Biology
• Practice Test 1
• Kaplan course begins.
• MCAT Strategy & Critical Thinking I
• Physics I
• General Chemistry I
• Verbal Reasoning & Writing Sample I
• Organic Chemistry II
• Biology I
• MCAT Strategy & Critical Thinking II
• Physics II
• General Chemistry II
• Verbal Reasoning & Writing Sample II
• Organic Chemistry I
• Biology II
• Practice Test 2
• Physics III
• General Chemistry III
• Verbal Reasoning & Writing Sample III
• Organic Chemistry III
• Biology III
• Practice Test 3
• MCAT Strategy & Critical Thinking III
• Practice Test 4
• Practice Test 5
• August 22: MCAT Test Date

Crazy?

No one ever said getting into Medical School was going to be easy.

A little quick math in my head says that I have approximately 14 weeks of this Summer Schedule. I have 5 days a week (plus 2 days break) with 8 hours a day spent studying (with 16 hours for sleeping, eating, and re-gaining sanity) and that gives me roughly 560 hours studying for the MCAT.

"Kaplan MCAT 45, 2008 Edition"

If you ever were in search of specific MCAT test taking skills, tips, and tricks this is the book you've been looking for you.

I've been thinking more and more about which books I would put into my "Five Books and Only Five Books" list for other aspiring medical students. This would be one of them. I've narrowed the list down into subjects that I think should be covered and the books that give thorough details and specific advice for tackling each subject:

1. A book that gives an overview and outline of the entire "Road to Medical School."
   
2. A book that covers the personal statement.
   
3. A book that covers the medical school interview.
   
4. A book that covers MCAT test taking skills.
   
5. And fifth book that I'm undecided on.

This book would be that MCAT book. It's that good. It's specific, it's detailed, it gives examples, it points out pitfalls, and it gives advice on how to best tackle those pitfalls. It spends a few pages dissecting the test itself and it spends even more time going through each section of the MCAT step-by-step.

Since reading this book, I've altered my own MCAT prep plans to include each section (Biology, General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physics, and Verbal Reasoning) of this book as I finish reviewing each section of the review material. Stopping to answer each of the practice problems in the review material and then stopping to answer each of the practice problems in this book.

I can't recommend this book enough. Get it.

Most people will tell you to dedicate 3-6 months for studying for the MCAT. I'm starting (roughly) a year in advance. Your MCAT score is a huge factor when determining acceptance into Medical School or not, especially if you have a weak GPA.

http://2medschool.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2007-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2008-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=50

Question: What is the Medical School Curriculum?

Answer: Courses are taken mainly during the first and second year of medical school.

The first year of medical school consists of courses on the human body: how it is developed and how it functions.

Courses include:

• Anatomy
• Physiology
• Histology
• Biochemistry
• Embryology
• Neuroanatomy

The second year consists of courses on disease and treatment.

Courses include:

• Pathology
• Pharmacology
• Microbiology
• Immunology

Additionally, students are trained in interacting with patients by taking their medical histories and physical examination during the second year of medical school.

Classrooms and teaching methods vary from school to school. Some medical schools emphasize teaching one subject at a time, smaller classrooms, and discussing case studies during lecture. Currently, most medical schools follow the traditional teaching methods.

Students start their rotations during their third year and continue during the fourth year. Students experience the different medical specializations offered. However, rotations that require more responsibility are experienced during the fourth year. Additionally, electives are offered during the fourth year.

What subjects does the MCAT cover?

The MCAT (medical school admission test) is made up of four subtests. They are:

1. Physical sciences (physics and general chemistry)
2. Verbal Reasoning (7 5-to-8-paragraph essays followed by MC questions on a vast array of topics)
3. Essay composition (tow simply 30-minute essays in response in generic prompts)
4. Biological sciences (physiology, genetics, molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry, and organic chemistry)

A 31-page detailed list of topics is available from the test writers at aamc.org. A detailed rundown on how to prepare is available from the nation's premier MCAT preparation course at berkeleyreview.com.

The study method used for each section

Verbal: Lots and lots of passages! Doing lots of passages gives you a good feel for the "MCAT" way of asking and answering questions. Practice some passages using different methods. I found it best to just read the passage critically, as if I was grading it. For me, specifically looking for the main idea of the passage and each paragraph made me get too bogged down in the details.

Physical Sciences: Reviewed and made sure I knew the basic concepts. Again, do lots of passages! Nova MCAT Physics Review was great. Nova emphasizes understanding the concepts and being comfortable with the mathematical relationships in equations. If you double the charge or halve the distance how does that effect the electical force? Etc.

Biological Sciences: Reviewed the basic concepts. Cell bio and genetics are good classes to have under your belt. The room was about 95 degrees by the time BIO started, I'm sure i would have scored higher if I wasn't on the verge of heat stroke.

12 V, 14 P, 13 B = 39R

Essay: I reviewed the AAMC prompts and directions, but I never wrote a practice essay. Thank God the questions weren't related to politics

The Physical Sciences, Verbal Reasoning, and Biological Sciences sections on the MCAT are scored between a 1 and a 15. (1 is the lowest score and 15 is the highest score). In total, the lowest MCAT score you can receive is a 3, and the highest MCAT score is a 45. The two essays are scored on a J-T scale by one human and one computer grader. Most competitive medical schools look for a combined MCAT score of at least 30 and a Writing MCAT score of P or Q.

