MZ1000 Posted March 22, 2015 Report Share Posted March 22, 2015 What's the smallest set of classes that collectively teach everything that the MCAT tests? Would the following classes teach what I need to know for the test? 101/102 Physics 101/102 Chemistry 101/102 Calculus 101/102 Biology 101 Stats 20X organic chemistry 20Y inorganic chemistry 20Z biochemistry Thank you, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sigmund Freud Posted March 22, 2015 Report Share Posted March 22, 2015 What's the smallest set of classes that collectively teach everything that the MCAT tests? Would the following classes teach what I need to know for the test? 101/102 Physics 101/102 Chemistry 101/102 Calculus 101/102 Biology 101 Stats 20X organic chemistry 20Y inorganic chemistry 20Z biochemistry Thank you, I think that covers everything for the sciences. I don't think the inorganic chemistry course (#7) will be covered on the MCAT, but it would help with further understanding chemistry, which could still be useful as it would solidify some of the concepts learned in intro/general chemistry. MCAT2015 also has a social sciences section, so for that one you'd want to consider taking classes in sociology and psychology. The AAMC suggests a one semester introductory course for each of these. I can't comment of sociology, however, I'd suggest taking a full year of intro psychology because not all of the MCAT psychology topics were in my 1st semester of intro psychology. I'd also like to note that you don't have to take all of these courses to do well on the MCAT. You could just self study for any topic you choose. Personally, I haven't taken introductory physics or introductory sociology yet, and I don't plan to until after I've written the MCAT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdj78we9jtf2o3mgfvj298j Posted March 22, 2015 Report Share Posted March 22, 2015 I think that covers everything for the sciences. I don't think the inorganic chemistry course (#7) will be covered on the MCAT, but it would help with further understanding chemistry, which could still be useful as it would solidify some of the concepts learned in intro/general chemistry. MCAT2015 also has a social sciences section, so for that one you'd want to consider taking classes in sociology and psychology. The AAMC suggests a one semester introductory course for each of these. I can't comment of sociology, however, I'd suggest taking a full year of intro psychology because not all of the MCAT psychology topics were in my 1st semester of intro psychology. I'd also like to note that you don't have to take all of these courses to do well on the MCAT. You could just self study for any topic you choose. Personally, I haven't taken introductory physics or introductory sociology yet, and I don't plan to until after I've written the MCAT. Adding to this, Stats and Calc aren't needed in the slightest. I'd go as far to say that you don't even need to take orgo as well since it's approximately 5% of the total content on the MCAT and you can honestly just figure out the answers from the passages. I can see a physiology course or two being helpful instead. Personally, I had never taken physics or orgo and I was just fine for the MCAT. Don't force yourself to take classes that might compromise your GPA or your enjoyment of school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Head Squeeze Posted March 23, 2015 Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 Stats is not required. Calculus wouldn't help directly but it would be helpful for kinematics. Also, to be honest i felt that some of the material is being taught in my fourth year classes. Courses differ across universities. I would say that those are the basic classes that cover most of the stuff but you'd still be learning stuff when you prepare for the MCAT. Second year genetics and cell biology would be very helpful. Also, an english course based on critical analysis or scientific writing could be useful for reasoning section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sigmund Freud Posted March 23, 2015 Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 Adding to this, Stats and Calc aren't needed in the slightest. I'd go as far to say that you don't even need to take orgo as well since it's approximately 5% of the total content on the MCAT and you can honestly just figure out the answers from the passages. I can see a physiology course or two being helpful instead. Personally, I had never taken physics or orgo and I was just fine for the MCAT. Don't force yourself to take classes that might compromise your GPA or your enjoyment of school. Whoops. Read that so fast that I didn't see the calculus class. Calculus definitely isn't needed. Statistics (or a research methods course), however, might be helpful as some of the questions are based on studies and there are two important skills one must have according to the AAMC: reasoning about the design and execution of research, as well as data-based statistical reasoning. So a course in statistics/research methods would definitely help with this. Is it required? No, it's not, just like how general Chem, intro bio, or any of the other classes aren't required. