MikeMoore_prep101 Posted November 5, 2020 Report Share Posted November 5, 2020 Hi everyone. I hope your MCAT results were fantastic (or, if you're starting to prep this early, that things are going smoothly for you). My name is Mike Moore and I am the head chemistry instructor for Prep101. We finished this year’s preparation course, and what an adventure it was. It was phenomenal to see so many students maintain their drive for (and achieve!) success through the transition to online learning. Prep101 is devoted to constant re-evaluation and improvement of our program. As we do every August, we’re now moving into a critical analysis of our resources, teaching styles, and examples. This analysis is educated by student feedback which is why we want (crave!) open and honest feedback from students like you. It would be extremely helpful to our development team if you would answer some of the following: If you took the Prep101 MCAT course:- Why did you choose Prep101? - What did you like or dislike about your Prep101 MCAT course this past summer? - How helpful were our instructors, study-guides, and home study kit? - Did you take advantage of the flexible schedule? Did you find it useful? - What is the most important feature an MCAT course must have to justify your time and money? If you didn’t take the Prep101 MCAT course:- If you took a different course, how did you decide to do so?- If you self-prepped, how did you decide to do so? - Feel free to share your experiences with your selected prep method. In hindsight, did anything fall short? Exceed your expectations? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I know giving all that constructive feedback can be a pain, but your time is sincerely appreciated. After all, it is the best way we can continue to improve this program for students! And as promised, here are some free review materials. There’s a mix of meta-skills (test writing skills, CARS passages strategies) and a couple lessons on some acid/base topics that a lot of people lose marks on (clickable links below).CARS skillsTest-writing skills (these will hopefully seem like common sense. But after doing a test, be honest with yourself about whether you're actually following them!)How to use pKw = pKa + pKb ARIO and how to use it I’ll hang around, of course, but feel free to also contact me through email if you have any questions: mikemchem@gmail.com. And thanks to the mod team for approving this post. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angus_chan Posted November 28, 2020 Report Share Posted November 28, 2020 As a student of the Prep101 MCAT course from 2019-2020, I was thoroughly impressed with the level of expertise and advice Prep101's instructors were able to provide, not only with respect to mastery of testable concepts, but also navigating the exam itself. I had first heard of Prep101 through a paper flyer handed to me on my way into one of my undergraduate lectures. Curious about a career in medicine, I decided to attend the free seminars advertised on the flyer and came to learn more about Prep101's philosophy and MCAT course. What caught my attention most strongly was Prep101's flexible class schedule as well as their unlimited free-repeat policy. Wanting to continue my extracurricular activities throughout my MCAT preparation, the flexible class schedule gave me more freedom in altering my weekly extracurricular schedule without falling behind on course content. Furthermore, knowing that unlimited repeats of the course would be available to me free of charge, a significant amount of stress was lifted off of my shoulders throughout my exam preparation. As a unique participant who had the opportunity to experience both the in-person course in my first year and the online version in my second, I was impressed by the instructors' efforts and success in delivering a virtual learning experience highly comparable to my in-person experience. Aside from the delayed real-time feedback and reciprocal conversation that would exist in a physical classroom, the course content was still presented quite clearly, in-class student perspectives were considered through the scheduling of active mental breaks interjected within the classic 4-hour lectures, and the instructors were incredibly diligent in providing help through emails as well as staying online for a short while after each class. In terms of course materials, the ExamKrackers MCAT textbooks and Prep101's classroom companions were quite comprehensive and served as great guides in pointing me to content areas that I needed to improve upon. Additionally, I thoroughly enjoyed the time instructors took in each class to allow students to practice applying their learned knowledge in practice questions. In comparison to my first year taking the course, I felt that this past summer's course's increased focus on assigning the ExamKrackers practice questions as homework activities to supplement the in-class usage of the AAMC's practice section banks (rather than vice versa) to be extremely helpful. Not only was I exposed to the instructors' reasoning process for each concept and question examined in excruciating detail, I was also able to learn direct skills to navigate the AAMC question types/styles that I would face on exam day rather than spending time learning to answer a separate prep company's (ExamKrackers) inaccurate interpretive reproduction of the AAMC question types/styles. To sum it all up, I felt that both of my years taking Prep101's MCAT course were quite rewarding, each with their own merits and drawbacks. Personally, I