However, the consensus is that at least some element of Kaplan CARS will be useful to a majority of students studying for the MCAT, and the book will definitely need to be supplemented with practice passages.
Kaplan provides a clear explanation for each of the statistics concepts. There are 15 sectioned-off statistics questions at the end of the chapter, and statistics applications in the other Kaplan MCAT questions are rarer than preferred. Although this is not a bad idea as a refresher section, Kaplan should have more of these visual aids prevalent throughout their MCAT books and integrated into more chapter practice questions.
However, the online Kaplan materials do provide practice passages related to this topic. However, their literature will need to be supplemented with more practice problems, ideally passage-based and integrated with other MCAT topics biology, physics, etc. The corresponding practice passages online are very MCAT-applicable and research-based. Kaplan has some great summary tables that condense and organize notable amounts of information, such as in the Child Development Milestones table on p.
For instance, on p. However, Kaplan does not provide a strong overall approach to this new section. This book also includes a notable amount of extraneous information and images and its practice passage-based problems are separately featured online instead of integrated into the book.
The organization of the book is intuitive and mirrors the flow of medical school biochemistry courses. The AAMC materials are covered pretty extensively, making this section one of the strongest points in the Kaplan series.
We particularly appreciate the Lineweaver-Burk plots of different inhibitors on p. For instance, there are no visual aids illustrating the often confusing mixed inhibition or competitive inhibition of enzyme kinetics p. For instance, the Goldman-Hodgkin-Katz voltage equation on p. Bottom Line: For students who struggle with biochem, Kaplan has a comprehensive biochemistry book that can provide a solid understanding of MCAT-tested material.
Students who have already taken biochemistry and done well, however, will probably find they do not require the detail of the Kaplan book to do well on the exam. Either way, if a student does decide to use this book, s he will need to supplement it with more MCAT-style passage-based questions. This chemistry book is especially good for students who need a refresher on general chemistry, since the Kaplan text does not assume any prior knowledge.
For instance, Kaplan does not assume that a student knows how to draw a Lewis dot structure p. The authors spend notable time explaining commonly tested e. VSEPR theory p. Bottom Line: Kaplan has compiled a very good foundational book in general chemistry that will be terrific for students who need a comprehensive topical overview. As consistent with other Kaplan texts, there is a de-emphasis on test-taking shortcuts and the book will need to be supplemented with additional MCAT-style problems.
The practice and review material is clearly organized, very practical and quite readable for such an abstract topic, and the end-of-chapter outlines provide a nice summary of the material. For instance, they have an example on p. When compared to Kaplan and other prep course providers, The Princeton Review is a bit more expensive. Factor in the optional extras and you could spend a pretty penny.
Luckily, The Princeton Review does make up for this with regular promotions. Not only that, but there are more course options.
This allows you to spend your money strategically and get the experience that works best for you. Some students might not like the depth of the content review either.
Despite the detailed content review with The Princeton Review MCAT courses, it may not be comprehensive enough for everyone we prefer to go a lot further with our tutoring services. As you can see from the schedule breakdown, some core topics are more in-depth than others.
If you struggle with those topics, you can get extra help through tutoring sessions and practice questions. But, the main course might not be enough for you.
It would be nice if The Princeton Review included some of the content into the main course to make up for its shortcomings. When it comes to Kaplan vs.
At the end of the day, the depth of the content review is the most important aspect you should be looking into. You can develop advanced best test-taking strategies and learn tips on how to perform better. The Standard Kaplan course includes 36 hours of content review. The Princeton Review also excels in terms of content delivery. The Kaplan courses are nothing to turn your nose up at.
But when you want a more in-depth content review and an enhanced learning experience, The Princeton Review MCAT courses are a better choice. In fact, our customized tutoring services have significantly outperformed these two over the years.
By a long shot. Premed Experts. But which one is better? The Premed Experts Team. For example, if you are taking biochemistry this year, you could use the MCAT Channel sessions and Science review videos that focus on biochemistry to give yourself a boost in those courses—think of it as background material. Also, your access to the review notes, which nicely summarize the big topics of biochemistry, could give you an added advantage.
Might as well get the maximum value out of enrollment, with the longest course access possible leading up to your test date. A typical amount of time to prepare effectively for the MCAT is between hours total. Ideally, you would spread this out over several months, especially if you have other commitments such as school or work. A common error that many test-takers make is to try to study for the MCAT while carrying a very heavy load of activities. Some test-takers spend six months preparing for the MCAT, while others choose to cram it all into just a month before the test.
Consider your own schedule carefully, be realistic about all of your commitments, and plan as far in advance as possible. Then you can be realistic about your ability to master the demands of the MCAT. Historically, testing seats fill up very quickly—some in less than 24 hours— and we expect the same to occur this year. You might say that MCAT seats were just as popular as the hottest music events! Take some time now to build out your calendar for the next few months.
The MCAT does not require you to have taken high-level science courses. In fact, introductory-level courses that are typically taken in the first two years of college are almost all that you need to have the right background for the MCAT.
The only exception is Biochemistry, which is typically taken later in your college career. As the name implies, this section of the MCAT asks you to use critical reasoning skills to read, analyze and interpret passages and answer related questions.
Reading at a level expected of a college undergraduate is appropriate for this section of the test. In summary, there are several factors that MCAT test takers should take into consideration when deciding when to test. This is going to be especially important for students considering a test date that falls into the academic year.
You might prefer a weekend test date so as to not miss classes. Remember that you have a life outside of the MCAT.
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