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MZ1000 Posted March 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2015 Don't force yourself to take classes that might compromise your GPA or your enjoyment of school. I agree. It's the reason I'm asking. I'm trying to figure out what's optimal, considering time/GPA/prereqs/MCAT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BizMarkie Posted April 5, 2015 Report Share Posted April 5, 2015 Psychology and sociology would be helpful too, but the content is actually pretty easy. You could learn it yourself with MCAT prep books in a reasonable amount of time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maybenow Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 Somebody told me that Physics will be taken out of the 2015 exams. Why would they say that?! So Physics is definitely still on the exam... Besides having added sociology and psychology, can I ask what has changed, modified, or been deleted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oshaku Posted April 30, 2015 Report Share Posted April 30, 2015 Psych and sociology courses are going to be tested on the 2015 MCAT. Is actually worth a quarter of the test so don't treat it lightly. "Pretty easy" was what I thought of the material until I actually took the test. Physics is definitely not taken out of the MCAT. It is a smaller portion though. Imagine the new MCAT as requiring you to know everything on the old MCAT plus more biochem and a lot of psych and soc. 230 questions vs 144, so yeah. Calculus is not needed for MCAT. Vectors are useful though. Physiology courses would also be useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maybenow Posted May 1, 2015 Report Share Posted May 1, 2015 Psych and sociology courses are going to be tested on the 2015 MCAT. Is actually worth a quarter of the test so don't treat it lightly. "Pretty easy" was what I thought of the material until I actually took the test. Physics is definitely not taken out of the MCAT. It is a smaller portion though. Imagine the new MCAT as requiring you to know everything on the old MCAT plus more biochem and a lot of psych and soc. 230 questions vs 144, so yeah. Calculus is not needed for MCAT. Vectors are useful though. Physiology courses would also be useful. Thanks oshaku. Physiology course useful how/why? Because they help with the 'biology' section, you mean? Oh so you took the 2015 test then? Was the psych/sociology component more difficult (?) or perhaps more comprehensive than expected? I always wondered how people or prep companies would prepare, seeing as nobody really knows how to prepare for MCAT style questions in psych and soc! So all the 'units' of physics from before are still fair game hey? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oshaku Posted May 1, 2015 Report Share Posted May 1, 2015 Biol 101/102 typically covers the molecular side of biology (cell, central dogma, photosynthesis and respiration etc). Physiology is where human organ systems like renal, digestive, cardiac, neuronal, hematology are covered. Both are tested on the MCAT. Psych and soc turned out a lot more difficult than practice tests made it seem. The prep material didn't seem to have the right focus for that section. Yup. Everything physics is still fair game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maybenow Posted May 1, 2015 Report Share Posted May 1, 2015 Biol 101/102 typically covers the molecular side of biology (cell, central dogma, photosynthesis and respiration etc). Physiology is where human organ systems like renal, digestive, cardiac, neuronal, hematology are covered. Both are tested on the MCAT. Psych and soc turned out a lot more difficult than practice tests made it seem. The prep material didn't seem to have the right focus for that section. Yup. Everything physics is still fair game. So first year bio (at most schools) = covers the molecular bio side of bio. The "other" side of bio is physiology type stuff (renal, digestive, etc.). Do you think learning from prep materials on this physiology side of bio is sufficient? Or should I borrow somebody's old physio text? Jeez I'm so sorry! Was it the AAMC practice tests that were too easy in comparison to the actual test? That sucks :/ Or was it the 2015 prep material that wasn't helpful? (Because, I would have guessed that the prep material would've been doing a lot of guess work). EVERYTHING PHYSICS IS STILL FAIR GAME? Jeezlouise. So... can one rely on the 2014/2013/2012/2008 blah blah blah prep materials for the physics then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oshaku Posted May 2, 2015 Report Share Posted May 2, 2015 Theoretically prep material is designed to be minimally sufficient for the MCAT. A physiology book may give you way more detail than you need for the MCAT proper, but having a depth of background in a subject area makes it harder for the MCAT to trip you up. Whereas the AAMC practice test gave really good solutions on how to think about the bio question (for example), the guide to how you should be thinking about the psych and soc questions weren't very instructive. At times, psych/soc feels like verbal 2.0 where the answers aren't necessarily in the text Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maybenow Posted May 3, 2015 Report Share Posted May 3, 2015 Theoretically prep material is designed to be minimally sufficient for the MCAT. A physiology book may give you way more detail than you need for the MCAT proper, but having a depth of background in a subject area makes it harder for the MCAT to trip you up. Whereas the AAMC practice test gave really good solutions on how to think about the bio question (for example), the guide to how you should be thinking about the psych and soc questions weren't very instructive. At times, psych/soc feels like verbal 2.0 where the answers aren't necessarily in the text Damn. So the 'theorietical' stuff, or the stuff found in prep material, for example.... what Durkheim (sociology) believed about human society... or what Marx believed about our economic organization of society... that was just the bare minimum of what you'd have to know for the MCAT...? As in, it was nice to learn it/see it in the prep material, but not necessarily useful or helpful come MCAT exam time, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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