Most medical schools require science courses taken at a 4-year institution. At a minimum, take 1 year each of biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics. To be safe, I’d also recommend one semester (4 semester units; I’m not sure how it works out in quarter units) of math with calculus, biochemistry (may overlap with o-chem), and 1-2 semesters of English with writing composition. Other classes that may look good for medical schools include anatomy & physiology, immunology, psychology, and sociology.

Section	MCAT Score Range	Average MCAT Score
Physical Sciences	1-15	8
Verbal Reasoning	1-15	8
Biological Sciences	1-15	8
Writing	J-T	O

MCAT Review Books

57 of 61 people found the following review helpful: I compiled the data from all the 5 star reviews, an honest look., June 4, 2009 By Robert Mckee (tucson, az) - See all my reviews EDIT: I want to preface this review saying that Examkrackers is a good resource and may be great for some and not for others. I don't want to give the idea that it is a bad resource. ________________________________________________________________________ Advantages: - the materials look great (color) - it seems to cover all the material necessary - great marketing Disadvantages: - The concepts are very weak, especially in biology. You need to understand WHAT is going on conceptually. You can't just be thrown facts and material without knowing WHAT is going on. I quote another reviewer, "I have to say, the science is very conceptually weak... they teach you shortcuts, but if you don't grasp the concepts, the mcats is about tricking you on the weaknesses and you'll go for all the tricks." - Not all of the books are excellent, the physics book is particularly weak. - SIDE NOTE: Exam Krackers 101 Verbal passages is actually very strong and a quality resource. I went through nearly all the reviews for this site for 30-40 minutes after I found the series to be less than 5 STAR quality (closer to 3) as so many reviewers were saying. I also noticed that a lot of the 5 star ratings were quick little "this is great, blah blah" short reviews. Please read some of the 3 star honest well written reviews. I did this. I also noticed over half of the 5 star reviews were following a certain pattern. The other thing that raised a flag was that this series had 96 reviews! 96! I tried to find ONE other MCAT comprehensive review that was close. Not one. The Kaplan 2007-2008 had 15 reviews, that was the closest. So I asked a simple question, "how can I be sure these reviews are real or not?". One possible answer was, reviewers like to review. So if these were REAL reviews then I would assume there may be at least ONE other review by that reviewer. JUST ONE. So I decided to waste an enormous amount of time (I have a nice quad-core HP computer less than a month old, so it helped me go faster) and open every reviewer to see if they had reviewed any other books, I felt compelled to do this if there was any foul play going on. Here is what I found: Here are the results as of June 4th, 2009: There were 58 reviews that gave 5 stars: ---37 of these reviews only reviewed this book (2 anonymous "by Customer"). That is over 63% ---Another 2 were fishy in that they only reviewed this book and another Examkrackers book OR this book and gave a Kaplan book a low score saying in the first sentence, "I would use the Examkrackers books". In the first sentence made it tough to swallow. Also they were referring to some site called secret-route-dot-com which I looked up on amazon and google and found to be a scam type book with glowing reviews and then people calling it a scam. All in all I estimate that 67% of the reviews were SINGLE reviews for this book (with only 2 that were this book and another EK book). 2 of every 3! ---33% of the reviewers that gave this book 5 Stars had reviewed some other book by some other publisher. Which looked real. Crosscheck me on this, it is verifiable and true. Also because the reviews were fake it is likely that Examkrackers will not be able to remedy this situation because when you create a fake email to write a fake review you can't log in again because you will forget the log in/email. To be fair I went to check out the Kaplan Premier Program with the highest number of reviews. The 2007-2008 had 15 reviews, I was only interested in the 5 star reviews as on this book (as if someone is to falsify reviews that would likely be 5 or 1 star reviews). There were FIVE 5 star reviews, and of the 5 all 5 had reviewed at least one other book or product from amazon.com. --100% of the people who highly reviewed the Kaplan product were REPEAT reviewers and had reviewed some other book. I am not advocating Kaplan's book as I haven't used it yet. I am very worried about the fidelity of some of these 5 star reviews. I would estimate that most of them are fake.

How to Prepare for the MCAT

About the MCAT
The MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) is a standardized exam required as part of the application to US medical schools. The test is administered by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). The MCAT is designed to test knowledge of basic science concepts, problem-solving skills, critical thinking ability, and writing skills. The MCAT consists of four scored sections that always appear in the same order:

• Verbal Reasoning
• Physical Sciences (physics and general chemistry)
• Writing Sample
• Biological Sciences (biology and organic chemistry)

MCAT Timing is Important!
The MCAT is offered at scheduled times throughout the year. Registration is about 5 weeks before the test. You can register online or mail in your materials. The test costs money (presently $175). Also, you may need to travel to take the test, which can add the expense of transportation and a hotel visit. This is important: it takes practically forever (seems that way at least) to get your scores after the test, so don't put off taking the test until the last minute! I know some academic advisors will caution you to wait until you have taken all of the related coursework (e.g., physics, organic, biochem) before taking the test. Well... ideally you would take those courses as a sophomore and junior to free up your senior year for interviewing. Even if you haven't taken the courses, you will probably delay entrance to medical school by a year if you don't take the MCAT early enough. Don't assume that the medical school will cut you any slack for either low scores or missing coursework; they won't. Applications are competitive.

Practice Makes Perfect
My recommendation? Take the April MCAT a year and a half before you plan to enter school. Unless your scores are marvelous, take the August test too. That way, if you have a summer or early fall interview you can say that you are retaking the test... shows a self-improvement goal if nothing else. The August test seems more laid-back to me. Also, I think your scores are likely to look better because the test has a lot of procrastinators or poor planners who weren't there in April, making you look better in comparison. Remember, your scores are given in relation to that of other test-takers. DO NOT wait until August the year before you plan to attend and certainly don't wait until April the spring before classes start. Your scores will take too long to arrive and the classes may be full before you get reviewed.

