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The MCAT tests a wide range of science content ; most students study an average of 300-400 hours for this exam, and many wish they had put in more! Having an MCAT study plan can help keep you on track to prepare for this critical test.

4 things to consider when crafting an MCAT study plan:

1. Learn about the MCAT and schedule your test.
2. Assess your knowledge base and take a practice test.
3. Decide on and assemble your resources.
4. Create a study calendar.

1. Learn about the MCAT and schedule your test.

To effectively study, you have to know what you are up against, and how long you have to study.

• The AAMC created the MCAT, and you can download their document, , which provides many details about the exam. You can also download PDFs of the content tested in each section.
• Choose a date for your exam that gives you time to complete your studying. This will depend on your personal schedule, but most people like at least 4 months to prepare.
• Even if you think you are ready right now, schedule a date that is at least a month away so that you have time to take a few more practice tests and do some final review.

2. Assess your knowledge base and take a practice test.

Even if you’ve already completed your content preparation, it’s a good idea to assess your confidence in the wide variety of topics you need to know to be successful on the MCAT. If you haven’t yet started content preparation, this is a great first step to prioritize your studying.

• Use the to record a snapshot of your current confidence levels in each of the topic areas tested. Being aware of the science categories you feel less confident in can help you focus your preparation.
• Take a practice test (even if you don’t feel “ready”) so that you have a baseline score, as well a sense of the flow of exam day.
• Use your results to identify content areas that may be weak for you.
• Â鶹ɫÇéƬ offers a Free Demo Exam, and the AAMC has a couple of free practice tests as well.

3. Decide on and assemble your resources.

You will need at minimum:

• 5 full-length practice tests
• Practice passages
• Freestanding question (FSQ) drills
• A way to learn and study science content

Be cautious when choosing what materials to use, especially among free online resources that may either contain detail well beyond what the MCAT requires, or which may be too superficial.

Â鶹ɫÇéƬ offers a Self-Paced Course that gives you:

• many full-length practice tests
• hundreds of video lessons at the correct level of detail (including videos to teach you CARS strategies!)
• hundreds of practice passages and drills
• access to select instructor-led sessions and office hours

Â鶹ɫÇéƬ also has several instructor-led courses .

4. Create a Study Calendar

Creating a study plan is a lot of work, and some students prefer to have a test prep company do the scheduling for them. However, you decide to study content, do not randomly choose topics to study based on what you “feel like studying” on that day. Having a defined schedule will help you focus your prep because you’ll know exactly what needs to be done every day.

Schedule your practice tests.

Try to complete a full-length practice test about every 2-3 weeks; completing five practice tests will require about 10-12 weeks. Remember that you will need a full day to complete a full-length test and likely one full day afterward to review it.

Enter your study topics.

Choose topics based on your confidence levels from your practice tests. If you have a retail MCAT prep book or are taking a prep course like the Princeton Review’s, these topics are likely packaged into bite-sized pieces.

Try to be specific; for example, don’t just list a major topic such as “Molecular Biology.” Instead, list the subtopics “DNA Replication” or “Protein Translation.”

(A good rule of thumb for “major” topics vs. “subtopics,” is that major topics are typically an entire college semester course, whereas subtopics are usually part of that course.)

Enter your practice passages and drills.

Aim to complete at least 2-3 practice passages for each subtopic, for a total of around 8-10 passages for each major topic. Include some Free Standing Question (FSQ) drills as well. Completing 3 practice passages and reviewing them will likely take about an hour, so consider that in your schedule. As you review your passages, take note of any content topic you seem to be struggling on.

Here are four more things to consider when crafting an MCAT study plan:

1. If you are taking practice tests every 2-3 weeks, only fill in your study topics and practice material 2-3 weeks at a time. Reassess after each practice test so that you can adjust your studying based on your current strengths and weaknesses.
2. Don’t feel like you have to study all of one subject (e.g., all of Biology, or all of Physics) before moving on to another. It’s best to mix up the subjects:
   1. a. to avoid burnout
   2. b. to maximize knowledge retention
   3. c. to minimize the chance that, as you near your MCAT test date, you discover you really should have been studying a subject much earlier.
3. When blocking out time on your calendar, remember that you don’t have to start and finish a topic all in one sitting. You could watch a couple of hours of videos in the morning and do practice passages in the afternoon.
4. All work and no play makes for a poor experience! Remember to schedule some days off. A day off from studying—or even half of a day off—can refresh you mentally and physically, and keep you motivated to continue moving through the material.

An MCAT study plan will help keep you on track and give you an encouraging way to track your progress. The sooner you put one together, the more time you’ll have to spend properly preparing to get the score you want.