Full Answer
[09:48] What Classes Do You Need to Do Well on the MCAT? Ali’s advice is to take all of them including the two physics classes, two gen chem classes, your organic chemistry classes, your bio, biochem, psych, and sociology.
Utilize the many quality tools and resources that are available to you. You don’t need to start from scratch since so many people have taken the MCAT and mastered studying before you. There are plenty of quality tools and resources, such as AAMC, Memm, and the Khan Academy.
Use one of the best MCAT prep courses listed below to achieve a top score. Our team will help you find the best fit for your studying style by ranking and reviewing various MCAT prep courses.
MCAT Self Prep’s free course includes 10 content modules, over 300 hours of video, study tips, access to a Facebook study group as well as the ability to message the company's CEO.
Devote study blocks on a rotating basis to Biochemistry, Biology, General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physics, and Behavioral Sciences. For test-like practice, use the AAMC Sample Questions and Sections and choose passages based on the content areas you have reviewed.
The Best MCAT Prep Courses of 2022Best Overall: Blueprint.Best Live-Online Course: Kaplan.Best Customizable Prep Course: MCAT Self Prep.Best for Guarantees: Altius.Best Intensive Study Course: The Princeton Review.Best Value: Magoosh.
So, are MCAT prep courses actually worth it? MCAT Prep courses are probably only worth it if you need structure, support and don't feel confident self-studying for the MCAT. Many students score well on the exam without ever having taken (or paid a lot of money for) a course. It's definitely not a necessity.
Best MCAT Prep Courses SummaryBest Overall MCAT Prep Course: Blueprint MCAT.Most Immersive MCAT Prep: Altius.Best Value MCAT Prep Course: Magoosh.Best MCAT Live Online Classes: Princeton Review.The Popular MCAT Pick: Kaplan.Most MCAT Study Material: Gold Standard.
You have many options when it comes to MCAT studying, you can self-study or you can take a prep course. Both options can be effective, but you should consider your goals and circumstances to choose the best path for you. One of the hallmarks in any pre-medical journey is taking the MCAT.
The MCAT is especially challenging for several reasons, according to test prep experts. It is extremely lengthy and covers multiple subjects, addresses technical aspects of certain fields and occasionally requires test-takers to combine knowledge from disparate academic disciplines.
The initial registration fee for the MCAT exam is $325, which covers the cost of the exam, as well as distribution of your scores. Information regarding fees is available on the MCAT website.
200 to 300 hoursMost people need 10–15 hours per week to study for the MCAT over a period of at least four to six months . In total, you should aim for at least 200 to 300 hours of MCAT study time.
1. The Princeton Review MCAT Prep Course 2. The Gold Standard MCAT Review Course 3. Kaplan MCAT Prep Course 4. Adapt Prep MCAT Review Course 5. Mag...
1. Practice Questions: The Gold Standard MCAT has more practice questions than any other MCAT course in our rankings. This ensures you probably won...
1. 1. Flexible Pricing: Students can save some money on registration costs by reducing the amount of access time or limiting their study material t...
1. Monday Back Guarantee: All students get a FREE Introductory Hour, so you get to meet your tutor and develop a customized study plan before begin...
After reviewing numerous courses , we found that Princeton Review and Blueprint were the best MCAT prep courses. Both courses offer some grea...
MCAT prep courses are a great way to learn new material and refresh yourself on old material. Some factors to consider might be your budget, learni...
The amount of time it takes to study for the MCAT will vary from person to person. It is recommended that students give themselves adequate time to...
Both prep courses are great options when studying for the MCAT. Princeton Review is a little cheaper and has a couple of different features versu...
The MCAT is a very difficult exam. Many students spend months preparing for the MCAT exam. MCAT prep courses are an efficient way to study and ta...
Technically any upper-level biology or chemistry class will help you with the MCAT. The classes I listed above are agreed by most students to be the most useful for MCAT studying.
Basically, you want to take these classes before you take the MCAT so that you have a solid understanding of the tested material. A solid understanding of the material comes from lectures, tests, and labs.
Med School Pursuit’s strategy for acing the MCAT involves doing a ton of practice tests, passages, and problems followed by careful review. We advise students to obtain a good MCAT content book to use as a reference when reviewing problems.