believe that the most important feature an MCAT course should have to justify my time and money would be instructors who are truly invested in their students' success rather than role-occupiers who see their position as a mere part-time job. The right instructors, in my opinion, are the essential to the success of a course as comprehensive and broad-based as this one. Undoubtedly, the MCAT is a monstrous exam with an incredibly large bank of testable concepts. Though there is relative consistency to the breadth of material that can be directly tested, a well-seasoned versus uninvested instructor may very well be a strong determinant of a student's feeling of preparedness and confidence despite their own dedicated preparation efforts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monicab Posted December 9, 2020 Report Share Posted December 9, 2020 I chose Prep101 because of the unlimited repeat policy and the flexibility of class times. I knew I would be working throughout my mcat prep so having a flexible schedule was really important to me. One thing I really liked about the course was the variety of instructors. When learning some of the more difficult topics, you can hear it a hundred times and not grasp it. Sometimes all it takes is hearing it explained in a different way and it all makes sense - so having a variety of instructors who come from different backgrounds and can explain topics in different ways was great. One thing I did dislike though is that not every instructor posted their notes. For the instructors that did share their notes it was great because if I missed something I could go back and fill in the blanks or I could spend additional time outside of class understanding how they solved questions that we went over in class. All of the instructors were very helpful and approachable which is an important factor when considering an mcat prep course! It was a big change adjusting to an online platform but all of the instructors were very understanding and made the classes enjoyable while providing great information. The at home study kits were great for staying organized and taking notes. I loved how the instructors went through the same book that everyone had. It made taking notes and keeping up so much easier. I also took advantage of the flexible schedule. If I didn’t understand a topic, or wanted to go through it again I would attend another class during the week. It was so nice having a flexible schedule because if something came up I could easily adjust without having to miss anything. If for whatever reason I couldn’t make any of the classes for a certain topic one week the online medreels were another option that I used once or twice! Overall, I think one of the important features of an MCAT prep course that justify my time and money are the resources available within it and a flexible schedule. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lindita Posted December 12, 2020 Report Share Posted December 12, 2020 I took the Prep101 course in summer 2020 and I was pleasantly surprised of how well the course instructors did at navigating online lectures. They made sure that all the content was explained in great detail, providing amazing tips on how to approach studying, and writing the MCAT. The instructors were also great at providing many resources and were more than happy to respond to questions either in class or by email. I first heard about Prep101 at my university and ultimately chose it for its flexible schedule and free repeat policy, which isn't offered with other courses. One of the things I liked the most about the Prep101 MCAT course was having different instructors and the resources. Because of the course, I did not have to go looking for resources such as prep101 practice books or practice exams. Everything was included in the course! Personally, I found this such a relief because I was so overwhelmed with all the resources out there and I honestly could not decide on which ones to get, and couldn't figure out exactly what I needed to be successful. The different instructors also made it easier for me to understand concepts. Sometimes it is difficult to understand a concept, and it was very helpful to have different instructors that can explain concepts in different ways! The only thing I disliked about the course was it being online. I personally do not learn well online and did struggle with it for awhile, but the instructors made it easy to fall into a routine, and were so welcoming to questions if something was not understood. I did take advantage of the flexible schedule, but not often. This was more of a personal choice, as I wanted to stay on track in-terms of my schedule and would try to attend the classes that I originally signed-up for. With that being said, the flexible schedule was very useful when I had to go over a concept or chapter in a specific book that I did not fully understand. I also used the videos posted to go over-concepts as well! The most important feature an MCAT course must have to justify my time and money is having resources included and a flexible schedule, which is something Prep101 provided. It can be very overwhelming to get everything into order before starting the process of writing the MCAT, and I believe the Prep101 course did a great job at combining an exhaustive list of resources (lectures, videos, practice exams, practice questions/homework, etc.) to ensure that you have everything you need to do well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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