Take an MCAT Test Prep Class or Not?
There are several excellent courses you can take to prepare for the MCAT. Among them are the Kaplan Review, Princeton Review, and Berkeley Review. The AAMC says that taking a review course has no statistical impact on your scores (and how do you objectively test the null hypothesis, I ask you?) ... I disagree with them and I'll tell you why: the reviews don't just go over the course material, they teach to the test, meaning that you focus on test-taking strategies and review only the information that may be on the exam. That said, I don't recommend everyone take a review course (I didn't). Many students tell me they aren't taking the review because of the cost involved. Wake up call! Medical school costs thousands to a hundred thousand dollars! Don't skimp on preparation, either for the test or for the interview! If you think the review will help you, then plan for the cost.

As I said, not everyone will benefit from taking a review course, but I do believe everyone will benefit from studying the text materials used for the review course (get a 'used' copy for a bargain). You will get practice tests and a focused, concise study guide. Using the review texts is much more helpful than randomly scanning your biology, chemistry, and physics texts.

The possible writing sample topics may be viewed online at the MCAT website. Obviously you shouldn't practice all of them, but do look them over and practice this part of the test, timed, for a few topics. Neatness counts! I had a student (I kid you not) who got a 0 (zero, not the letter given to you to score this part of the test) because his handwriting was so psychotic (ran up and down the page and off the lines) that the test scorers wouldn't read his essays.

The Test Day
The big day has finally arrived! Ideally, you want to get a good night's sleep the night before (uh huh...). No matter what, try to relax. Really tense people might find studying relaxing; otherwise turn your brain off and take it easy. Make sure you locate the test center before test day. Eat breakfast! Get to the test center bright and early with pencils, pens, and erasers in hand. Food and drinks aren't allowed in the test room, but hard candy may take the edge off, especially if you have butterflies. Do not bring a calculator or anything with an alarm. Be considerate... no cell phones, pagers, etc. Don't berate yourself if you have trouble with a section. Just shrug it off and move on. It may be helpful to bring a lunch, especially if traffic is a concern. You don't want to be late for the afternoon fun and games! If you are like me, your brain will be pretty fried after the test. You'll get out around 5 pm. If travel is required, plan wisely.

MCAT Study Method

SDN Members don't see this ad.
I noticed that some people are claiming they wrote this guide to scam people out of money. Let me make this clear, I have not and will not be selling anything related to this guide. If you see a poster trying to sell books saying they wrote this schedule, do NOT buy from them. They are attempting to take your money away on false pretenses. Additionally, this guide has only been posted on SDN. I have not posted this guide anywhere else. Furthermore, SDN is the sole MCAT/medical forum I visit and the only forum where I use the screen name SN2ed. I never imagined this thread would be popular enough to warrant this kind of attention.

To begin with, check out these two threads:

Why Diagnostics are Worthless: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=557231

MCAT and a Heavy School Workload Don’t Mix: Stop rushing to take the MCAT:http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=602186


Can I accomplish this schedule with a part-time job or school?

Probably not. I highly recommend you devote 3 months to the MCAT. There may be a few that could follow this schedule and work part-time, but chances are it would not end well. You are FAR more likely to burn out if you try to study for the MCAT using this schedule and go to school or take a part/full-time job. That said, it's not entirely impossible. Think of it like an unfavorable reaction. Whether one can force the reaction to proceed depends on the person. Most could not pull it off.

Furthermore, I've yet to see a valid reason for students (ie. not non-trads) to not take the MCAT in the summer.


Will following this guide guarantee me a +30?

Sadly, there are no guarantees on the MCAT. I certainly hope it helps you, but I can’t say whether or not you’ll hit your target score.


Should I take the MCAT before finishing my pre-reqs?

There’s no point in doing so. You have to take them anyway. Hence, you might as well go into the test with your pre-reqs completed. Yes, this includes the English pre-req.

Remember to check out the third and fourth post FAQ.

Anything else before I start?

CONFIDENCE. Through all of the troubles and hardships you'll face, approach everything with confidence. You must constantly attack this test. The MCAT is merely a stepping stone on your journey.


Also, this is just a guide I made up. It is my opinion on what a study schedule should resemble. I’m sure there will be people that disagree with parts of this schedule or the whole thing. This schedule can easily be adjusted for 4 months instead of 3. I don’t suggest starting heavy studying 5 months+ from your test date. Keep it to 3-4 months. If you start too soon, it will be a waste of time and resources.

Remember to use the search function on these forums. Tons of questions have already been asked and answered.

Please keep the questions to this strategy.

Lastly, please give credit to me, SN2ed, if you post this elsewhere. I put a ton of work into it.



Materials:

- Berkeley Review (BR) General Chemistry
- BR Organic Chemistry
- BR Physics
- Examkrackers (EK) Biology for non-detailed approach OR The Princeton Review Hyperlearning (TPR) Biology/BR Biology for a detailed approach (In the schedule, I will use EK Bio because most prefer a non-detailed approach)
- EK 1001 series
- EK Verbal 101
- TPR Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook or Berkeley Review Verbal
- AAMC Full Length (FL) #3-10

You can pick up the BR books from their website: http://www.berkeley-review.com/TBR/home-study.html
Also, check out the For Sale section on here: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/forumdisplay.php?f=230 All of the above, except for the AAMC FLs show up from time to time. I’ve regularly seen a complete BR set go for under $100 on there. Whenever you buy used, MAKE SURE THE PASSAGES ARE UNMARKED.

