Next Step Test Prep MCAT Webinar

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Introduction to the MCAT NSCS Webinar Series Bryan Schnedeker MCAT Director, Next Step Test Prep 1

description

Join us for a webinar introducing the MCAT study process. You'll learn: - The right time to start studying - How to plan your pre-med curriculum for MCAT success - How the MCAT is changing in 2015 (and how that matters to you) Next Step provides one-on-one MCAT prep programs with a 35+ scoring MCAT tutor. Learn more: http://nextsteptestprep.com/tests/mcat-tutor/

Transcript of Next Step Test Prep MCAT Webinar

Page 1: Next Step Test Prep MCAT Webinar

Introduction to the MCATNSCS Webinar Series

Bryan SchnedekerMCAT Director, Next Step Test Prep

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Introductions

• Bryan Schnedeker• MCAT Director of Next Step Test

Preparation• Worked with thousands of

MCAT students over the last 12 years

• Personally achieved a 41 MCAT, including perfect 15 in Bio Sci

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•The MCAT in Admissions

•What’s On the Exam?

•How Should You Prepare?

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What is the MCAT? Who takes it?

The MCAT is required by students applying to all AAMC med schools.

While the importance of the MCAT varies by admissions department, generally the MCAT and GPA are by far the

largest factors in admissions decisions.

Put another way – the MCAT is more important in med school admissions than SAT and ACT are in college

admissions.

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The MCAT serves important functions to admissions committees

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• Standardize applicants across undergraduate institutions

• Test med-school applicable skills (yes, you will use these skills!)

• Predict first-year success• Weed out unserious

applicantsBut, importantly, not test your ability as a doctor.

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How is the test scored?

• Raw score: number of questions right out of total• Scaled score: 1-15 on each section, 3-45 total• Percentile rank: How many students scored below you

Typical Score Distribution

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•The MCAT in Admissions

•What’s On the Exam?

•How Should You Prepare?

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What’s on the test?

Four Sciences

All told, the MCAT takes roughly 5-6 hours including registration and administration.

Three Sections

Physical Sciences: 70 min

Verbal Reasoning: 60 min

Biological Sciences: 70 min

Optional Experimental Section

Phys Sci: Physics and Chem

Bio Sci: Biology and Organic

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Physical and Biological Sciences

• 70 minutes, 52 Q's, 7 Passages

• It's NOT a science test, actually tests:• Critical reading• Time / Anxiety management• Problem-solving skills• Some pure recall

• Requires only basic science: one year of freshman chem, physics, bio, organic

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Verbal Reasoning

Like the ACT/SAT, except much MUCH harder.

• 7 passages covering hard and soft sciences as well as the arts

• 40 total questions

• The challenge: answer choices are cleverly designed for you to get them wrong

• Significantly harder than the prior version

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•The MCAT in Admissions

•What’s On the Exam?

•How Should You Prepare?

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http://e-mcat.com

Step 3: Register for the test and make a plan!

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Step 2: Get the free science outlines from the AAMC: https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/preparing/

Step 1: Take a free practice MCAT. How does your score compare to your goal?

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Applying early can have big benefits

Almost all med schools practice “rolling admissions.” There are more seats available in

August than there are in January.

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What skills do I need to build?

Critical Reading.Ok, and science content, and time management, and

tolerance for pressure.

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What materials should I use?

Good question.

• Start with getting ALL official AAMC materials: practice tests and self-assessment packages

• Next Step has discounts with the AAMC for our students

• Any prep company will supply you with great books

• Lots of free stuff out there!

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How many tests should I take?

Taking full tests under timed conditions is one of the most important parts of MCAT prep

You wouldn’t consider yourself ready to take the test before doing all 8 AAMC exams and all self-assessment passages.

There are 8 real MCATs and 421 questions in the self-assessment packages.

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How many times should you take the MCAT?

Once.

You should absolutely not take the MCAT unprepared to “see how you do.” That’s the function of free diagnostic exams taken at home.

Med schools get to see ALL of your scores. So if you take it unprepared, you will have to work very VERY hard to overcome that low score. Med schools may:

• Take the most recent score• Take the highest score• Take the highest of each section score• Average your scores (most common)

Further, students are permitted to take the exam only three times with the current version of the MCAT.

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Will you improve on a retake?

You should consider retaking the exam if:

• Your score is so low you won't even bother applying with it

• Something disastrous happened on the day of the exam (left half a section blank, had the flu, etc)

• You scored lower than your lowest practice test

• You can point to a specific deficiency in your MCAT prep (only studied with bargain MCAT prep books, did not yet take physics, etc.)

Be careful! As many as 30% of test-takers see a DROP in their second MCAT score, and another 10-20% see NO CHANGE in their retake.

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Ideal Prep Calendars

Most students take 3 months of full time work to prepare for the exam.

