What do you think is the best way to prepare for the MCAT? (Content/practice/timetable/pace/compartmentalization)

Answer 1

Everybody has a different background, time dedicated for MCAT studying, and different score goals that there is no "best" way to prepare for the MCAT without taking all these variables into account. However there are two broad categories of students who go in to take the MCAT who I group depending on how much time would be required to comprehensively prepare for the MCAT:

Intense Content Review, followed by Practice Problem Based Review

1. Includes non-traditional students, non-science majors, students who plan on setting aside >12 weeks for MCAT studying, and students wanting to brush up on background knowledge
2. Content Review will take up anywhere from the first 4 to 8 weeks of the study schedule, depending on how fast you can get through the content. In terms of resources, I find EK the easiest to go through (this is from my personal experience studying for the MCAT, not being paid to say this), however will be lacking for students wanting to achieve 515+. TBR is an excellent resource and has excellent questions at the end of each section, but is dense to get through. TPR and Kaplan are more of in the middle of the spectrum. Regardless each resource covers about 95%+ of the content tested in the MCAT.
3. I recommend doing problems at the end of each section you are studying to cement ideas reviewed in that section. Also Khan Academy has excellent MCAT review articles and questions.
4. Diagnostic practice tests should be done later during the content review phase. Doing them at the very beginning is seldom useful (especially for non-trads and students struggling with the content).
5. After content review, it would be best to focus on doing questions next (explained below)

Practice Problem Based Review

1. Mostly students who recently finished their pre-reqs and did well or students who cannot afford to budget more than 8 weeks to study for their MCAT.
2. UWorld and the AAMC qbanks are by far the best resource for practice questions. UWorld has excellent explanations for their questions (and expect to use UWorld a lot during medical school as well). I recommend starting to do questions immediately, and study up on any weak spots that you identify doing these questions.
3. I do recommend taking a diagnostic practice test early in this case. I recommend doing practice full-length tests every 1-2 weeks (and accelerating as you approach your test date).
4. When I studied for my MCAT, I religiously went over every question on the AAMC FLs (even the ones I got correct) to identify things to brush up on. I paid special attention to the CARS section to collect clues on the AAMC's answer to each question.

Ultimately your schedule for preparing for the MCAT varies depending on so many factors, and the best thing you can do for yourself when starting to prepare for the MCAT is to craft a schedule that is advantageous to your strengths as a student.

Answer 2

The best thing to do is get familiar with the actual exam format. Whether you're familiar with the content or not, it's a unique skill to be able to correctly identify information in MCAT passages helpful for answering the question of focus. Nearly every test prep site will offer you a free practice exam, and I also recommend buying the AAMC test prep bundle since it is the most accurate to the actual exam. Set up a timetable where you have even spacing to take your practice exams, in order of their accuracy to the real deal: The Princeton Review, Kaplan, Next Step, AAMC sample test, AAMC test 1, and AAMC test 2. In between exams, review the questions that you got right and wrong, and make a list of the information that you are unfamiliar with or need to refresh, then learn this throughout the week. Each test you take you should feel more comfortable and know more information, and get a point or two boost. This way, even if you start low, around 490, you can end up with a mid 500s score that can help secure an acceptance.