2006-12-27 06:09:18 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Education & Reference ➔ Higher Education (University +)
I took it last april and found several things to be helpful:
1) Exam Kracker study guides-I took the Kaplan class and it was a waste of time and money!!! These books are EASY to quickly read and review, offer practice questions (several of which I saw word-for-word on my actual exam) and aren't too think that you're overwhelmed. They filter out a lot of the excess so sometimes you may need to refer back to a textbook if you don't remember something, but I cannot speak highly enough about them! My score didn't change while in Kaplan but after I found these books it shot up! I wish I had found them earlier!
2) Start early and study frequently! I started about 6 months before my exam and this probably was a little early but better early than late. Know how much time you have to dedicate and put it into your schedule. Even if it's just 20-30 minutes a day to work passages, make yourself do it! Do what works for you and your schedule! If you can, take a light load if you're going to be in school!
3) Find a study partner! Studying for the exam sucks and misery loves company! I found a great partner and we motivated each other to work every day!
4) Find plans that work for you! For example, for physics I sat down every night for a few weeks before my exam and memorized about 45 formulas, 3 new ones per night (physics was my weakest area). This little bit made such a difference and it took very little time!
5) Practice as much as you can! I took one of my study guides with me everywhere and did passages when waiting because it was the only free time I had some days. I tried to do at least a passage a night (usually 3-4) just to keep my mind in that mentality! You'll start to notice patterns in the questions and can will be able to correctly answer them more quickly! Even though you only want to give up 1 day to actually take a full-length, take a few tests mimicing the real thing (get up early, set yourself in a quiet room, and time yourself)! Sitting down taking an exam for hours at a time is something your brain needs to practice!
6) Do take the a few days off before the exam to give your brain a rest! Don't study hard the night before~just a light review and do something fun if you can! Afterwards go out and celebrate!
I'm not a great standardized test taker but my hard-work paid off with a good score! What works for me may not work for you, but try new things until you find what works! Good luck!
2006-12-28 08:00:47 · answer #1 · answered by dally1025 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't know your level of discipline, but I generally recommend taking a class. To me, the MCAT was pretty dang important, so I wasn't going to take any chances.
What is your best study style? Do you study well alone? Or do you do well with group discussion?
I prefer group study and classroom lectures, so I chose Princeton Review for my MCAT prep course. They have more classroom time any other prep course I know of. After class, I'd meet with some classmates and we would do timed practice problems. We would also work on essay prompts. To supplement the materials provided by PR, we would download prompts and old tests from http://www.aamc.org
If you like to study alone, and you want to take a prep course, I'd recommend Kaplan. Kaplan offers more books and online materials, so it's much better for people who go the lonely road. They do not offer as much lecture time as PR. But that's good if you have trouble scheduling more classes on your regular workload.
2006-12-27 09:45:08 · answer #2 · answered by Gumdrop Girl 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
check out a book...do well in school
2006-12-27 06:16:27 · answer #3 · answered by mbtafan 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