RNtoMD Posted February 10, 2016 Report Share Posted February 10, 2016 I'm a nursing student and Im wondering if studying for the MCAT is feasible with none of the prereqs completed. Im a good self teacher and I think I'm disciplined enough, but is learning the material from scratch going to be a large barrier in doing well? My plan would be to purchase prep material (kaplan or princeton), exam crackers and supplement with khan academy. Just wanting some thoughts/opinions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnGrisham Posted February 10, 2016 Report Share Posted February 10, 2016 I'm a nursing student and Im wondering if studying for the MCAT is feasible with none of the prereqs completed. Im a good self teacher and I think I'm disciplined enough, but is learning the material from scratch going to be a large barrier in doing well? My plan would be to purchase prep material (kaplan or princeton), exam crackers and supplement with khan academy. Just wanting some thoughts/opinions. It's doable, there are plenty of resources available to get your fundamentals in check(Khan Academy and youtube is wonders), and then of course the MCAT specific materials. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MSWschnoodle Posted February 10, 2016 Report Share Posted February 10, 2016 I didn't do any science courses in University and I prepped for the MCAT while writing my thesis. It was tough, but it was do-able Khan academy was an incredible resource - a real life saver. I used books from TPR along with Khan. I want to say there was a non-trad on the forum that scored a 520+ on the MCAT despite not taking any science classes... I think they posted the study plan they used. Maybe do a quick search to see if you can dig it up (sorry, I can't remember who it was). Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbinners Posted February 11, 2016 Report Share Posted February 11, 2016 Hi RNtoMD, I'm a non-trad and did take some of the pre-reqs, but I really had zilch science background. Not sure if it would be different coming from nursing. Personally, I was really glad I took 1 FCE of bio, 1 FCE of chem and a bit of ochem and biochem. Knowing what I know now, I might have opted to take them all online (and therefore much more quickly) instead of choosing courses with labs -- but if I had it to do again I would still take them. Maybe have a look at the prep books yourself and determine how much of it is brand new and how much is review from background you already have? I found that there was plenty of work to do just working on stamina and MCAT's unique style plus learning the sections that were brand new to me (physics...etc). I have a post called something like Arts grad with a 520 MCAT that lists what I used to study (after the few prereq courses) if you're interested in what I used. Good luck!!! Kathryn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken_Little Posted February 20, 2016 Report Share Posted February 20, 2016 I'm a nursing student and Im wondering if studying for the MCAT is feasible with none of the prereqs completed. Im a good self teacher and I think I'm disciplined enough, but is learning the material from scratch going to be a large barrier in doing well? My plan would be to purchase prep material (kaplan or princeton), exam crackers and supplement with khan academy. Just wanting some thoughts/opinions. It is definitely doable! I'm also an RN and took the new MCAT last August. I did not have all the prerequisite courses either and I did find certain subjects a little more challenging than others (namely physics and o-chem). My advice is that you give yourself enough time to study! I made the mistake of thinking I could do a three month prep schedule like most undergrads and learned quickly that it was not for me! I had to look up certain things prep books don't teach you and assume you know- that actually takes a lot of time especially if you want the concepts to sink in. I persevered but really stressed my self out just to make it for my mcat date (BIG MISTAKE!) Anyways- I sat for the last MCAT Jan 2015 in hopes to not having to write the new exam- I did a 3 month study schedule (I found on SDN) but was very overwhelmed with all the material I had to learn- Mind you by the end of that 3 months I did learn a lot (taught myself a full years worth of physics!) and concepts stuck but my recall for the exam was just not fast enough. I did many practice questions and felt really good because i was actually answering the majority of the questions right---BUT the biggest mistake I made was not timing the practice questions. This is so important and do it early on in your studies! All in all- I didn't do so well on that exam and figured if I want to take another shot at it I may as well suck it up and do the new exam and so it began.. For the new exam I gave myself ample time to review the material and did about 6 practice exams as well as several practice questions for each section studied- under strict timed conditions. It really did help a lot and for some reason I actually found the new exam to be a little easier than the old one in terms of content. I did use 2 different companies to study with- I found the Berkley review (TBR) for physics and chemistry invaluable!! I can't say it enough how good those books are for teaching you what you need. Also, a lot of people say that TBR is too overwhelming for the biology section - but to be honest, for the new exam, these books are also great- especially for the passages- they are difficult and similar to the level you will find on the new mcat. I did a lot better the second time around on all sections except for CARS My score was not competitive enough for most Canadian school (such a bummer after studying so hard!)- I need to find the stamina to do this again- and now to focus on CARS more than anything (first go: PS-7, VR-5, BS-8) (New Exam: PS-127; CARS-123; BS-127; Psych/Soc-128) SO a few things: - give yourself ample time to learn the material so that when you do your timed practice questions your recall of certain formulas, a.a structures etc doesn't eat away at your time (you need the time for critical thinking!) - you can find many study schedules on SDN and tailor them to your learning style - certain exam prep books are better than others in terms of your starting point (I felt EK physics and chem work better for people who are stronger in the physical sciences but TBR was great for someone like me, with a limited background in these subjects). - With a nursing background the EK bio set is very good; essentially I used both TBR and EK for studying (and practice questions) and bought the Kaplan biochem and psychology book to supplement (as the new exam is heavy on biochem - it was sufficient enough and easy to follow). There are many discussion threads as to what resources are good/fair/poor - find one or two and just stick to it (That in itself can b overwhelming!) - For the new exam- the bio section focuses a lot more on all things at the cellular level--- and they love research based passages! Khan Academy will help you with that- especially for bio/biochem/psych. The EK 30min tests are also good for that. - certain subjects you may never really