To buy the AAMC FLs: http://www.e-mcat.com/

Bare Minimum Set-up:

$245 for AAMC FLs (http://www.e-mcat.com/)

$180 for BR Physics, O-chem, Gen Chem (http://www.berkeley-review.com/TBR/home-study.html)

$26 for EK Verbal 101 (http://www.amazon.com/Examkrackers-M...3226173&sr=8-2)

$26 EK Bio 1001 (http://www.amazon.com/Examkrackers-1...3226173&sr=8-5)

$30 EK Bio (http://www.amazon.com/Examkrackers-M...3226173&sr=8-9)

Prices vary on TPR Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook, search the For Sale forum on here for copies. They regularly show up.

Total = $507 + TPR Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook


Set-up with EK 1001:

$18 EK Physics 1001 (http://www.amazon.com/Examkrackers-1...3483527&sr=1-4)

$20 EK O-Chem 1001 (http://www.amazon.com/Examkrackers-1...3483527&sr=1-2)

$19 EK Chem (http://www.amazon.com/Examkrackers-1...3483527&sr=1-3)

Total = $564 + TPR Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook

Possible Book Replacements:

EK Bio + EK Bio 1001 may be swapped for BR Bio. The reason behind is that recent MCAT test takers have noted that BR's bio passages are closer to the real thing than EK Bio 1001. In fact, if more and more people post similar responses, I may end up switching the two anyway.

A more expensive choice would be to get EK Bio for content review AND BR Bio for the practice passages. This combo is a great way to go.

If you're having a hard time finding the TPR Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook, BR is an okay replacement. Well, there's not much of a choice left.

TPRH is a great choice for content review, however, you still need the BR books, EK 101 Verbal, and either EK Bio 1001 or BR Bio. TPRH does not have enough practice passages, though the Workbooks are still great resources.

About the EK 1001 series:

It is a good idea to get the complete EK 1001 series. I thought they really helped me nail down my understanding of the various topics. Through using the physics especially, I found that I didn't understand some things as well as I would like. Furthermore, for whatever reason, they helped me visualize the problem in my head and made the equations intuitive to use. Too many people neglect their basic understanding which could be bolstered by EK 1001. They think they have a strong grasp, yet when those fundumentals are tested, one's weaknesses become more apparent. Plus, doing more timed practice problems is always a good thing.

The only negative for the non-bio and VR practice books is that they aren't in the right format (unless you think of them as tons of discretes). However, it is significantly easier to spot your content weaknesses with EK 1001 because they aren't passages. You don't have to worry about if you messed up due to a failure to synthesize multiple ideas or the passage was worded strangely. When you mess up on EK 1001, you know it's due to a content weakness. Lastly, this problem would be alleviated by the BR books and EK content books containing practice passages. There are also the practice tests that you will be taking.

I suggest you get the above material 1-2 months in advance. You don’t want to be missing your materials when you’re about to start this schedule. Also, older content review books are usually okay, just don’t go too far back (past 5 years old).

Lastly, sign up for your MCAT as soon as possible. Seats fill up months in advance.

Timing:

- ALWAYS complete your practice problems under TIMED conditions
- For BR passages: 6-7 minutes per passage, work towards 6 minutes
- For the EK 30-minute exams….well 30 minutes
- EK 1001, except Bio series: 30 seconds to 1 minute per question
- EK 1001 Bio: 6 minutes per passage + 30 seconds to 1 minute per discrete, work towards less time
- EK Verbal 101/TPR Verbal: 6-7 minutes per passage, work towards 6 minutes
- AAMC FLs: Use their timing


Notes:

- Do NOT retake old practice material
- Thoroughly review ALL of your practice problems. Review your problems the day AFTER you took them. If there’s a break day, review your problems on the day after your break.
- Remember to round like crazy for any math problem
- Always use process of elimination with your answer choices
- Before you begin this schedule, count the number of verbal practice passages (101 from EK + however many in the TPR Hyperlearning Verbal Workbook). Divide the number of passages by 67 (total days - the number of break days AND FL days). That number is the number of verbal passages you should be taking per day. I’m hoping that number breaks down to at least 3 passages per day. Ideally, you should take 4-5 verbal passages per assigned day. You do NOT take verbal passages on break days OR FL days.
- If you don’t want to get the EK 1001 series, spread out the second 1/3 of BR practice passages over 2 days. However, EK 1001 Bio is a must buy and you should do those problems. Again, I recommend you get all of the EK 1001 series.
- If your practice test score is not within your target range after 4 tests, you should consider delaying. If you delay, go over your weaknesses again and complete an in-depth analysis of what went wrong.
- If you have enough money, you could adjust the schedule to fit in more practice tests. I didn’t include that many to keep the cost down.
- If your test is in the morning and you're not a morning person, start getting used to waking up early when you start taking practice tests.
- Try to practice under as realistic as possible conditions when you take your practice tests. In other words: wake up early enough to be able to drive to your center; eat a meal you would eat before a test; follow the proper timing; and if you're really into it, you could even drive around for about the same time it would take you to get to your test center.
- Thanks to BlitzSleep for reminding me about the importance of confidence
- Written by SN2ed

General Guidelines for Reviewing:

- Go over EVERY question. Both the ones you got right and the ones you got wrong.
- Reviewing should take 2-3 times longer than taking the timed practice problems.
- If your tests are fluctuating, it is due to the different topics on the various tests. In other words, you have some glaring weaknesses that when targeted, nail you, badly. You have to find out what those weaknesses are because they are evident by your scores. Do NOT dismiss any wrong answer as a "stupid mistake." You made that error for a reason. Go over your tests again.
- You might want to consider making a log for all of your post test results where you work through the questions below. Doing so, you'll be able to easily notice trends.

