Am I doing content review right?

Question

So I need some opinions. I have TPR and for the past month I've been reading through the books, highlighting, and outlining the chapters. Essentially, I'm building my own study guide. I read a post about Uworld and now I'm wondering if I should incorporate it into my study plan. I have about 70ish days left until my MCAT and with that being said, I plan to finish content review mid March and then work on strategy and test taking skills. Am I spending too much time with my content review method? I'm also making Anki cards as I go along to help me retain the information.

Answer 1

Hi there! Ultimately, test preparation is a fairly individualistic process, so keep in mind that what works for one person may not be the ideal approach for you, and vice versa. Having said that, the general consensus surrounding test preparation is that it is best to practice taking tests, and actually doing problems/questions as you go along (or early on), rather than focusing solely on a content review block, and then proceeding to take tests. This is probably because doing problems/questions is a more active type of learning and review, that forces you to recall information and confront whether you have actually mastered a concept, instead of passively reviewing a concept and believing that you have understood it. I commend you on creating your own study schedule! What I think you will want to work towards, is a combination of active review that spirals back over old concepts as you continue to review content, so that you are consistently practicing the recall of information and concepts, which is just as, if not more important than the review of content itself.