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Category: School : Medical School
I can relate to being unable to shell out the $800 for a review course. I may argue that it's worthwhile to make sacrifices in other areas to pay for such an investment (it is definitely an investment), but here's an excellent way to prepare for the exam on a limited budget.
I'm not a big fan of spending a great deal of time on studying all that you learned in college in the subject areas. It's important to have a familiarity with the subject matter, but it's more important to be able to answer the type of questions they ask on the test. The key is to prepare to do well on the test, not to relearn all of organic and general chem, bio, and physics. Moreover, the level of difficulty for the subjects (with the exception of certain bio passages) is pretty much high school mixed with some basic orgo (none of the truly pain-in-the-ass stuff premeds spend time on in class really shows up).
So, what do I recommend? Find a friend who took Kaplan and find a friend who took Princeton Review. Borrow their books, practice exams, and possibly even the kid who took Kaplan's ID card (this part may not be too legal). The ID card will give you access to Kaplan's "library" of material, which, believe it or not, turns out to be pretty useful. The point is to review only the topics of subject matter likely to appear on the test and to practice, practice, practice. If borrowing books seems too shady, you may be able to purchase just the materials from Princeton Review and/or Kaplan (I know you can do this with Princeton Review, not sure about Kaplan) for a far cheaper price than you would pay if you were to take the courses.
What information should you study? Like I said, I don't recommend trying to cover everything. A) it's practically impossible and B) the little benefits you glean from knowing the stuff will not likely be worth the three years it takes to study it all. Your best bet is to use Kaplan or Princeton Review books (either from their courses or from the much-less-expensive versions available at the book store) to get an idea of what specific topics are covered. The actual knowledge required is not what is complex about the exam. It is figuring out the answers to questions based on the passages they give that makes the MCAT difficult. If there are areas covered in which you feel you are weak (optics questions in physics, for example, or hormone questions in bio), review these, but don't get caught up in details. There are very few things you need to have memorized other than the basics of human circulation, hormones, and high-school level physics/chem equations.
Finally, be sure to do lots of practice questions and if possible, full practice tests. Ignore the crap the AAMC people produce. These amalgams of previously-used MCAT questions amount to a false sense of security for the unassuming premed who thinks the real thing is that easy. Again, try to obtain practice questions and tests from MCAT course and review materials. After spending limited time reviewing the subject matter, arm yourself with much practice in answering these types of questions.
All I got for now.
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Anonymous |
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soon-to-be-first-year-med-student |
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