Some things to go over when reviewing:

1. Why did you get the question wrong? Why did you get the question right?
2. What question types get you?
3. How is your mindset when facing a particular passage?
4. Are you stressed for time?
5. Where are your mistakes happening the most? Are they front loaded? Are they at the end? All over?
6. What was your thought process for both the questions you got right and the ones you got wrong?
7. For verbal, what was the author's mindset and main idea?
8. Did you eliminate all of the answer choices you could from first glance?
ex. You know an answer should be a positive number so you cross out all of the negative number answer choices.
9. What content areas are you weak in?
10. How can you improve so you don't make the same mistake again?

Hat Trick:

Get a hat and write every single MCAT PS and BS topic onto a piece of paper. Then, when you're ready to practice PS, put all the PS topics into the hat. Draw two or three pieces of paper and connect the topics together. In addition to connecting them, come up with what a passage might look like and what kind of questions you might get. If you can't do this, go back and review each of the three sections. Rinse and repeat.

The hat trick days are important because they aid you in synthesizing the various topics together. On the MCAT, you utilize this skill for every passage because MCAT passages combine topics. Furthermore, you may also discover content weaknesses that you will need to go over.

PS Topic List: http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/pr...g/pstopics.pdf
BS Topic List: http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/pr...g/bstopics.pdf
Page to get topic lists if you don’t want to directly download the pdf: http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/pr...gstudyplan.htm


Verbal Help:

Check out Vihsadas’s verbal guide and the other guides found in the MCAT Guide sticky
Vihsadas’s Guide: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/show...2&postcount=96
MCAT Guide Sticky: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=602154

Arithmetic Tricks:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/show...ic+Tips+Tricks
__________________
Why Diagnostic Tests are Worthless:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=557231

Breaking Down the MCAT: A 3 Month MCAT Study Schedule: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/show...68#post8092168
Last edited by SN2ed; 01-11-2010 at 10:38 AM.
SN2ed is online now Reply With Quote
SN2ed
View Public Profile
Find More Posts by SN2ed
Add SN2ed to Your Ignore List
Old 05-01-2009, 02:14 AM #2
SN2ed
2K Member

SN2ed's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 2,749
SDN 2+ Year Member

Default
The Day by Day

- Give yourself 4 buffer days before beginning this schedule just in case you need them.
- Another reminder: You are supposed to take some verbal passages every day except break days and FL days.

Day 1: BR Physics Chapter #1 + Every third passage of the corresponding passages for this chapter (i.e. go through 1, 4, 7, 10 for first 1/3 and 2, 5, 8 for the second 1/3 on Day 8). 1/3 of corresponding passages = 1/3 from now on.
Day 2: BR Gen Chem Chapter #1 + 1/3
Day 3: BR O-Chem Chapter #1 + 1/3
Day 4: EK Biology Chapter #1 + the corresponding problems in chapter and chapter exam (both of these will be abbreviated by putting 30 Min)
Day 5: BR Physics Chapter #2 + 1/3
Day 6: Re-read chapters and work through corresponding EK 1001 sections for the chapters you worked through. For instance, BR O-Chem chapter #1 goes over Organic Structure & Bonding; hence, complete the Molecular Structure in the EK 1001 O-Chem. The topics probably won’t match all the time, but go with the best fit. Also, only do every third problem/passage in the EK 1001s. From now on, this day’s work will be abbreviated: “Re-read chapters + EK 1001”
Day 7: Break
Day 8: Complete second 1/3 of BR passages for the previous 4 BR chapters. I’m going to shorten this to: “Complete second 1/3 of BR passages”
Day 9: BR Gen Chem Chapter #2 + 1/3
Day 10: BR O-Chem Chapter #2 + 1/3
Day 11: EK Bio Chapter #2 + 30 Min
Day 12: BR Physics Chapter #3 + 1/3
Day 13: BR Gen Chem Chapter #3 + 1/3
Day 14: Break
Day 15: Re-read chapters + EK 1001
Day 16: Complete second 1/3 of BR passages
Day 17: BR O-Chem Chapter #3 + 1/3
Day 18: EK Bio Chapter #3 + 30 Min
Day 19: BR Physics Chapter #4 + 1/3
Day 20: BR Gen Chem Chapter #4 + 1/3
Day 21: Break
Day 22: BR O-Chem Chapter #4 + 1/3
Day 23: Re-read chapters + EK 1001
Day 24: Complete second 1/3 of BR passages
Day 25: EK Bio Chapter #4 + 30 Min
Day 26: BR Physics Chapter #5 + 1/3
Day 27: BR Gen Chem Chapter #5 + 1/3
Day 28: Break
Day 29: BR O-Chem Chapter #5 + 1/3
Day 30: EK Bio Chapter #5 + 30 Min
Day 31: Re-read chapters + EK 1001
Day 32: Complete second 1/3 of BR passages
Day 33: BR Physics Chapter #6 + 1/3
Day 34: BR Gen Chem Chapter #6 + 1/3
Day 35: Break
Day 36: BR O-Chem Chapter #6 + 1/3
Day 37: EK Bio Chapter #6 + 30 Min
Day 38: BR Physics Chapter #7 + 1/3
Day 39: Re-read chapters + EK 1001
Day 40: Complete second 1/3 of BR passages
Day 41: BR Gen Chem Chapter #7 + 1/3
Day 42: Break
Day 43: BR O-Chem Chapter #7 + 1/3
Day 44: EK Bio Chapter #7 + 30 Min
Day 45: BR Physics Chapter #8 + 1/3
Day 46: BR Gen Chem Chapter #8 + 1/3
Day 47: Re-read chapters + EK 1001
Day 48: Complete second 1/3 of BR passages
Day 49: Break
Day 50: EK Bio Chapter #8 + 30 Min
Day 51: BR Physics Chapter #9 + 1/3
Day 52: BR Gen Chem Chapter #9 + 1/3

