Mcat

[Mo Squared]

So I'm planning on writing the MCAT this summer and I want to take a prep course. I was thinking either Kaplan or Princeton. They are both around the same price, just wondering if anyone has any information on both and if anyone has heard which one is better. Thanks

[Lanks]

My gf is currently in the kaplan one and she says its pretty good... fuck its alot of work though

[Mo Squared]

ye that is what i heard it was alot of work, but i mean i have the whole summer where i will be doing nothing but working and studying so mehh

[nismodrifter]

See my thread here:
http://forums.beyond.ca/showthread.php?s=&threadid=89888

I wrote it last August.
All I did was buy the Kaplan book for $95 and study the shit out of it. I made notes on the chapters and studied those. Got practise exams from various other books and did a whole bunch of those.

The key to success is practise, practise, practise.
I'll probably be re-writing it in August to improve my Physics section and the one thing I learned is that I need to spend more time practising and less time studying. All that info in your brain is useless if you can't pick out the stuff they want from the passage.

If you are one of those people who NEED to take the course to actually make you study then by all means take it but if you are a self learner who doesn't need to be pushed to study then consider studying on your own. Just depends on what kind of person you are I guess. I studied all last summer and it was hard somedays because everybody was doing stuff and the weather was nice but I was strict on myself to go to the Shawnessy library every day at opening and stay till however long it takes me to get through what I want that day. Some days I was there open till close. I beat a lot of people I know who took either Princeton or Kaplan. Again, just depends on your learning style (ie: you like structured classes) or if you are an independent learner.

Let's keep this thread going as I know there are others who will be writing it this time around.

Check out the forums on www.studentdoctor.net for good study mnemonics and stuff.

[Mo Squared]

Wow thanks, that is alot of help. I am one of those independant learners and I think I can probably go without spending that ~1500 for the course if you did it your way and still came out with good scores. Thanks man ill look into some of the books that are available and stuff.


:thumbsup:

[xrayvsn]

Like I said on that thread - do as many practice exams and questions as you can get your hands on, then do some more. It is the best way to prepare for that exam.

While a review course will refresh your memory about the different concepts, it will not help you discriminate between 2 very close options on a multiple choice exam. Having done a similar question will help a lot. If you get an answer wrong, look it up and remember it for next time.

I wrote the MCAT in '93, and I am sure it is no different today. I did no prep course, did not buy the Kaplan book, and just did a crapload of MCQs. I did not get below 12's on the MCQ section - I can't remember the letter grade I got for the written, but I think it was the third or fourth from the top.

I was very strict with how I did the practice questions, in terms of giving myself a set amount of time to get through a certain number of questions. You will find that if you do not do this, you may run out of time during the real thing. This is especially true for the written portion as 30 minutes goes very fast.

[RX_EVOLV]

I wrote the MCAT last summer, and my best advice would be to practice practice and practice. The biggest problem i had was the Time constraint. Its only thing knowing you only have an hour, its another to have someone telling you 15 mins left and you are just half way. I think you should definitly take a Sat off and just sit down and do the entire exam timed.

The material itself is pretty simple, nothing more than High school or 1st year uniersity stuff, but to be sucessful you must be able to work and think under pressure.

with that being said, I think those Kaplan course is very good if you are one of those people that cant sit still for hours and work alone. I've heard mix opinion about those courses, some say that its very useful and really forces you to remember/study, other says its very repetitive and boring epecially on the stuff that you already know. but alot of people said the biggest advantage of those MCAT courses is how they help you in the essay portion of the test. they said its really useful to have someone who knows how the grading system works to assess your essays and gives approciate constructive comments.

I say if you have the money/time, go for it. It doesnt hurt you at all, just makes you a little more competitive. I swear at least half of ppl taking the exams will have taken one of those MCAT courses.

But other wise, all you need to do is practice practice and practice. and watch the time. I think if given enough time, everyone can get 100%.

[matt_calgary]

Not to stray off topic too much, but where are you thinking of applying for med school? Personally looking into U of BC because of the internship program they house.

[xrayvsn]

Originally posted by matt_calgary
Not to stray off topic too much, but where are you thinking of applying for med school? Personally looking into U of BC because of the internship program they house.

Apply across the country, as all Canadian medical schools are of similar quality. Do not limit yourself to a single school if you really want to be a doctor, since med school admission is extremely competitive. Besides, I am not sure what makes the student internship/clerkship at UBC any better than any other medical school. The best thing is to apply everywhere, if you get in somewhere else and you would rather go to UBC then you at least have a choice.

As for an overall strategy for med school application, you need to plan ahead. Find out what pre-req courses the schools need, and fit them into your undergrad program. Plan on completing a Bachelor's degree in something, since only a small handful of people get into med school with only 2 or 3 years of undergrad under their belt. Everyone should write the MCAT, since every school except McMaster requires it. Also do some sort of volunteer work, and try to find something that will expose you to health care. Some background that shows you have leadership skills is also good. In the past, I have also noticed that admissions comittees seem to like it if you have had some sort of research experience. If it is healthcare related, even better.