• If you can't do MCATs FT (you have work, school, etc) then you will need 5-6 months of PT work.

• Less than a month is not enough time to reach your top score

As of today, there is still ample time to prepare for the March MCAT, or any other 2014 dates.

If you're applying in 2014, take the MCAT between March and June of 2014.

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A basic 3-month study plan

If you are working with a tutor or taking a course, a professional will recommend a study plan for you.

If you are studying on your own, consider the following outline:

Month 1: • Take a diagnostic exam; purchase prep books and AAMC materials• Do 2-3 chapters a day from your prep books to review all content• Start doing verbal every day to build up your verbal skills

Month 2:• Finish content review, and go back to your books as needed• Start taking a full AAMC test once a week• Analyze every AAMC test carefully! LESSONS LEARNED

Month 3:• Complete remaining AAMC exams, re-take your diagnostic• Complete all self-assessment package questions

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MCAT Prep OptionsPROS

CONSSelf-Study Prep Course 1 - on - 1

Tutoring• Lowest price (~$500)• Self-paced• Focus on need areas• Roughly 30% of test-

takers report self-study

• Hard to know what you don’t know

• Few resources to answer questions

• Score plateaus• Every point counts

• Generally good materials

• Schedules keep students on pace

• Lack of personal attention

• Valuable time devoted to unnecessary areas

• $$$$$

• Costs more than self-study

• Used to cost 3-4x more than a prep course

• Study plan completely tailored

• Help identifying and fixing weak areas

• Work on concepts until you understand them

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Next Step Test Preparation provides elite MCAT tutoring packages starting at the same price as crowded prep courses.

MCAT Prep Comparison (Payment plans available)

Next Step Kaplan Princeton Review

Instructional method

One-on-one tutoring

Class of 10-25 Class of 10-25

Package Price 16hr Crash Course: $1,549

24hr Comprehensive: $2,299

$1,999 $2,299

• Incredible personal attention. Compare our one-on-one tutoring to an average class of 10-15 with classes sometimes reaching 25-30 students. Each student gets an individualized curriculum and learning plan – not a curriculum developed for average students looking for an average score.

• Competitive prices. We can provide a complete course of one-on-one tutoring, including AAMC materials, for virtually the same price as a crowded prep course.

• Incredible instructors. Your MCAT tutor will be a veteran of MCAT prep – never a first-timer

We provide a free consultation to any student interested in discussing the MCAT.

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Who Are These guys?We believe that the quality of our instructors sets us apart. Unlike many larger prep companies, we make it clear to students who they will be working with before we ask them to commit. Here is a sampling of our tutors:

Student Success“I just got my score back, and I got a 33! so happy, couldnt have asked for more. Thank you for your help! Got my PS up to a 12 and I really think it was because of you and those hard practice tests. Thank you Caroline!”

-Adam Z.

“I really like getting emails between sessions. It feels like he is checking in on me and reminding me hold myself accountable.”

-Nathalie B.

"I got my MCAT scores and I got the 30 I was shooting for! I saw it after a class had been dismissed and I literally jumped out of my seat and started running around crying and people just stared at me.... so I hugged them... that's how excited I was. I wanted to thank you because you made such a huge difference and helped me SO much in my prep! So, thank you X a million!

-Sarah D.

“Josh is the best MCAT tutor I have worked with for several reasons: 1) He has thorough knowledge of the material and can break difficult topics down into understandable concepts; 2) He goes the extra mile in preparation so the session flows efficiently and my goals are achieved; 3) He integrates great MCAT test taking strategies; 4) He is enthusiastic and very dedicated!”

-Meredith R.

• Neil: 37 MCAT, 5 years' teaching experience and avid snowboarder

• Jenny: 41 MCAT, 3 years teaching experience, graduate of Brown University

• Kirsten: 41 MCAT, 14 years teaching experience, PhD holder

• Josh: 39 MCAT, 3 years teaching experience and former Army officer with extensive training experience

• Kevin: 37 MCAT, 3 years teaching experience and, MD holder and resident in Internal Medicine

Next Step Test Preparation LLC888-530-NEXT

[email protected]

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Registering for the MCAT

• Register for your chosen test center early (especially in major metro areas)

• Fees include:• MCAT Registration $275• AMCAS $160• Late Registration $50• Test Center Change $125

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https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/reserving/

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Top 10 MCAT Strategies

1. Verbal! Start early to find YOUR strategy

2. VR: Note-taking

3. VR: Highlighting

4. VR: Skimming

5. Science Content: the Rule of 2's

6. Eqn's: Don't memorize, UNDERSTAND!

7. Use your time effectively: skip a passage

8. Lessons Learned Journal

9. Study Group

10.Know what to expect on Test Day

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Bryan [email protected]

973-866-0149www.nextsteptestprep.com

Thank you for listening!

Contact me if you've any questions about the MCAT or med school admissions.

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