Oh, the MCAT (insert eye rolls and groan sounds here). I know, I know it isn’t the most pleasant or exciting thing to think about but unfortunately if you’re going to medical school it’s a necessary evil you must get through. That being said, here are some tips and advice for those of you who are going to take the MCAT and for those who have already taken it as well. PS, I promise it’s not as scary or terrible as people make it sound.
So first of all, make a game plan before you do anything else. Get those monthly calendars and planners and schedule out your study periods for each day. AND BE REALISTIC. It’s so easy to stretch yourself too thin and overwhelm yourself by putting too much for one day. And although this exam might not be anyone’s favorite, there are subject areas you may find that you like more than others. For instance, I HAAAAATED, scratch that, I utterly LOATHED “General Chemistry”, so for days I would work on Chem, I’d make sure the following day would be a subject I found easier and enjoyed more, such as CARS. Everyone has different studying methods and strong suits, so make sure you make your own schedule to fit that accordingly. Here’s an example of how I would plan out each week:
- MONDAY: Read Kaplan Psychology Book chapters (1-4) and take notes. Do Psychology Practice Passages and Questions.
- TUESDAY: Read Kaplan Biology Chapters (1-3) and Biochemistry Chapters (1-2) and take notes and do practice questions.
- WEDNESDAY: Read Kaplan CARS Book Chapters (1-4). Do practice passages.
- THURSDAY: Review the most challenging areas and concepts of this week and make notes/flashcards/watch videos and resources to better understand these.
- FRIDAY: Take a Practice Exam (start at 8am so you’re body and mind get used to taking a test at that time so you’ll be prepared for test day)
- SATURDAY: Go over BOTH correct and missed questions and make a table identifying what concepts you struggled with and what techniques you need to apply and how to fix these problem areas.
- SUNDAY: BREAK DAY. YES ALL DAY. I cannot emphasize how important it is to spend a whole day doing absolutely nothing related to the MCAT. Go to the farmer’s market, get brunch, spa, watch a movie. Do whatever you love doing and whatever helps de-stress you because I promise having this one day off will recharge and reset you ready for the next week ahead. This was essential in my MCAT success, so plzzz trust me on this one.
I made my schedules pretty flexible and short and sweet so I could have to room to adjust it to my schedule and make it as realistic and attainable as possible. Now the next important tip for MCAT preparation is finding materials that work best for you. For me, it was Kaplan. I have friends who used Princeton, Exam Crackers, etc and they all seemed to love it. However, I tried those other books and really like the Kaplan strategies, layout, and unlimited source of material, test questions, and passages that really help you feel prepared and most importantly confident for test day. I also used youtube for different videos, Khan Academy, and simple google images to look up mechanisms and pictures of concepts I found challenging.
Now the last piece of advice I will give, is to be MENTALLY PREPARED. It doesn’t matter how many test questions or books or material you’ve gone through and read if you don’t have self-confidence. Without confidence and mentally preparing yourself for this long test, none of that will be of help. Everyone is so quick to say things like “oh the MCAT is impossible” or “the MCAT will determine your future so don’t mess up” or “the MCAT is the hardest exam you’ll ever take”. The truth? ABSOLUTELY NOT, HELL TO THE NO. The MCAT yes isn’t the easiest, but if you prepare ahead of time (I prepared 3 months before) and if you constantly remind yourself that you’re more than capable, that so many people have done well and you can too and that this is YOUR DREAM, and I promise there will be nothing getting in the way of you and medicine. You must must must stay positive. It’ll be hard to do so during mcat prep and it might feel stupid or naive to do so but trust me, it makes all the difference. When I say be positive, I’m talking, be as positive as SpongeBob is about the Krusty Krab or Gabriella and Troy are in High School Musical (LOL). It will feel cheesy but I promise it’ll be rewarding. A lot of times I was faced with self-doubt, insecurities, and giant stress clouds lurking around me adding pressure to me and adding unneeded worries. I looked the self doubts and insecurities in the face and said “I will do the absolute best that I can possibly do and I’ll be happy of the outcome knowing I put in all my effort and hard work”. Choosing to be happy from no score but solely from how proud I was of all my effort, really helped me stay positive and calm throughout those months. I noticed people tend to do a lot better on things they enjoy. For instance, ask me about any movie and I can tell you the actor in that movie within a minute. Now if you ask me about enzymes in the Kreb Cycle, that might take a little longer. So I went in both MCAT prep and the actual test date with a mindset of truly enjoying and embracing what I was learning and also applying what I learnt. Having that mindset really helped me enjoy the experience of learning mechanisms and honestly help me find so much material more fascinating and interesting and caused me to remember it a lot better and apply better as well. So like I said before, it’s all about being mentally prepared.
The MCAT really isn’t as terrible as it has been known to be. Think about the concept of swimming. Before you ever learnt how to swim, the entire concept of a human not drowning but in fact enjoying this large pool of water sounded unbelievable. But after learning how to swim and mentally preparing for what swimming entails, you realize it’s not that intimidating, and you might even be enjoying more and more each time you get in the water. The MCAT is the same way. Once you get in the groove of your study schedule and get the hang (which I promise you will) of the format, you’ll be growing in both your score and confidence in yourself. I am in no means a good test taker. I always worried about the MCAT because I have been known to do terribly on standardized tests in the past. But through preparing myself, giving myself breaks, incentives, and positivity, I proved myself wrong and got the score I am still proud of to this day. So please keep fighting, keep up your incredibly hard work and determination, and laugh in the face of doubts and insecurities. You’re going to be such a special addition to the world of medicine and this is just another stepping stone you WILL CONQUER in victory on your road to medicine. GOOD LUCK, I KNOW U GOT THIS, LIKE R U KIDDING YA’LL ABOUT TO SLAYYYYY THIS EXAM OK WOW CANT WAIT FOR UR BRIGHT FUTURES!!!
xoxo,
Sravya
White Coats and Passports 