June 1, 2021. September 6, 2019 by Paul Zganiacz. Before studying for the MCAT, it is recommended that you take certain pre-med courses that are covered on the exam.
Helpful Upper-Level Classes. Upper-level classes are NOT required to do well on the MCAT. However, one cannot deny that there is a clear benefit to taking upper-level biology courses before the MCAT. The only reason why we don’t recommend taking these classes is that there is usually not enough time. But if you are in a position where you can take ...
Especially when considering you may be balancing work, school and a host of other responsibilities. The MCAT testing period of 7.5 hours can be brutal without the best MCAT prep course.
MCAT Channel: Kaplan’s MCAT Channel gives students access to live lectures from 1st-rate, experienced MCAT teachers 6 days a week in addition to on demand, pre-recorded content that is available 24/7. Best of all recorded episodes can searched by interests, study needs, or even your favorite professor!
A self-paced course provides the most versatile learning options. Flexibility is key here and it often gives you the ability to study around your schedule as opposed to making your schedule around your classes. Having this option gives you ultimate control of your MCAT exam prep. However, with this comes the responsibility of sitting down and sticking to a schedule on your own. You also won’t have open access to instructors, although many of the self-paced options do provide forums, email and phone support.
Pricing: Kaplan offers a top notch MCAT prep course, but it comes at a price. They have the most expensive on-demand option in our list, starting at $1,799. Their live online and in-person options are even more. If prices is a consideration you can get a better deal with Blueprint.
If your score doesn’t go up, you can do the same program again at no extra charge, or (the best part) you can ask for your money back. You can study up until the very day of your exam with Kaplan’s course materials, which do not expire until you take the MCAT.
These range from 1 month to 6 months. The study plans give you daily exercises and even have built in rest days. This is a great way to stay organized and make sure you’re maximizing your study time.
However, Blueprint MCAT Review manages to offer an affordable package with quality and quality.
After reviewing numerous courses , we found that Princeton Review and Blueprint were the best MCAT prep courses. Both courses offer some great features and will help any student prepare for the MCAT exam.
Improvement needed – take a free MCAT practice test to see where you stand. If your score needs improvement, an MCAT prep course may be a good option.
The MCAT is challenging, and high scores are critical. MCAT prep courses are a great way for students to refresh their knowledge on multiple topics while also learning new material. MCAT prep courses will help students become more comfortable taking the MCAT by offering strategies and test taking tips.
The most comprehensive MCAT course we reviewed. With 12 months of access for the self-paced course, students should do very well on the MCAT when using this prep course.
MCAT prep courses are a great way to learn new material and refresh yourself on old material. Some factors to consider might be your budget, learning style, and self-discipline. MCAT prep courses will help identify strengths and weaknesses, simulate the actual test, and provide a study plan.
This course is the most in-depth course they offer. Students can purchase this course for $3099.
The Princeton Review offers a very thorough MCAT prep course. The online, self-paced course retails for $1499 and is available to students for 12 months. The course features 1000’s of free-standing and passage-based questions – all of which have detailed answer explanations.
The MCAT is designed by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) to measure students’ preparation for medical school.
A prep course can be helpful not only for the content knowledge and practice but also for the guided structure. According to AAMC, roughly half of students prepare for the MCAT with a course. Whatever you decide, everyone can benefit from a realistic, structured study plan and ways to keep yourself accountable.
Many students choose to take the exam in January, May, or September. Depending on how far in advance you register, the exam can cost between $315-370 (as of 2018). AAMC does offer a Fee Assistance Program, which reduces the cost by nearly half for qualifying applicants.
A prep course will teach you all the concepts necessary to excel on the exam as well as the test-taking skills you need. This means that the science instructors will discuss both content and strategy, while the CARS instructors will teach a comprehensive method to approaching the passages. These skills take practice.
Scores are released to medical schools 30-35 days after the test date. The AMCAS application costs approximately $160, which includes reporting scores to one medical school. Additional medical schools may be added at a cost of approximately $40 each.
Most students prepare for roughly 500 hours (!) over a period of two months to one year.