Day 54: BR Physics Chapter #10 + 1/3
Day 55: Break
Day 56: BR Gen Chem Chapter #10 + 1/3
Day 57: BR O-Chem Chapter #8 + 1/3
Day 58: Re-read chapters + EK 1001
Day 59: Complete second 1/3 of BR passages
Day 60: Break
Day 61: Hat Trick for 2-3 hours. For all of the following days, excluding break days, spend about 30 minutes on the Hat Trick. If it really helps you, spend more time on it. It might be slow at first, but you’ll get the hang of it.
Day 62: Last 1/3 of BR passages for Chapter 1 + Second 1/3 of EK 1001 Bio Chapter 1
Day 63: Last 1/3 of BR passages for Chapter 1 + Second 1/3 of EK 1001 Bio Chapter 1
- From now on, I will abbreviate the last 1/3 of BR and second 1/3 of EK 1001 Bio as 1/3. I will include the chapters to cover.
Day 64: AAMC FL #3
Day 65: Review FL per guidelines + 1/3 Chapter 2
Day 66: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 2
Day 67: Break
Day 68: 1/3 Chapter 3
Day 69: 1/3 Chapter 3
Day 70: Break
Day 71: AAMC #4
Day 72: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 4
Day 73: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 4
Day 74: AAMC #5
Day 75: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 5
Day 76: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 5
Day 77: Break
Day 78: AAMC FL #6
Day 79: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 6
Day 80: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 6
Day 81: AAMC #7
Day 82: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 7
Day 83: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 7
Day 84: Break
Day 85: Break
Day 86: AAMC #8
Day 87: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 8
Day 88: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 8
Day 89: AAMC #9
Day 90: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 9
Day 91: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 9
Day 92: Break
Day 93: AAMC #10
Day 94: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 10
Day 95: Review FL + 1/3 Chapter 10
Day 96: Break
MCAT




4 Month Variation

The first 61 days are the same. This schedule is less intense than the 3 month variation because it spreads out the practice problems in the third month rather than the FL month. If you choose this route, make sure you recalculate the number of verbal passages per day. Also, it might be a good idea to get additional verbal material (ie get both TPR Hyperlearning verbal and BR verbal on top of EK 101).

Day 62: Last 1/3 of BR passages for Chapters 1 + Second 1/3 of EK 1001 Bio Chapters 1
Day 63: Last 1/3 of BR passages for Chapters 1 + Second 1/3 of EK 1001 Bio Chapters 1
- From now on, I will abbreviate the last 1/3 of BR and second 1/3 of EK 1001 Bio as 1/3. I will include the chapters to cover.
- If you don’t have enough time to finish this week’s amount, finish it up with the next review section under AAMC FL #4. This first couple review sections are intense, but the next ones aren’t as bad and they get even better once you finish BR O-Chem. The main goal is to finish it up before your test date.
Day 64: 1/3 Chapter 2
Day 65: 1/3 Chapter 2
Day 66: 1/3 Chapter 3
Day 67: 1/3 Chapter 3
Day 68: Hat Trick all day long
Day 69: Break
Day 70: 1/3 Chapter 4
Day 71: 1/3 Chapter 4
Day 72: 1/3 Chapter 5
Day 73: 1/3 Chapter 5
Day 74: 1/3 Chapter 6
Day 75: 1/3 Chapter 6
Day 76: Hat Trick all day long
Day 77: Break
Day 78: 1/3 Chapter 7
Day 79: 1/3 Chapter 7
Day 80: 1/3 Chapter 8
Day 81: 1/3 Chapter 8
Day 82: 1/3 Chapter 9
Day 83: 1/3 Chapter 9
Day 84: Hat Trick all day long
Day 85: Break
Day 86: 1/3 Chapter 10
Day 87: 1/3 Chapter 10
Day 88: Hat Trick all day long
Day 89: Break
Day 90: Break
Day 91: AAMC FL #3
Day 92: Review FL per guidelines
Day 93: Review FL
Day 94: AAMC FL #4
Day 95: Review FL
Day 96: Review FL
Day 97: Break
Day 98: AAMC FL #5
Day 99: Review FL
Day 100: Review FL
Day 101: AAMC FL #6
Day 102: Review FL
Day 103: Review FL
Day 104: Break
Day 105: Break
Day 106: AAMC FL #7
Day 107: Review FL
Day 108: Review FL
Day 109: AAMC #8
Day 110: Review FL
Day 111: Review FL
Day 112: Break
Day 113: AAMC #9
Day 114: Review FL
Day 115: Review FL
Day 116: AAMC #10
Day 117: Review FL
Day 118: Review FL
Day 119: Break
MCAT

Written by SN2ed
Last edited by SN2ed; 01-18-2010 at 02:26 PM.
SN2ed is online now Reply With Quote
SN2ed
View Public Profile
Find More Posts by SN2ed
Add SN2ed to Your Ignore List
Old 05-01-2009, 02:14 AM #3
SN2ed
2K Member

SN2ed's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 2,749
SDN 2+ Year Member

Default
Random Questions

When should I start studying/When should I take the MCAT?

