What books should I read for CARS ? (that are free pdfs). I don't want to waste money on books that I genuinely hate. someone told me to read research papers aswell but idk if I can do that cus it take me at least 2 hours to fully understand any of the papers I read for classes. back to the read question what books do I read ?

Hey guys! I would like to have a second opinion on whether I take my MCAT in January or March, as I scored 487 on the Altius diagnostic recently and I’m aiming for 510+. Thanks for any input! :)

I recently got a 517 after averaging 520/21 on my practices. I’m grateful I did strongly despite nerves and there are other aspects of my application I should devote time to, so I kind of accepted the outcome.

But, I talked to a premed advisor who I trust and generally find quite reassuring/level headed. He really liked the idea of me sitting for the exam again and walking in there assuming I’ll void it, but if I feel good with no major issues, then I score it. If I’m willing to do it again and eat the cost, they think this could remove some of the pressure (which caused the score drop) and minimize the downside of scoring the same/worse while also preventing future regret of not trying.

Now instead of moving on, I’m kind of agonizing over this for probably no reason. It’s making me fucking neurotic. I can make the argument either way to try vs. not. It could go great and I honestly enjoyed studying, or it could be a massive waste of time.

Could anyone who’s been in a similar situation offer words of wisdom?

I am trying to have an efficient study schedule, and I don’t want to add in extra things. So if I can get by with just doing the whole Anki deck, then I’m going to do that.

i just started content review this past week and decided to take a diagnostic so I can figure out when’s the best date to take the mcat. I got a 490 with a 118/125/121/126. I can’t study full time now as i’m a full time student but plan to study more December and onwards as I won’t be taking as many courses. I’m not sure where’s the best area to start and how timing between different areas of studying might look. For now I downloaded Pankow p/s and Jacksparrow for anki and just started reading Kaplan for gen chem + watching yusuf hasan. Any tips in terms or how to block off studying between subjects and tips for practice material would be much appreciated :))

Hey all! So I'm trying to finish my content review phase as soon as possible, but I'm really struggling with gen chem and physics in particular. I got As in both classes in college, but my physics was open note exams and I took gen chem 4 years ago now. So I never fully learned to reason within word problems and would use "practice tests" from the professor of the course to prepare for exams.

The reason I'm struggling now, is that I am currently reading through all of the Kaplan books. Organic Chemistry is thankfully my strongest subject because I tutored it in college, and Biology and Biochemistry are mostly conceptual so far and mostly recent in my memory; so it hasn't been difficult to read those chapters. Contrarily, the Gen Chem/Physics books feel very convoluted and honestly just not fun to read at all- but I don't really know what alternatives I can take to actually make progress.

I want to move into UPlanet as soon as I can, but I feel like I'd be doing myself a disservice if I didn't develop a strong foundation of MCAT math and Chem/Phys problems. I did score a 126 on my diagnostic for C/P, but I'm aiming for a 130+. Should I just shotgun the Khan Academy videos and do the practice problems? I'm very lost and would love some advice!

I took developmental biology in college but that was more focused on non mammalian development (professor was a sea urchin researcher).

This is hard. So many terms and concepts beyond the scope I learned and I also graduated 7 years ago.

Any recommendations how to tackle this?

To start I just wanted to say I’m happy about my overall score and I’m really not trying to sound neurotic. I took the mcat this past August and scored a 512. My score breakdown was a 131/123/130/128 which is why I’m heavily considering applying to the US since I’m a Canadian citizen. I just wanted some advice on if I should retake the mcat to apply to US MD/DO. My only issue is that next summer I’ll most likely be working full time and applying to US schools so I’m not sure I’ll have the time to study properly.

My other stats currently are:
Third year student in Canada
3.7 cgpa with an upward trend
4.0 sgpa
Currently a research assistant in a lab and expecting to add a lot more research this coming summer
About 400-500 hours as a physio assistant
VP of a club
No volunteering
Shadowing 25 hours with an orthopaedic surgeon
Expecting another 25-30 hours of shadowing with an oncologist in the coming months

my partner of three years broke up with me during MCAT prep (the MCAT breakup curse), and I wanted some advice from you guys if you've had this experience and became an academic weapon because of it. It wasn't anything malicious; I just had too many commitments, and we both wanted to focus on our individual career paths. any advice through this would be helpful since I dont want to drag out my content review

After 6 months of hell it’s finally over. GENERATIONAL lock in on test day after a 508 on FL6 a week before.

Never got over a 127 on CARS before so english really kicked in for me

How to improve a 123 on C/P and a 123 on B/Biochem and a 121 on P/S?

