How I Failed the MCAT and got into Medical School

Today, one of my friends mailed me an article she had read that helped her construct her USMLE Step 1 study schedule.  I started immediately panicking; this is the most important exam of my career!  Then again, before I was a medical student, the MCAT was the most important exam.  In any case, I felt really grateful for the advice.  Some of my friends are still applying to medical school and some of them are re-taking the MCAT.  I improved my MCAT score from a 25 to a 30 and I got into medical school.  I wasn't a science major and I actually got a C in Chemistry.  If I can do it, you can definitely do it.  I've seen a lot of advice floating around from people who got a 39 or 37, but if you're retaking the MCAT, that's probably not the advice you're after; the people who got 35+ are cray.  In any case, here's some advice for those of you taking the MCAT this year.  I hope it helps! Good Luck! 

1.) On Scheduling:  The first time I took the MCAT I was fresh out of college.  Read: burned out.  It seemed like a good idea at the time because I thought would have organic chemistry and physics fresh in my mind.  Wrong.  After graduation, I was just sad about graduating and distracted by job applications.  The second time I took the MCAT I scheduled about four months to study for it.  I had a full time job so these weren't full study days. 

2.) On Study Materials: Your choice of study materials does matter.  Everybody swears by something different and it is entirely dependent on you.  I have friends who did Kaplan/Princeton and did really well, and others who didn't.  I didn't take a course because it seemed too pricey to me.  I took a Kaplan SAT course in high school and it was a waste of time/money.  If you need structure or you procrastinate, take a course.  If you can self-study, then buy materials and set your own schedule; it's cheaper.  I used ExamKrackers and I think they do a nice job.  People complain about the errors, but every book has errors and it didn't take me very long to correct my books.  I also bought 1001 physics questions from ExamKrackers because I was so terrible at physics I needed all the extra practice I could get. I didn't find the audio osmosis set they sell all that helpful.  If you can learn from listening, then I recommend buying it.  I tend to learn best from reading/highlighting/writing, so listening to the audio when on the treadmill/commuting to work wasn't useful.  I also used the Kaplan MCAT flash cards and I thought these were really useful for biology.   Whatever you use, don't buy it based on reputation or what worked for someone who got a 35+, go look at the material, flip through it and see which is going to work best for you.

3.) Don't mix and match study materials.  I know that I said in #2 that I used Kaplan's flashcards, but companies have different strategies and it's best to just follow one of them.  I know that Princeton recommends skimming for easy questions while ExamKrackers is pretty adamant about going straight through; again, pick which one is going to work best for you and stick to it.

4.) On Practice Exams: Buy yourself all the AAMC practice exams.  I don't know if these are old exams, but they are a good approximation of how you'll do on the exam.  They go for $35 each (or used to) for a year's access.  I think it's worth it.  Buy your study books from half or from the amazon marketplace to save money, and splurge on these--these are a MUST!  

5.) My Study Schedule (for a 16 week block).  I based this off the ExamKrackers at home study schedule, which is 10 weeks.  Since I had already taken the MCAT (and you should at least take a practice exam to see where you're at), I knew that I was strongest in verbal and weakest in physics and structured my studying accordingly.  If you're re-taking, don't waste your time on things you're already good at.  I knew that it wasn't my "physical sciences" that was bad, it was just physics.  And once I focused on that, I could focus on the specific topics in physics that gave me trouble.

Week 1-10 I worked through all the ExamKrackers books, I didn't go through each book individually because after two physics lectures I felt frustrated, so I tried to alternate. Additionally, each subject doesn't have the same number of lectures.  As long as you get through all the material in the books in these 10 weeks, you're good.  I took a practice exam every other week (on Saturday) and took one day off each week.  My work schedule was chaotic so it wasn't always the same day.  This prevents burn out.  I would work from 8-5 pm, take a break for dinner and then study until I finished whatever was on schedule for the day.  It's definitely important to make a schedule and stick to it. 

Week 11-14 Based on how I was doing on the practice tests, I knew what I needed to work on.  Outside of practice exams, I didn't do any verbal, and I spent a lot of time doing physics practice problems and reading for biology.  Biology is mostly memorization of key concepts, whereas physics consists of knowing how to do different types of problems. During these weeks I tried to narrow down what in each subject gave me trouble.  For example, I am good at genetics so I didn't do any punnett squares or pedigrees.  For physics I had trouble with projectile motion so I spent a lot of time doing these problems.  I took a practice exam every week during these four weeks. 

Week 15 and 16 were full-time study, so I took two weeks off work (I had a job in a research laboratory and they had had students before, so they understood my position and I had worked hard enough leading up to my MCAT that they supported me.)
Week 15 I was studying from about 10 am to 6 pm.  I took two exams during the week. Then I would spend time going over biology facts that I had missed, or practicing physics problem.  Then I would spend about 3 hours on the Kaplan Flashcards.  

Week 16 I did a practice exam every day and went through each question (right or wrong) making sure I understood it.  You'll take so many practice tests and you'll eventually have to re-take some.  Don't grade your exams until the last two weeks, otherwise you'll remember the answers.  The computer practice exams are nice because it gives you a score and you don't have to go through the answers.  Taking a practice test every day helped me build up my stamina and made me feel comfortable so that the day of the exam felt like just another day.  

Two days before the exam: I took a practice exam I hadn't taken before and graded it.  I scored a 30 on this exam, which was the score I got on the real MCAT.  Again, I went through every single question making sure I understood it.   

The day before the exam: I made sure I woke up early and worked out really hard so that I would be tired.  I did a few flashcards at bedtime to keep my mind sharp and reviewed some things, but no heavy studying.  I went to bed early, but not so early that I would wake up at 3 am with anxiety.   

The day of the exam: I packed sweet and salty.  I packed water and red bull, a spicy trail mix and a luna bar.  People make a big deal out of what you pack, but really you're not going to be all that hungry.  You'll be out a little after lunch so you don't need to pack a lunch really.  Take all your breaks and make sure to leave the room.  Get your blood pumping and forget the section you just took.  Put it out of your mind.  Move on.  Psych yourself up for the next session.  Plan something fun for that night regardless of how you feel. Go out for a movie or hit up happy hour because you've earned it.  Then plan for a month of anxiety while you wait for scores.  Don't worry about how you feel after the exam, the exam is curved and if you thought a section/passage was hard, it probably was and this will be factored in.  I thought I had done worse than the first time, but I actually hadn't, so take heart!  Good luck!