You can choose your 3-4 month window to study after you've completed your pre-reqs. In your pre-reqs, gain mastery of the material; don't aim merely for an A. Spending the time to master the material in your pre-reqs will pay off when you study for the MCAT.

Most people take the MCAT in either the summer of their junior year in college or the summer after they graduate. I don't suggest you take the MCAT earlier then your junior year because you run the risk of having your MCAT expire. Furthermore, the additional classes you have in the meantime may aid you on the MCAT. That said, the bottom line is to take the MCAT when you're ready.

Are there any classes that will help me for the MCAT?

Outside of your pre-reqs, you don't really need anything else. That said, some classes may give you a slight edge or help you. The classes typically considered the most helpful are:

1. Genetics
2. Anatomy and Physiology
3. Biochemistry

Should I buy the Official Guide to the MCAT Exam published by the AAMC?

I don't suggest you buy it separately. However, since you will be buying AAMC practice tests and/or the MSAR, you might as well get the bundle where you can get the Guide + Practice test or Guide + MSAR at a reduced price. If you get the guide, I suggest you save the problems in it for last. For now, the practice problems in the guide offer the most accurate representation of the current MCAT.

For the hat trick, how specific are the topics you write down supposed to be? For example, is it better to write "electron structure," or go more in-depth and write each of the numbered topics (ie. orbital structure, ground state, etc)?

It's really up to you and how you want to utilize the Hat Trick. A good starting point would be writing down all of the bolded topics. Then, when you're doing the Hat Trick, you should think about each topic more in-depth. Remember, you're trying to think up an MCAT style passage. In other words, the passage won't be simple; it will involve some of the complexities of each topic.

Should I retake FL X?

I don't suggest it for a few reasons. First, your score will be inflated. This alone negates the predictive power of the test. If you don't need it to gauge where you are, fine, retake them. For instance, you could simply be going over the problems again to, as others have mentioned, understand the thinking behind it. However, if you are using it as a practice FL, don't.

One of the most important aspects of a FL is that it's material you've never seen before. It forces you to quickly analyze an unknown passage, tap into your knowledge, and answer questions you've never seen. If you knew exactly what was going to be on the test, it would take away from the somewhat frantic experience of getting that weird passage. It also makes you more relaxed overall because you know what's coming. Unfortunately, you will not have the luxury of either on the test. You will have to deal with weird passages. You will have to get out of your comfort zone of knowing what's ahead.

Then, you get into the timing issues which you MUST get down before the test. When you have prior knowledge of the material, you miss the chance at gaining more experience with the clock. Too many people underestimate the effect of the timer. Again, you have to get used to it and retaking problems won't help.

Think of the whole thing like sports practice. Sure, you go over some standard plays again and again to get a feel for them. However, to practice for a real game, you have a scrimmage match or an exhibition game. The other team doesn't tell you what plays they're going to run. If they did, it would eliminate the usefulness of the scrimmage or exhibition game.

I've already taken the AAMC FLs, are there other practice tests you recommend?

Both Gold Standard and Berkeley Review offer solid practice tests. GS FLs are a great value since you can typically get all 10 GS FLs for around $100. The caveat for Gold Standard is that you should expect your score to be roughly 2 points lower than normal. Berkeley Review has better FLs, but they're more expensive and the archaic ordering system means you run the risk of not having your practice tests when you need them due to the 45 day access limit. Still, if you order your test a couple weeks before you need them, BR is a good option if you're willing to pay more. Unfortunately, neither test is great in verbal, though BR is decent.

Why do you review previous days passages instead of reviewing the same day?

There are a couple reasons why I advise reviewing passages the day after. First, it helps to go over the material again, especially in regards to the sciences. Secondly, directly after you take a set of practice problems, you aren't in the best mind frame to then analyze said problems. Your mind is too focused on what you completed and is unable to grasp the big picture. You need that day for your thoughts to settle in order to approach the analysis with the right mindset. It's similar to how you may make a decision one day. Then the next day, you realize that it wasn't the best choice. Yet, on the day you made your choice, you would have probably found justification for it rather than actually analyzing its pros and cons.

Another example would be with proof-reading your own papers. Right after you write your paper, when you proof-read it, you'll probably miss plenty of mistakes. However, checking it the next day allows you to approach the paper with a clear mind and find more mistakes.


Why rotate subjects?

I think rotating subjects is better for a couple reasons. First, it keeps material from the different areas fresh. Often times, concepts in one chapter build upon another. It also lessens the chance of forgetting what you've already studied. By studying all of one area and then moving on, you lack exposure to that topic for the remainder of your content review which leads to forgetting that area. Lastly, rotating subjects fosters connections between the different topics. One of the biggest aspects of the MCAT is connecting various topics together in any given passage. By rotating, you can easily begin to see connections as you complete content review from different areas. If you were only studying one subject, such connections would not be as evident.

I have more than 4 months until my test, is there anything you suggest?

