Expert Q&A: Is it too late to begin to study for the MCAT?
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👑Community Member Question:
Is it too late to begin to study for the MCAT if one plans to take the MCAT in August. If not, what study/tips would be recommended/effective? Is four months ideal when one has been absent from material for quite some time?
Expert Answer:
"Yes, four months is absolutely plenty of time to study for the MCAT. If you're working around 60 hours per week, we might need to adjust the plan, but with a relatively normal schedule, four months is sufficient. It's also common to have been out of school for a while before studying for the MCAT. In fact, many students take at least one gap year. Don't confuse recognizing or being familiar with information for being able to recall it. Just because you remember something from biology doesn't mean you can reproduce that information without looking at it. Be organized with your content review, but don't neglect practice. Practice is valuable at all stages of studying. Don't think you need to spend months solely on content review before starting practice questions. Start practicing early and consistently." - @lilyharrington (Lily H.)
"That was a great answer. To add to that, the AAMC has data on this. The average test taker studies for 300 total hours and scores around a 500 on the MCAT. However, the average score for medical school matriculation is between 508 and 510, so you'll want to aim higher. Kaplan recommends studying for 350 to 400 total hours. As Lily said, four months is plenty of time, unless you have extenuating circumstances that limit your study time to 10 to 15 hours per week. In that case, you would need to adjust your study plan. My advice is to budget your time to average out to that recommended number of hours." Rohit Gupta MD
