Best prep course to take?

[dpk0101]

Hi everyone,

 

I am planning to take one of the prep courses for the MCAT and I'm having difficulty deciding on which one to take (Kaplan, Princeton Review, Prep101..etc).

I would really appreciate any feedback on which seems to be the best option based on your experiences.

 

Thanks!

[war485]

Kaplan is good for reviewing the sciences (bio/chem/physics) but in my opinion, absolutely horrible for verbal and the essay writing (maybe it's just my experience).

 

Princeton is better with the writing and verbal parts, and better with the physics stuff if you took it before (they summarized it very well but assumes some prior knowledge).

 

take the one accordingly, but remember most of the prepping depends on you.

[A.J.]

So the best prep course for verbal and essay is PR? Or are there better companies (in toronto area).

[matthewward_prep101]

Hi dpk0101:

 

That is a really good question, but before I give you my feedback, please understand that I work for Prep101 (so I don’t want anyone to accuse me of having bias, as clearly I do!). However, since I also taught the Kaplan MCAT course for many years, and by virtue of my position I certainly know what the other MCAT prep companies are offering, I think I can give some useful insight into your question.

 

Selecting an MCAT course is obviously a huge expense, both in terms of money and time. Fortunately for the consumer (i.e., student) there are many different options on the market you can choose from – and you definitely want to make an informed decision in your selection as the MCAT will be one of the most important exams you will write in a lifetime!

 

I won’t get into all the details of the Prep101 MCAT course here as I would encourage you to first do some research into the three biggest companies out on the Canadian market:

 

http://prep101.com/mcat/index.html

http://www.kaptest.com/MCAT/Home/index.html

http://www.princetonreview.com/medical/mcat-test-preparation.aspx

 

We are currently undergoing a major revision of our summer 2011 MCAT course to quite simply, become the most comprehensive program available on the market (FYI: our webpage is still being revised right now to reflect these changes).

 

For our new MCAT course, the three most important features that we will offer (which is far superior to Kaplan or TPR) is:

 

1) Hours of classroom time: our new course will include 108 hours of actual lecture time which includes the use of EK materials, our new Classroom Companion, Writing Sample workshops and a new six hour section of MCAT Skills and Strategies (on top of previous materials: AAMC exams, online components, tutoring options, etc…). We will also offer a “flexible” schedule to our students whereby we offer the same class twice each week (you can pick and choose which one you want to attend).

 

2) Instructors: we are the only MCAT prep company with the majority of our instructors possessing (or working towards) graduate or medical degrees (i.e., M.Sc., PhD, M.D.). We are also the only prep company that posts on our website the background information and students evaluations of our instructors (who also had to undergo a rigorous student audition and interview before being hired).

 

3) Cost: we are well aware of the tight economy right now as well as the financial struggle(s) that pre-med students work through every day. As such, our comprehensive prep course is $1595 compared to Kaplan/TPR which ranges from $1899-1999.

 

As for your question regarding VR and WS – our new MCAT prep-course quite simply blows Kaplan and TPR out of the water in terms of these two subjects:

 

For the WS, you will receive 6 hours of in-class workshops, and write at minimum 18 essays throughout the course (which you will receive detailed feedback/scoring from our MCAT coordinators). By comparison, Kaplan simply gives you a score report breakdown which you use to grade your own essays.

 

You will also have the option of submitting 10 additional WS essays to our internal forums which will receive detailed feedback/scoring as well. To get a feel for how serious we are about the WS, check out the free service we even offered to PreMed101 students on these forums last summer:

 

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43750

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43753

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45246&highlight=Prep101

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45275&highlight=Prep101

 

As for VR, we use EK materials for this component of the course (including VR101 passages)…if you check out the forums, the general consensus is that these are one of the best VR materials available on the market!

 

Again, please don’t accuse me of having an extreme bias – I am simply presenting some of the features of our own MCAT prep course. I cannot encourage you (and everyone) enough to do your homework and select the MCAT course that will give you the best chance at succeeding on “the Beast.”

 

If you (or anyone) have any questions about the Prep101 course (or the MCAT in general) I would be more than happy to chat by phone (780-988-1845) or by e-mail (MatthewWard_Prep101@hotmail.com). The best of luck with your studies and please let me know if I can help in any way….

 

Cheers,

 

Matt

[darknebula]

Hi dpk0101:

 

That is a really good question, but before I give you my feedback, please understand that I work for Prep101 (so I don’t want anyone to accuse me of having bias, as clearly I do!). However, since I also taught the Kaplan MCAT course for many years, and by virtue of my position I certainly know what the other MCAT prep companies are offering, I think I can give some useful insight into your question.

 

Selecting an MCAT course is obviously a huge expense, both in terms of money and time. Fortunately for the consumer (i.e., student) there are many different options on the market you can choose from – and you definitely want to make an informed decision in your selection as the MCAT will be one of the most important exams you will write in a lifetime!

 

I won’t get into all the details of the Prep101 MCAT course here as I would encourage you to first do some research into the three biggest companies out on the Canadian market:

 

http://prep101.com/mcat/index.html

http://www.kaptest.com/MCAT/Home/index.html

http://www.princetonreview.com/medical/mcat-test-preparation.aspx

 

We are currently undergoing a major revision of our summer 2011 MCAT course to quite simply, become the most comprehensive program available on the market (FYI: our webpage is still being revised right now to reflect these changes).

