I need help in preparing for MCAT in August

[Guest FrenchyMed]

Yikes!

I just got bad-waitlisted at Ottawa and did not get an interview at Mac... I have never written the MCAT and was hoping I could avoid it! It's time to face the music and take the test.

 

I hold a B.A.Sc. and M.Eng. in chemical engineering. My science courses were completed in 1995/96. I tried the practice test available online (without studying first, just to see what kind of stuff is covered) and I freaked out.

I currently work full-time (in a non-medical related field) and need to write the August exam.

 

Can anyone offer tips on what to cover? Should I take one of those MCAT courses? I'm desperate here!!!

 

Is this do-able? I'll have nights and weekends only.

 

FrenchyMed

[Guest Lactic Folly]

Which practice test did you try? I tried one from PR and it was much harder than the practice questions from AAMC, which are more representative of the MCAT.

 

Go through the MCAT Student Manual (available online) for topics that are covered.. it's basically all the first-year bio/chem/phys.

 

Some of the things you'll need to consider:

-do you like multiple choice tests (as much as is possible to like tests)

-do you usually do well on standardized exams

-did you feel that you mastered the science material when you took those courses (even though you may not remember a lot of it, it'll come back much easier)

 

If you are fine studying on your own and just need a thorough review, I think you could go without a course. Your background sounds strong.. a lot of the MCAT is problem solving.

[Guest dfenst]

If you study 3 hours a night during the week and 10 hours each on the weekend days, you could realistically study 350 hours for the MCAT. That's a lot of time! I think you do it without a prep course if you are very self motivated. Often, the prep courses are there to keep you in check, on pace, and provide a plethora of old exams. You could buy a prep book or two, get old MCATs from AAMC directly and motivate yourself. It really depends on how you study and how useful you find courses given by people who, don't forget, are not PhDs in the field they teach but often people who did well on the MCAT the year before. I'm not knocking the prep companies...I used to work for one (taught the GMAT course) but I am saying that doing well on the exam is not dependent on taking a prep course.

 

Taking an old exam at this point will just discourage because, after 8 years, do you really expect yourself to remember the bromination of an aromatic compound? It's material that once you start studying it, it'll come back to you.

 

Good luck!

[Guest FrenchyMed]

Thanks guys! This is the best support group!

 

I guess I'm feeling a little overwhelmed.:eek

It seems like so much material needs to be covered and even the simplest chemistry baffles my mind. I guess I'm getting old! I TA'd 1st year chem labs at Mac a couple of years ago. It's amazing how little info my mind has been able to retain.

 

So, I'm sitting down tonight to start reviewing the bio stuff.

A rye and ginger should help things go smoothly.

One quick question: if I review all the topics listed on the AAMC MCAT site (I guess it's what has been referred to as the student guide), am I assured that I have covered all the necessary material?

 

I'll wait until I've covered more material before I tackle another old exam...:x On a positive note, I got 10 questions out of the 1st 24 right without studying so there is still hope for this old gal!

 

FrenchyMed

[Guest Lactic Folly]

If you study all those topics you should do well. Although the guide is detailed, it is not in minute detail (else it would become like a review book), and there might be a question on the MCAT requiring knowledge you didn't go over. Don't worry though - they are probably just there to separate the 14s from the 15s When I wrote the MCAT, there was only one question in the whole thing that I hadn't gone over the material for.. it was on the nomenclature of coordination compounds.

[Guest sally2001]

frenchymed,

i briefly read through the replies to your post, but i would recommend you take a prep course. of course, this depends on if one is available before the aug exam because i think they are about 3 months in duration. you still need to study on your own time, but the prep course is quite comprehensive and you have a lot of material. however, if you are very self-disciplined and do not get distracted then perhaps it is not necessary for you. you might be able to do well without one. as for me, i bought many aamc materials last year as well as lots of mcat review books from friends. it all sat on my shelf for a year because i'd open a book and feel so overwhelmed, i didn't know where to start, how to approach studying, what to expect. i got serious and took a prep course (kaplan) in january and while there was still a lot of work to do, i felt the organization, structure, and access to teachers motivating. i studied quite reasonably for my level of attention evaluate yourself honestly and decide what is best. the classes were on one weekday (wed) and saturday. i paid $1200+ for the course but the savings on time and information was worth it. in fact when i bought the aamc materials, it cost $227 US and the shipped it via FedEx and with the conversion it set me back about $400 Cdn. :eek So it is possible that the $$ invested in a prep course might save you money from rewriting, getting more material, your own time. OR it may very well be unnecessary. evaluate yourself and make decision. btw, i also did an elec. eng degree and am currently working on a masters. with a degree in chem. eng i think you have lots of potential to do well on the mcat. so relax, don't worry and think positively

cheers