Time needed for study

[Puggy]

Hello!

 

I will be taking the MCAT for the second time. How much study time do you think I should dedicate? I have a part time job which sort of freaks me out cause I don't know if I have enough time. I can dedicate 4 full days/week starting June 5th until August. Thanks in advance

[KristenD]

I think that this depends on a lot of factors! How confident/familiar you already are with the material, how long it has been since you have taken organic chem, ect., how well you did the first time you wrote, what type of studier you are. I know for me, I wrote my MCAT at the beginning of September last year, and began studying in May. I worked full time, but my job involved a lot of driving time which I was able to study during. I also wrote my GRE in June, so I didn't really crack down on MCAT stuff until July-August, and still managed to work alot of hours. I didn't take a class and just self-studied using the Kaplan book, and did as many old MCATS as I could find in the library. I think its entirely possible to study while working part time or even full time, but if you can afford to work less than that is definitely an advantage! For me, it had also been over a year since I had taken organic chem, and over two years since I had last taken physics/chem and bio, so I felt a little shaky! I ended up getting a 34Q, which I was happy with in the end!!

[Wolvenstar]

Your taking it a second time? You should have an idea of the areas you need to improve in then. I would suggest focusing primarily on those areas until you feel comfortable and just doing a brief review of the other areas. I also suppose it depends on your ability to recall this stuff.