The MCAT exam, or
the Medical College Admission Test, is the exam that prospective applicants to
medical schools across the United States are required to take. The Association
of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), a nonprofit organization that strives to
uphold the integrity of medical schools throughout the United States creates,
distributes, and scores MCAT exams.
The Medical
College Admission Test is so important because it allows admissions offices at medical
programs to determine how well applicants are likely to perform among their
ranks. Medical colleges' coursework is rigid and known to be one of the most
demanding course loads of any type of graduate program in the world. These
schools are also able to gain more applicants if they make sure that people
accepted into their ranks have high test scores, thereby making their programs
more exclusive.
No matter who you
ask, you'll find that properly preparing for the MCAT exam often takes as much
time as a full year of medical school coursework. After all, it is the
most important item on applications to medical colleges. To score in the upper
third of people who take the MCAT, which isn't that high of a score,
you'll need at least a 506.
Let's dive into a
few tips and tricks for doing well on the Medical College Admission Test.
Keep Track of All Practice Questions
To effectively
assess your mastery of important concepts, you should track your performance in
answering practice questions. You may find that a concept you had mastered two
weeks ago is one that you currently don't understand, for example. If you were
to cross the questions involving that concept off of the list of questions you
need to practice, you'd find yourself unprepared when it comes time to take the
test.
The best way to
track your performance in answering practice questions is to create a
spreadsheet. It's also important to only practice questions from official
Medical College Admission Test prep textbooks.
Taking Reputable, Thorough Prep Courses Online
The cost of the
MCAT is currently $315. Although this price is unarguably expensive, the cost
of preparatory courses found across the Internet blows the price of taking the
MCAT out of the water.
Low-end prep
courses with limited MCAT study material cost as little as $160, though they sometimes range upwards of
$2,000. The cost of these courses is so high because they cover so much
material and the fact that most hopeful physicians are more than willing to
fork over obscene sums of money to improve their chances of getting into the
medical programs of their dreams.
Taking thorough, reputable MCAT prep
courses online has been shown to reliably boost test-takers' scores.
Begin Studying Well Over a Year Before Taking the Exam
Since the MCAT is
so competitive, you can't do yourself wrong by beginning studying for the MCAT
at least a year before you plan on taking it. Studying for such an important test
is much easier when you're not constantly loaded down by bales of stress and
worry.
You simply won't
absorb as much information or as many concepts as you will if you study as
early as possible. Remember - it's never too early to start studying for the
MCAT.
