MCAT Cheat Sheet

Welcome to the MCAT!

The Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) is a standardized, multiple choice examination

designed to assess the examinee’s problem solving, critical thinking, writing skills, and knowledge of

science and principles prerequisite to the study of medicine. There are four sections to the exam;

Physical Sciences, Verbal Reasoning, Writing Sample, and Biological Sciences.

What’s in each Section?

Physical Sciences

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/85562/data/ps_topics.pdf

Biological Sciences

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/85566/data/bstopics.pdf

Verbal

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/85564/data/vstopics.pdf Trial Section

Beginning in January 2013, on test day you will have the opportunity to volunteer for the Trial

Section. The Trial Section is a voluntary and unscored section that asks you to test out questions

for a future version of the MCAT exam. It will be the last section of the test day and take 45

minutes to complete.

Even with the Trial Section, the test day will be shorter for you than it was for last year’s

examinees. Instead of spending 60 minutes writing MCAT essays, we’re asking you to test out

32 new questions in either: biochemistry, biology, chemistry, and physics or in psychology,

sociology and biology.

You do not need to prepare for the Trial Section. You will get questions based on the answers

that you provided during MCAT registration about the courses that you’ve taken. Whenever

possible, the AAMC will assign questions from courses you’ve already completed. You don't

have to worry about not doing well, just try your best. No one will know how well you did but

you - not the medical schools or your advisor. Your answers on the Trial Section will not

contribute in any way to your MCAT score.

If you volunteer to participate, you’ll have an opportunity to preview content that medical

school admissions officers want applicants to know. You will also receive the following if you

put forth a good-faith effort:

$30 Amazon.com® Gift Card* Claim Code** e-mailed to you within 3-4 weeks, and

Feedback on your performance that will allow you to compare yourself to others who participated in the Trial Section.

How does the exam look?

Exam Overview Section # of Questions Time Allotted Tutorial (optional) 10 minutes Examinee Agreement 10 minutes Physical Sciences 52 70 minutes

Break (optional) 10 minutes Verbal Reasoning 40 60 minutes

Break (optional) 10 minutes Biological Sciences 52 70 minutes

Void Question 5 minutes Break (optional) 10 minutes Trial Section (optional) 32 45 minutes

Satisfaction Survey (optional)

12 10 minutes

Total Content Time 4 hours | 5 minutes Total “Seated” Time* Approx. 5 hours | 10 minutes

Study Materials:

ExamKrackers

http://www.examkrackers.com/

Kaplan

http://www.kaptest.com/MCAT/Home/index.html

Princeton review

http://www.princetonreview.com/medical/mcat-test-preparation.aspx

Berkley Review

http://www.berkeley-review.com/

Websites to know:

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

www.e-mcat.com

www.mcat-review.org

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/63060/data/mcatessentials.pdf

http://www.prep101.com/mcat/wp-content/uploads/ES_MCATPhysics.pdf

http://www.prep101.com/mcat/wp-content/uploads/ES_MCATChemistry.pdf

http://www.prep101.com/mcat/wp-content/uploads/ES_MCATOrganic.pdf

https://www.khanacademy.org/

New MCAT

January 2015 will be the very last month that the old MCAT will be administered

Spring 2015 the new integrated MCAT exam will be released

Changes:

All sections will be redesigned

4 sections instead of 3, no writing sample

Sections are:

Biological foundations of living systems (similar to biology)-(1-15)

Chemical and physical foundations of biological systems (similar to physical sciences) - (1-15)

Psychological, social and biological foundations of behavior section (new section) - (1-15)

Critical analysis and reasoning skills (similar to verbal) - (1-15)

Exam is a 6 hour test

4 scores

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/266006/data/2015previewguide.pdf

You can do it---plan to study 3 months before you intend on taking the exam