Your marks matter - a lot. It has become so competitive now that people can't afford to have a "bad year" anymore. Take every course seriously, since it is easier to get good marks the first time around than having to repeat courses to improve your marks down the road.

[nismodrifter]

You can have a bad year with places like U of S. They only consider your two best.

Also remember that your chances of getting into another province are EXTREMELY limited because of residency requirements (ie: they accept 90% students from their province with the rest of their seats being for out of province students).

[xrayvsn]

Not all med schools care about your province of residency, especially the Ontario schools. U of S cares, as does UBC. As for the Alberta schools, your province of residence matters more for U of A than U of C. As a generalization, U of A cares more about your marks than U of C, where "life experience" counts for a lot more.

Overall, your scores on the MCAT matter very little in comparison to your university marks. I have a friend who got in after only 2 years of undergrad who scored 8's on the MCAT. She had a 3.9+ GPA for her 2 years, and was a very strong applicant in other respects (volunteer, leadership, research, "life experience", etc).

I'm so glad I am on the other side of this now, since I remember how stressful it was, and how much of my mental time it occupied. Now I get to stress about passing my Royal College Fellowship exam.

[RX_EVOLV]

this should be pretty useful
http://admissions.myweb.med.ucalgary.ca/

[RX_EVOLV]

http://admissions.myweb.med.ucalgary.ca/AdmissionStatistics.html

you might find this interesting too

[nismodrifter]

Yikes I was just reading aamc.org right now and I can't believe that starting this August the MCAT is going to be offered 22 FREAKING TIMES PER YEAR. I can only think of what that is going to do to the number of applicants. All those people who slack off and/or don't want to write it during finals will be able to do it basically whenever the hell they are ready to do so.

Even though there is the option to write the CBT in August I'm still writing the paper one, I can't freaking do physics and stuff while on a PC, I'm just too used to writing paper tests. I can see it being good for the essay but it might actually be TOO tempting to go back and change things whereas on paper once it's written...it's final. Studying on PC would be too hard IMO....I'd waste half of my time on here :D

[badlivertt]

Originally posted by nismodrifter
. Studying on PC would be too hard IMO....I'd waste half of my time on here :D

Get used to it.

Steps I, II, III (USMLE anyways... dunno how it is up there) are all on the computer... no paper option. All the good practice question banks are online as well.

[nismodrifter]

^We're not talking about USMLE here are we though. Also notice that we are Canadian...MCEE is paper. I'll worry about those tests later though...that's a completely different situation.

[xrayvsn]

Originally posted by nismodrifter
^We're not talking about USMLE here are we though. Also notice that we are Canadian...MCEE is paper. I'll worry about those tests later though...that's a completely different situation.

MCEE? Do you mean LMCC part 1 or MCCQE (same thing). They have changed this to be completely on computer - it is even a progressive test in that if you are doing well, it will give you harder questions. No one gets the same test. As you say, you need to worry about those later.

[badlivertt]

Is LMCC part I is the USMLE step 1 equivalent (taken after 2nd year of school)?

If so, that's gunna be rough with the progressive system. I did it back when it was on paper. Baseline, it was tough... if it got progressively harder, that would have been a nightmare.

Best of luck, whatever exam you're heading into.

[xrayvsn]

No, LMCC part 1 is like the USMLE part 2 - taken at the end of your medical school training. LMCC part 2 is equivalent to USMLE part 3.

The progressive exam also works in the reverse fashion. If the questions get too difficult and you are doing poorly, it will give you easier questions (albeit these will be worth less than the tough ones). All I can say is that I am glad I am done with doing exams. Unless, of course, I decide that I want to work in the US, then I will need to do the USMLE and write the American Boards...

[nismodrifter]

Yeah I meant MCCQE, I thought it was on paper but I guess not. Doesn't matter right now anyways though haha....going to be a long hard road until I even think about those tests.

[badlivertt]

Originally posted by xrayvsn Unless, of course, I decide that I want to work in the US, then I will need to do the USMLE and write the American Boards... [/B]

Welp, ya wouldn't be the first one to make that decision... I work closely with a couple of UT alumni. Canadians have an easy time with moving to the US... I don't think any of the other FMG hurdles apply... just the USMLEs.

...but any test is hard if you've been out for a while. Similarly, I'm gunna have to start reading again if I want to make it home to Calgary.

[nismodrifter]

badliver: Are you attending a US med school or foreign (Carib)-->US Clinical-->residency?

[badlivertt]

No, I graduated from a US school (CWRU) a few years back... I've been practicing for almost a year now (doesn't mean I have a cent to my name :P).

Honestly, some of the most brilliant and competant doctors I know went to AUC (St. Maarten). There are a few extra hurdles to clear but those that do make it are generally very well respected... it's an odd curriculum. Those guys have the option of doing 3rd and 4th year in UK, ireland... In retrospect, spending 2 years on a beautiful island and a couple years in Europe while learning is one heck of an idea.