UserName Posted January 28, 2009 Report Share Posted January 28, 2009 Hey future MCATers I just want to compare two sets of books. The first is a single book called Cracking the MCAT CBT by the Princeton Review, and a second is the older 3 Kaplan books that used to be sold with the Kaplan course (Biological science review notes, verbal etc) Well initially I was studying with Kaplan, then I switched to PR and thought it was so much more clear and simple. They would tell you not to study a few things that Kaplan mentions. They have much less content overall and they also provide 4 free online full lengths. well here is the thing.. Princeton Review is just a review. On its own, it sucks big time. The stuff that they tell you not to worry about gets tested in their OWN practice tests. Also, there are mistakes everywhere and typos in their text.. AND their tests. I switched back quickly to Kaplan and filled in the gaps my advice.. start your foundation with Kaplan.. and if you want more practice, get that big PR book and do it just for extra practice. but don't depend on it. just my own experience.. good luck to everyone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvermen85 Posted January 28, 2009 Report Share Posted January 28, 2009 I would recommend Kaplan any day, I'm so glad I took the course . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StreetballKing Posted February 23, 2009 Report Share Posted February 23, 2009 Agreed. I just bought the big Kaplan book + EK verbal and they got me through this dreaded test. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanserie Posted February 23, 2009 Report Share Posted February 23, 2009 I have used both Kaplan and PR review books and I have to say....one set didn't seem to be better than the other. You can buy or borrow books from the previous year's edition - it'll be cheaper and the material is virtually unchanged. I would definitely recommend getting access to computer-based practice tests inthe same format as the actual MCAT so you have a chance to familiarize yourself with it. I used PR for this personally - and looking back they seemed pretty similar to the actual test in terms of question format (I actually thought the PR questions were harder). Kaplan might also have practice CBTs so you can look into that as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supafield Posted February 24, 2009 Report Share Posted February 24, 2009 With regards to their classroom courses, it is TPR for me.... I think all other things equal.... princeton's customer service is amazing... Took a classroom course in 2006..... was allowed a free retake (just because I didn't like the distribution of my 31) however I was just doing it to get the new materials in 2007 but then due to a few things needed to change the retake to 2008.... They had sent me the 2007 materials already, but said no problem... retake in 2008... sure enough they sent me a new set of books in 2008.... So..... all things considered the least I could do for them is report my good feedback on a public forum such as this one. Downsides to both in my mind are they both stink in terms of verbal strategy. Any way you decide, go out and buy EK's verbal stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashleym Posted February 24, 2009 Report Share Posted February 24, 2009 ^^ I say the exact same thing! (except the whole VR thing...I have no idea). But ya, I took the Princeton Review MCAT course, and I thought it was great. They taught a lot of stuff in a short span of time. Great access to questions and practice tests. The TPR tests, however, tend to be very challenging. But you also get ones from AMCAS which are easier. After my frist test, I too was unhappy with the distribution of my 31. TPR send me all their books again and gave me access to all the online stuff. I took all the online tests and wrote again for a 34. thanks princeton! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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