Need Advice on Medical School Admissions? 

Get a 20 Minute Free Consultation

By Jessica White

“Ah, the dreaded MCAT – the test every pre-med fears. You’ll find through a quick Google search that there are endless ways to study and countless people with opinions on how to get your dream score. After taking the beast myself, however, I realized that the following advice of a close friend ended up being the most helpful (and least anxiety-inducing – looking at you, Reddit).

First thing’s first – when to start studying? Delay too long, and you may not leave yourself ample time. Start too soon, and you risk getting burned out. So, what’s the sweet spot, then? Obviously, it’s different for everyone, but a good length of time to start with is 3-4 months. To have a more accurate estimate, it’s a good idea to take a practice test around 5-6 months out, prior to having studied, to see what your ‘baseline’ score is. Don’t be shocked if you’re far from your goal score, but if so, you may want to start studying earlier! Another approach to MCAT preparation that has its proponents is longitudinal MCAT study. Even with this approach, the suggested timeline here applies as most students find they have to ramp up their prep in the months leading to the exam.

Now, for the studying itself. There are seemingly endless resources out there to help you study for the MCAT, but It’s important to remember that you’ve gotten to this point by knowing yourself and how you study best. Are you a visual learner? If so, be sure to use diagrams frequently. Do facts stick the best when you write them down? Then be sure to stock up on pens! The point is – when considering your study plan, remember what has helped you succeed so far and be sure to incorporate that method.

In addition to knowing your study style, it’s also important to know your weaknesses, and hit them hard. This is something else that the baseline practice test will help you with! If your weakness is psychology, consider yourself lucky – this is one that rote memorization can help you out a lot with. Flashcards will be your friend! If the CARS section is where you find yourself struggling, remind yourself of the old saying, ‘practice makes perfect.’ Try doing 5-10 practice questions a day (except on your day off, no matter how anxious it makes you – more on this later).

Since reading and comprehension skills aren’t usually the subjects medical school applicants excel at, you may find it takes you a bit longer to master this section than the others, but don’t get discouraged – it’ll get easier with time! Now, for those whose weakness is chemistry, physics, or biochemistry: along with studying up on the basics in each of these subjects – it’s all about the practice tests.

Practice tests are by far the most helpful tool in your MCAT arsenal. The advice I received regarding practice tests was the most valuable of all, so listen closely. First and foremost, you’ll want to take at least 10-12 practice tests during your study period. It’s okay to spread the first few out in the hopes that you see more dramatic improvement between them, but you should aim to take one per week leading up to the big day. A rule of thumb – you should spend double the amount of time looking over the test as you did taking it. Yup, you read that right – since practice tests are roughly 7-8 hours long, you should be spending 14-16 hours going over each. But why, you ask?

Because this is when the best learning occurs, and not just learning concepts, but also gaining insight into how you test. When do you get tired? What snacks give you energy? What’s your strategy – do you tackle each passage in a section in order, or do you save one for last if in a glance you can tell it will be challenging for you and you’re more likely to miss questions on it?

Which topics are you finding yourself repeatedly struggling with (try this if timing is an issue)? After going over a test, you should not only know each answer you got wrong, but also why you got it wrong, and how to prevent it from happening the next time. Don’t worry, this will get easier with each test you take. Finally – avoid taking practice tests within one week of the real one. If you don’t do as well as you’re hoping, it could stress you out, and the last thing you want to do is go into test day lacking confidence over what could have just been a fluke.

Last but not least, let’s talk about wellness. The last thing you want is to get so anxious that it impedes your ability to learn. We’ve all heard the term, ‘point of diminishing returns’ – this point can be closer than you think along the road to test day. To prevent this, you will have to actively carve out time to do things that make you happy. Promise yourself you will take one day off a week. Exercise often – it’s scientifically proven to help your mood and energy. Get 8-9 hours of sleep. Lean on your loved ones. And whatever you do, don’t even think about opening a book the day before your test. Use this time to relax – treat yourself to a massage, go on a hike, watch your favorite movie – whatever will make you happy. Remember, one day, this will all be in the past. Just keep these tips in mind, and you’ll be submitting that AMCAS application with a smile on your face in no time.