get (like all the reaction mechanisms for o-chem/certain physics concepts etc) - just make sure you know the basics and move on...no point in learning everything and wasting time. Look at the AAMC outline and make sure you cover those things -As for CARS- I find this section is subjective...some people do really well with limited prep and others need more practice (like me!) You really just have to find where you stand and work at it according to that. - Do practice tests and questions with a timer in front of your face! Do this early on because the test is not all about knowledge (you can get a lot out of the passages if you don't know a subject well) BUT really tests how you think and how well you do under pressure (among other things). You could be the smartest person ever but if you get anxious all that knowledge basically becomes useless at that moment. I find a lot of anxiety comes from timing and if you start early eventually you become desensitized to it. The practice exams also help build your stamina for the real thing because like kbinners said above- this exam tests you on a lot more than just the material! I hope that helped a little. Good Luck with your studies! Once you find your rhythm the studying gets easier. I work as an RN and also a full time mom of a 2 and 5 years old; If you have the disciple and perseverance- you can definitely do it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RNtoMD Posted March 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2016 It is definitely doable! I'm also an RN and took the new MCAT last August. I did not have all the prerequisite courses either and I did find certain subjects a little more challenging than others (namely physics and o-chem). My advice is that you give yourself enough time to study! I made the mistake of thinking I could do a three month prep schedule like most undergrads and learned quickly that it was not for me! I had to look up certain things prep books don't teach you and assume you know- that actually takes a lot of time especially if you want the concepts to sink in. I persevered but really stressed my self out just to make it for my mcat date (BIG MISTAKE!) Anyways- I sat for the last MCAT Jan 2015 in hopes to not having to write the new exam- I did a 3 month study schedule (I found on SDN) but was very overwhelmed with all the material I had to learn- Mind you by the end of that 3 months I did learn a lot (taught myself a full years worth of physics!) and concepts stuck but my recall for the exam was just not fast enough. I did many practice questions and felt really good because i was actually answering the majority of the questions right---BUT the biggest mistake I made was not timing the practice questions. This is so important and do it early on in your studies! All in all- I didn't do so well on that exam and figured if I want to take another shot at it I may as well suck it up and do the new exam and so it began.. For the new exam I gave myself ample time to review the material and did about 6 practice exams as well as several practice questions for each section studied- under strict timed conditions. It really did help a lot and for some reason I actually found the new exam to be a little easier than the old one in terms of content. I did use 2 different companies to study with- I found the Berkley review (TBR) for physics and chemistry invaluable!! I can't say it enough how good those books are for teaching you what you need. Also, a lot of people say that TBR is too overwhelming for the biology section - but to be honest, for the new exam, these books are also great- especially for the passages- they are difficult and similar to the level you will find on the new mcat. I did a lot better the second time around on all sections except for CARS My score was not competitive enough for most Canadian school (such a bummer after studying so hard!)- I need to find the stamina to do this again- and now to focus on CARS more than anything (first go: PS-7, VR-5, BS-8) (New Exam: PS-127; CARS-123; BS-127; Psych/Soc-128) SO a few things: - give yourself ample time to learn the material so that when you do your timed practice questions your recall of certain formulas, a.a structures etc doesn't eat away at your time (you need the time for critical thinking!) - you can find many study schedules on SDN and tailor them to your learning style - certain exam prep books are better than others in terms of your starting point (I felt EK physics and chem work better for people who are stronger in the physical sciences but TBR was great for someone like me, with a limited background in these subjects). - With a nursing background the EK bio set is very good; essentially I used both TBR and EK for studying (and practice questions) and bought the Kaplan biochem and psychology book to supplement (as the new exam is heavy on biochem - it was sufficient enough and easy to follow). There are many discussion threads as to what resources are good/fair/poor - find one or two and just stick to it (That in itself can b overwhelming!) - For the new exam- the bio section focuses a lot more on all things at the cellular level--- and they love research based passages! Khan Academy will help you with that- especially for bio/biochem/psych. The EK 30min tests are also good for that. - certain subjects you may never really get (like all the reaction mechanisms for o-chem/certain physics concepts etc) - just make sure you know the basics and move on...no point in learning everything and wasting time. Look at the AAMC outline and make sure you cover those things -As for CARS- I find this section is subjective...some people do really well with limited prep and others need more practice (like me!) You really just have to find where you stand and work at it according to that. - Do practice tests and questions with a timer in front of your face! Do this early on because the test is not all about knowledge (you can get a lot out of the passages if you don't know a subject well) BUT really tests how you think and how well you do under pressure (among other things). You could be the smartest person ever but if you get anxious all that knowledge basically becomes useless at that moment. I find a lot of anxiety comes from timing and if you start early eventually you become desensitized to it. The practice exams also help build your stamina for the real thing because like kbinners said above- this exam tests you on a lot more than just the material! I hope that helped a little. Good Luck with your studies! Once you find your rhythm the studying gets easier. I work as an RN and also a full time mom of a 2 and 5 years old; If you have the disciple and perseverance- you can definitely do it!! Wow, this is so inspiring. Thank you everyone for your advice/comments. This has helped clear things up just a tad bit more! 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Chicken_Little Posted March 18, 2016 Report Share Posted March 18, 2016 Wow, this is so inspiring. Thank you everyone for your advice/comments. This has helped clear things up just a tad bit more! You're very welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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