Hey guys, i’m planning to take my mcat in january and i need a study buddy. Preferably someone who’s taken a diagnostic and his grade is <500. We can go through content review and hold each other accountable. Lmk if you’re interested.

Before people automatically say AAMC materials - I know that’s obviously the gold standard. But do they have nearly enough practice material? I fear they don’t, even with the new question bank recently released.

Incredibly pissed about the news of a company infiltrating this subreddit. This was the company I had mostly used for CARS practice and was shocked at my CARS score of 123 on the real thing.

Sometimes I feel like Altius CARS questions and explanations don’t follow the same reasoning as AAMC, but I’m not sure if that’s just me.
For those who used Altius FLs, how did your CARS scores compare to AAMC and the real MCAT? Did you find Altius CARS representative or harder?

What is the best Anki deck? I matured miles down, but didn’t perform well on my exam. I need a better deck to study in conjunction with practice problems for my retake in January. Anking or Captain Hook? Or any other ones that are good?

Hey guys I just recently got an acceptance to a DO school and wanted to make a post to remind everyone that getting a perfect score and having a perfect application isn’t what you need to be a doctor! Just do you best and tell adcoms the story of yourself and present your whole story. Everyone will do great no matter what you score! Do your best and remain positive in this crazy journey! You got it!

I hope this can give some confidence to someone who doesn’t feel like they stack up to what they think they need. Just be you and keep fighting to achieve your dream.

hiii everyone!! i posted here recently about my 490 diagnostic and wanting to aim for a 520+, and i really appreciated everyone’s advice!!

im starting fresh with studying now and planning to hopefully matriculate in fall 2028. ill be working around 20 hours a week, which leaves me with a decent amount of time to study, but im honestly pretty nervous about the whole process.

MCAT registration opens on the 20th for NY but im not sure which date to register for. id like to ideally have 2 attempts at least, just in case my first score isn't where I want it to be.

should i register for February and April or March and early May?

for anyone who started with a low diagnostic or had to plan around a potential retake, what would you recommend? would you prioritize giving yourself more time for your first attempt, or taking it earlier to leave room for a second?

!! also, if you took your exam in May or June and applied that same cycle, did you feel like it put you at a disadvantage?

id really appreciate any advice, especially from people who worked parttime while studying.  thank you <33

this sub was incredibly helpful to me when I was studying for the MCAT, and as many others have done, I wanted to post on here in case anyone is looking for (yes, even more) unsolicited advice about MCAT studying. different things work for different people, so I thought I might add in my 2 cents if anyone's interested.

by absolutely no means do i consider myself an expert on anything mcat related, but I have gone through a lot of different resources and have opinions about them so if anyone does have questions, please feel free to ask. i made a short overview of my study schedule as well.

Give yourself grace and recognize that you’re doing your best. Remember that you only really learn and grow from the questions you get wrong– not the ones you get right. Remember that you’re playing the long game. Most importantly, try (I say try because I’d be a complete hypocrite if I didn’t say this was easier said than done) to remember what you’re doing all of this for. Keep your ‘why’ in sight at all times, and if you find yourself forgetting, step away from the MCAT and ground yourself. It sounds really really really silly, but I seriously mean it. Neglecting these things will actively hurt your studying and progress. I learned this the hard way.

I am so stressed. I work 40 hours a week. I've "gotten" through content, but have a super high pile of anki from just not having enough time to do it. First did AAMC unscored and got around 503. This was about two weeks ago. Took second FL today which was BP FL 1 and got a 501.

I feel like I'm not improving. All the things I'd want to do to improve I feel like I'm half doing just bc I have limited time / am tired all the time. I can't quit my job unfortunately as it provides my financial means.

I'd lIkE to score at least a 515 by late Jan/early Feb. Maybe im too ambitious or delusional. I just don't know what to do or how to best maximize my crazy schedule.

I feel like I'm constantly battling between "do i practice? do i do anki? or do i go back to content?" and i feel like i can never decide what will help me get better. I try to review my practice and make flashcards out of it, but I haven't touched that deck... haven't finished P/S either.

Was anyone in a similar boat & ended up doing well?? I rlly need to hear from yall that made it work & also ask HOW?

1. How long does the personal statement have to be? It seems like there’s no requirement for a specific number of words or pages, but I would like to know what the suggested length should be / what the average does.

2. How should I go about registering for a test date? Registration day is coming up and I’m worried if AAMC ends up requesting for more information, and I have to resubmit my application, I’d also need to reschedule my test. And pay the crazy fee that comes with that haha

Any advice is very much appreciated:)