Test review is a critical step in guiding your study and revising your strategy. Another key step in considering a prep course is finding out what you would score now, before studying. Establishing a baseline score is helpful in determining whether or not a prep course is right for you.
When selecting the MCAT prep course that is right for you, consider your learning style, your timeline for study, the amount of support you want, and your budget. If you want a course that offers a breadth of study materials, and online support from 99th percentile instructors all on an easy-to-use platform, we recommend Blueprint.
We evaluated 13 different MCAT prep courses for this review and considered factors such as cost, delivery options, the breadth of study materials, course length, student support, and the quality of instructors. We also considered if the MCAT prep course offered a score increase guarantee and a free trial so students can test out the program before committing.
Why We Chose It: Blueprint is our choice for the best MCAT prep course because of its strong student support, impressive instructors, breadth of study materials, and access to full-length practice exams.
The course regularly costs $6,999 but was on sale for $6,699 as of March 2021.
The MCAT is administered by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) and consists of multiple-choice questions on problem-solving; critical thinking; and knowledge of natural, behavioral, and social science required for students who want to study medicine. The best MCAT prep courses are those that are engaging, ...
Kaplan also offers a six-month-long On-Demand Course for $1,799 that includes pre-recorded, teacher-led lessons, access to live lessons six days per week, and over 90 hours of recorded lessons. Additionally, you can upgrade to the On-Demand Course Plus for $2,299 which includes everything in the On-Demand Course plus three hours of one-on-one tutoring, additional MCAT resources, and medical school admissions help.
The MCAT can be taken up to three times in a single testing year, but there are limits to how many times you can take the exam. The MCAT can be taken up to four times in two consecutive years, and up to seven times in a lifetime. It’s important to note that all of your scored exams can be seen by medical schools.
Biology is the number one topic on the MCAT. Ali says it depends on what you classify as biology. Because the number one topic on the bio/biochem section, for example, is foundational concept one. This is 55% of your bio/biochem section. And actually, it overlaps with some of the chem/phys section too. So you can get points there too.
But just to give you an idea of the normal school timeline, if you want to apply in the summer of your junior year, just before your senior year, you have to have your MCAT ready by May of your junior year.
They’re very organized with their classes and they’re very organized for the MCAT. They keep a schedule and they know what to do every day.
If you’ve never been exposed to the topic before, a topic you can study on your own would be something like sociology. If you have the basics of psychology/sociology, it might be easier for you to do it on your own. It’s not to say that it’s a less important topic.
The main complication is when you have not taken all of the prerequisite classes. A lot of sophomores have not taken Physics 2 or Organic Chemistry 2 before taking the MCAT. You can overcome that but not everyone can overcome it in the timeline that they have. Then there’s a kind of a subtle complication under it as well.
Ali says not to let it distract you from your classes because your number one job is to get an A and get a high GPA in your classes in your freshman and sophomore years.
Again, it’s a great strategy, but you still need to do well in your class so don’t let the MCAT prep get in the way of that.
This is why it’s important to find out exactly what an MCAT prep course offers and if that matches your academic needs. Many students achieve success just by creating their own MCAT study schedule and sticking to it. You might be one of them or you might be someone who could really benefit from an MCAT prep course.
Additionally, while MCAT prep courses do offer access to a large number of resources, these resources may not always be reliable. That’s why it’s important to regularly check your progress. For example, taking as many practice tests as possible definitely helps to keep track of your progress and improve your final score. But without personalized feedback and professional help, many students find it difficult to figure out what areas of weakness they should address and how to structure their time to achieve the highest results possible. This is why going with a prep course with good reputation, proven strategies, and unbiased excellent reviews is key in your search for the right MCAT prep class. If the MCAT prep course you choose is not reliable or comprehensive, you may end up wishing you had just chosen the self-directed study option.
The MCAT, short for Medical College Admission Test, is a standardized test that students must take if they’re hoping to be admitted into medical school.
The Princeton Review has been offering standardized test prep for many years, and it’s good at what it does. Currently, it offers four different MCAT prep courses.
We sincerely hope this information gave you some good insight on choosing from the best MCAT prep courses to be found online.