The Medical College Admission Test a.k.a the MCAT is a standardized test that is need for most, if not all Medical Schools here in the United States to be considered for admission into medical school. It tests on a wide range of subjects in the hard and social sciences as well as your reading comprehension abilities.
As you may or may not know, the MCAT has changed in 2015 as a way to make medicine more holistic. The image above is from Kaplan, constructing the old and new MCAT. Personally, I like the new MCAT format! Although the new MCAT is longer and there are more prerequisites, it embodies what the future of medicine will look like—physicians who understand how the mind and body intrinsically intertwine.
So, above are the new prerequisites (psych, sociology, and biochem) that you will need to take at your college, before taking the MCAT exam. Being that I took my exam on July 9, 2016, I am a 100% advocate for really trying to learn the information in these prereq classes. This is literally what the MCAT is. So as you study glycolysis in biochem, eukaryotes vs prokaryotes in biology and the three theories of emotions in pysch, love it and soak it all in. It will be much useful for your later studies when you really boggle down and study for the MCATs.
There are four major sections to new MCAT, broken down below:
But with breaks (which you will want to take) it renders a total of 7.5 hours!
It's a really long test! But you will get used to it and you will make it through with enough practice, healthy snacks and water!
That is all on formatting for now but if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask them. I love answering them :)
As you may or may not know, the MCAT has changed in 2015 as a way to make medicine more holistic. The image above is from Kaplan, constructing the old and new MCAT. Personally, I like the new MCAT format! Although the new MCAT is longer and there are more prerequisites, it embodies what the future of medicine will look like—physicians who understand how the mind and body intrinsically intertwine.
So, above are the new prerequisites (psych, sociology, and biochem) that you will need to take at your college, before taking the MCAT exam. Being that I took my exam on July 9, 2016, I am a 100% advocate for really trying to learn the information in these prereq classes. This is literally what the MCAT is. So as you study glycolysis in biochem, eukaryotes vs prokaryotes in biology and the three theories of emotions in pysch, love it and soak it all in. It will be much useful for your later studies when you really boggle down and study for the MCATs.
There are four major sections to new MCAT, broken down below:
- Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems
- 10 min break optional
- Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills (CARS)
- 30 min lunch break optional
- Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems (yay, my fav section)
- 10 min break optional
- Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior (yay, my second fav section)
But with breaks (which you will want to take) it renders a total of 7.5 hours!
It's a really long test! But you will get used to it and you will make it through with enough practice, healthy snacks and water!
That is all on formatting for now but if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask them. I love answering them :)