There are two things you might want to consider. First, aim for mastery of the material in all of your pre-reqs. Don't go simply for the A. Know the material cold. Next, is reading various materials. Here's my suggested reading list:

Wall Street Journal
New Yorker
Economist
Random science journals

Good source for philosophy/humanities work which people tend to struggle with:

Moral Issues in Global Perspectives: http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used

Buy the book used; it's much cheaper.

Remember to read the boring articles as well as the interesting ones. Chances are your MCAT verbal passages won't be the most exciting read.

Why is Kaplan's verbal bad?

Kaplan is bad in verbal because it doesn't stress the same things as the actual MCAT. For the MCAT, the main idea and author's point of view/opinion are the keys to success. Conversely, Kaplan focuses more on the detail oriented questions which are easy to teach; the kind of questions which make you go back over the passage to find the minute detail being tested. On the MCAT, going back to the passages will kill your timing. Furthermore, you rarely receive such questions and when you do get them, they can typically be answered with the main idea or author's opinion.

Why are so many of your recommended books from BR?

For now, they stand as the best combination of content review and practice material. What makes BR stand out over the easily available Kaplan, TPR (ie not TPR Hyperlearning), and EK books is the depth of their explanations and TONS of practice passages. There are literally around 100 passages in each of their practice books which is far and away more than their competitors. The key to the MCAT is taking tons of timed practice passages. Furthermore, they are actually trying to update their books beyond random errata. On the negative side, BR's website and ordering system are horrible. We're talking about early internet, looks like a fake website, bad. Still, the quality of their books makes the painful ordering worth it. Just remember to order your books well in advance and you shouldn't have any problems.
Last edited by SN2ed; 01-17-2010 at 05:46 PM.
SN2ed is online now Reply With Quote
SN2ed
View Public Profile
Find More Posts by SN2ed
Add SN2ed to Your Ignore List
Old 05-01-2009, 02:15 AM #4
SN2ed
2K Member

SN2ed's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 2,749
SDN 2+ Year Member

Default
Why study linearly? Why not focus on your weak areas before your strengths?

First off, I think this question underscores the importance of doing well in one’s pre-reqs to reduce the number of weakness to as few as possible. Remember, do not merely go for the A; aim for mastery of the material. Working hard in your pre-reqs will boost your GPA and pay off when you study for the MCAT.

One of the reasons test prep companies, and most schedules, go in chapter order is due to companies developing schedules for a group of people and not the individual. Rather than create a schedule per student, which would take up quite a bit of time, they make a generic schedule. Sure, they could make a diagnostic to try and pin-point weaknesses, gather the data, and make a schedule per student, yet I doubt they would want to invest their resources like that. Even creating a program to accomplish that task would cost money they probably aren’t willing to spend. Furthermore, well, you probably know how I feel about diagnostics judging by my sig.

Money is a factor in a test prep company avoiding personalized schedules; however, it is not the only reason to take chapters in order. Additionally, money would not explain why other schedules recommend going linearly. When looking at all of the various content review books, you might notice something. Translational motion is almost always the first topic in Physics. You might be thinking, “Why is that?” There are few reasons which come to mind. First, as opposed to electricity or fluids, translational motion is a relatively easy topic for most students. Secondly, it isn’t hard to create complex problems/passages based on this simple area. Lastly, translational motion serves as a great time to introduce the basic math skills and tricks needed for the MCAT. What I’m getting at here is that there are good reasons why subjects are ordered in content review books.

The content of one chapter will frequently build from the preceding chapter. Let’s take another look at Physics for an example. One starts with translational motion. The next subject is typically forces which is a form of translational motion. Then, there’s work which advances the topic of forces and applies force by distance. As you can see, each chapter uses the basis of another to present the material in a logical order. Think of it like pyramid. You start with translational motion and then add the bricks of force and work.

Another rationale for a linear schedule is that it must instill the skills necessary to apply knowledge early on. In order to do this, a schedule must start in areas that are strong for the vast majority of students. Beginning with a tough subject does not lay the foundation for application of knowledge because the student is struggling with the content itself. In fact, application of knowledge is the most important factor in MCAT success. Merely knowing the content inside-and-out does not cut it which is why you may see students that ace their classes, but do badly on the MCAT.

Next, there is the topic of confidence. I cannot stress enough the how vital confidence is for this test. Without it, you might as well not take the MCAT. Jumping straight into weak areas destroys one’s confidence. They start questioning whether they actually have the brains to take on the MCAT. Thus, you don’t want to start a schedule by slamming the individual right away. You want to guide the student and help them gain some momentum before tackling their trouble spots.

Also, by placing all of your weaknesses up front, you naturally start studying those topics first. You might be thinking, “Yeah that’s the point.” The problem here is that you may forget those topics by the time your test rolls around. You may even try to subconsciously erase your memory since focusing on all of your weaknesses at once was probably not an enjoyable experience. That’s not to say studying for the MCAT is fun, but you get the picture. Additionally, you might spend too much time on your weaknesses and neglect areas that should be your strengths and end up with more weaknesses.

Finally, there seems to be a misconception that studying linearly means you don’t focus on your weak areas. If you are properly reviewing, you shouldn’t be breezing by your weaknesses. You should read and re-read the chapter as you pound the practice problems. When you thoroughly review your practice problems, if you find you missed a problem purely based on content, you have to go over the topic again. Considering that this might mean you review the chapter several times, you can see how one might spend quite a bit of time on their weaknesses. You would also hit your weaknesses again whenever the topic comes up on a practice FL.

In closing, the above are my reasons for opting for a linear study schedule and why test prep companies may favor them as well.
Last edited by SN2ed; 09-01-2009 at 04:16 PM.