By Ty Zaccagnini and Grace Xiong, Health Professions Peer Ambassadors
Studying for the MCAT is hard… there’s no getting around that unfortunate truth. There will be times where you become overwhelmed, there will be times when you want to quit, there will be times when you begin to doubt your ability, but it was always helpful to think of the MCAT as a rite of passage. Every medical student has done it and been through the struggles, and every pre-med student will eventually do it. You are not the first person, and certainly will not be the last, to take the MCAT, so you CAN do this!
First things first, you need to register for the exam and choose your date. You can schedule your test at this link HERE. In terms of when to take it, it really depends on your schedule and how much time you think you need to prepare. Many people take it in January, April/May, or August, so they have their winter or summer break to focus on studying. Some people elect to take it in May, so they balance MCAT studying with their coursework throughout their spring semester and have a few weeks of more intense studying right before the exam. This route is typically chosen by students, in their junior year (may vary based on length of undergrad), who want to apply straight through without taking a gap year. If you choose this route, we’d suggest being meticulous about course selection, and lightening up your courseload in the spring to allow for adequate MCAT time. There are also plenty of other dates offered throughout the year that can be found HERE.
As for the actual studying, it really depends on how you like to structure your studies, and how much review you think you’ll need. Everyone studies differently, what works for one person, may not work for another, and vice versa. These are just our experiences and preferences, but if you come to find that it isn’t working for you, that’s totally okay too! Throughout the rest of the blog post, we are going to be breaking down MCAT studying in 3 different phases, like a well-planned heist or mission impossible movie!
Phase 1
What most people do to begin their studying is taking 3-6 weeks to just do content review, and hit all the areas that they feel weak in. This can take a few different shapes, you can either get ahold of the MCAT Kaplan/Blueprint/Princeton Review books (we liked the Kaplan) and go through those systematically and take notes (this tends to be a bit less interactive, but if you learn well from a textbook this is definitely a good avenue to take). Alternatively, some people choose to watch the full lecture series on Kahn Academy for the MCAT, which can be found HERE. This will take a long time, but if you manage your time properly it can be super useful. Building a strong foundation is critical in your studies, so we would suggest taking your time with content review, and ensuring you have a good grip on the material!
While doing content review, a lot of people like to also supplement with an online flashcard software called ANKI. You can find a bunch of videos on YouTube that will walk you through how to use ANKI. We think ANKI is super helpful, as there are pre-made decks of flashcards that other pre-med students have used and succeeded with (we used ANKing). All you have to do is download the deck and begin learning! This marks the end of phase 1!
Phase 2
Once you’ve mastered the material and are continuing to commit it to memory using ANKI, phase 2 of your studies will then consist of practice questions and continuing to do your ANKI every morning. UWorld is a great software that gives you access to over 3,000 practice questions, it’s $329 for a 90-day subscription (along with a 7-day free trial), which is expensive, but we do think it’s very beneficial. During this phase, our days would typically begin with about an hour of ANKI, followed by however many hours of UWorld questions. We would suggest keeping some sort of spreadsheet or notebook of all the questions you get wrong, including detailed solutions, so you don’t make repeated mistakes! Depending on your timeline and how long you’re studying for, the length of this phase can vary a lot, but we suggest following this structure until about 7-8 weeks out from your exam.
Phase 3
Congratulations! You’ve made it to the fun part! Phase 3 consists of more UWorld questions (in a lesser number) and full-length practice exams. As for the practice full length exams, we would stick with the AAMC exams. A lot of third-party companies make practice exams, which are great, but they’re typically harder than the AAMC tests and are not super representative. AAMC has a bundle where you can buy 4 practice tests HERE, and they will give you 2 tests for free, which totals to 6 practice full length tests. Taking one per week for the 6 weeks leading up to your exam should be plenty. We would suggest taking the exams early to simulate the test day, and turn your phone off while taking it, it’s important to create a realistic test taking environment. The day immediately after your practice exam, take a break (the full lengths are EXHAUSTING!). Then review the exam on the following day (or maybe even two) when you’re refreshed! Again, be sure to keep track of what questions you’re getting right or wrong in a separate spreadsheet/notebook. This leaves you with the rest of the week to continue with your UWorld practice questions! Keep in mind it may be a good idea to continue to do your ANKI during this period, and you can even add questions to your deck from the practice exams!
We would really suggest doing some of your own research on YouTube/Reddit to get some ideas of what other people are doing as well. You can take bits and pieces from each person’s plan that you like, and disregard portions that you don’t like. Don’t be afraid to try things out and change things up if you have to!
The main thing we would always keep in mind is that it’s just a test. You’re going to burn out at some point (maybe even more than once), but that is totally normal. It’s important to take breaks, pace yourself, and listen to your body when it tells you to take a day off.
If you’ve made it this far in the blog, you’re probably feeling very overwhelmed, which is totally okay! But we promise once you start, it will all feel much more manageable, so don’t worry. Good luck, and please feel free to reach out if you have any more questions, we’d love to help!
You got this!
Ty and Grace are 2025 graduates from UConn and former Health Professions Peer Ambassadors. To learn more the MCAT and resources available, see here.