 

For our new MCAT course, the three most important features that we will offer (which is far superior to Kaplan or TPR) is:

 

1) Hours of classroom time: our new course will include 108 hours of actual lecture time which includes the use of EK materials, our new Classroom Companion, Writing Sample workshops and a new six hour section of MCAT Skills and Strategies (on top of previous materials: AAMC exams, online components, tutoring options, etc…). We will also offer a “flexible” schedule to our students whereby we offer the same class twice each week (you can pick and choose which one you want to attend).

 

2) Instructors: we are the only MCAT prep company with the majority of our instructors possessing (or working towards) graduate or medical degrees (i.e., M.Sc., PhD, M.D.). We are also the only prep company that posts on our website the background information and students evaluations of our instructors (who also had to undergo a rigorous student audition and interview before being hired).

 

3) Cost: we are well aware of the tight economy right now as well as the financial struggle(s) that pre-med students work through every day. As such, our comprehensive prep course is $1595 compared to Kaplan/TPR which ranges from $1899-1999.

 

As for your question regarding VR and WS – our new MCAT prep-course quite simply blows Kaplan and TPR out of the water in terms of these two subjects:

 

For the WS, you will receive 6 hours of in-class workshops, and write at minimum 18 essays throughout the course (which you will receive detailed feedback/scoring from our MCAT coordinators). By comparison, Kaplan simply gives you a score report breakdown which you use to grade your own essays.

 

You will also have the option of submitting 10 additional WS essays to our internal forums which will receive detailed feedback/scoring as well. To get a feel for how serious we are about the WS, check out the free service we even offered to PreMed101 students on these forums last summer:

 

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43750

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43753

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45246&highlight=Prep101

http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45275&highlight=Prep101

 

As for VR, we use EK materials for this component of the course (including VR101 passages)…if you check out the forums, the general consensus is that these are one of the best VR materials available on the market!

 

Again, please don’t accuse me of having an extreme bias – I am simply presenting some of the features of our own MCAT prep course. I cannot encourage you (and everyone) enough to do your homework and select the MCAT course that will give you the best chance at succeeding on “the Beast.”

 

If you (or anyone) have any questions about the Prep101 course (or the MCAT in general) I would be more than happy to chat by phone (780-988-1845 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting**************780-988-1845******end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting**************780-988-1845******end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting**************780-988-1845******end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting**************780-988-1845******end_of_the_skype_highlighting) or by e-mail (MatthewWard_Prep101@hotmail.com). The best of luck with your studies and please let me know if I can help in any way….

 

Cheers,

 

Matt

 

this is totally off topic but matthew,if you remember, you once graded my two essays on this forum and you predicted my MCAT WS score spot on!!

[matthewward_prep101]

Right on Darknebula - I am glad I could help and I hope you rocked the MCAT! Best of luck with your applications and let me know if I can help you again...

 

Cheers,

 

Matt

[superconnected]

Hi everyone,

 

I am planning to take one of the prep courses for the MCAT and I'm having difficulty deciding on which one to take (Kaplan, Princeton Review, Prep101..etc).

I would really appreciate any feedback on which seems to be the best option based on your experiences.

 

Thanks!

 

My advice would be to seriously consider whether you need to take a course at all. If you tend be very successful on standardized tests (I'd say ~90-95% on Grade 12 exams) I suggest that you don't need to. I know plenty of people - myself included - who scored >32 just going through a good review book on their own.

 

With that said, I know just as many people who swear by prep courses, so if the money and time of a course is no issue, I suppose that it couldn't hurt.

[matthewward_prep101]

Superconnected makes a great point! Any comprehensive prep course you take will cost substantial money (I have been a starving student for years, hence why I have really pushed our company to keep the cost of our prep course as low as possible!). My suggestion to all first time MCAT candidates is to go and purchase a computerized MCAT exam, write it under test-like conditions (i.e., proper timing, no calculator, no notes, etc….), and if you score 9 or higher in all sections, SAVE YOUR MONEY and study for the MCAT on your own. If you want to e-mail me your Writing Sample, I’d also be happy to give you a free score/feedback.

 

However, one concern to note is that up to 60% of all MCAT test takers in North America will take some form of “prep-course” before they write "the Beast." You therefore have to ask yourself if not doing so might put you at a disadvantage compared to other students. It is Prep101’s philosophy that other than expert instructors and great study materials, the best thing we can offer our students is a structured learning environment. Indeed, it very easy to get overwhelmed with the amount of material and MCAT skills you need to learn before test-day….having regular classes, pre-readings, homework, and 1000’s of practice problems to work through with multiple instructors can really help to keep you on track.

 

Please e-mail or call me if you have any questions….although we are one of the three top MCAT prep companies in Canada (Prep101, Kaplan, TPR), we are a very a grass-roots company that bend over backwards to please our students.

 

P.S. I just got an important e-mail from the AAMC which you all might be interested in – they are going to be dropping AAMC Practice Test #6 (which is a good thing:)) and replacing it with a new AAMC #11. We will be sure to include this new test (as with the other 7) in our 2011 summer prep course.