How to Shop for an MCAT Course. By Don Osborne / INQUARTA

Transcription

1 How to Shop for an MCAT Course By Don Osborne / INQUARTA

2 When you re shopping around to find an MCAT prep course, the people you talk to about prep courses will likely tell you that they prefer one national test-prep company over another. You might hear: Princeton Review! It s the only way to go. I scored a 33 on my first attempt ALL because Princeton Review had the best technique. Or, you might read: My cousin took a Princeton Review MCAT course and he didn t get into any medical schools because he bombed the MCAT! I took a Kaplan course and kicked the MCAT s butt, then I got accepted to NYU Medical School. Kaplan s the only way to go. You d be a fool to take a Princeton Review Course. Other people you ask may suggest a local test prep company, or even an online program. So how do you find out what course is really worth the money? Here s what you need to know to cut through the contradictory opinions and marketing tactics to find an MCAT prep course that will really work for you. It s all about the Instructors The problem with word-of-mouth reviews is that many people are unable to give you an insightful reason why they liked or disliked a course, and they give you a simple evaluation like Oh, I liked my course. It was helpful. Or, My course wasn t very good because I didn t like the way the class was run. That kind of generic feedback doesn t really help you narrow down your choices! The difference between good, bad, excellent, and terrible MCAT courses is the instructor, and thats what many MCAT prep course takers fail to communicate when they give you feedback about their own course. The very best way to pick an MCAT course is to find a group of instructors with whom you can relate. I speak from experience: I worked for The Princeton Review as an instructor, test writer and editor or over 10 years. In that time, I saw many instructors come and go, and I witnessed how the students reacted to each instructor. I taught thousands of students the tricks and techniques needed to dominate the MCAT and LSAT, and then I trained other instructors after I distinguished myself as an

3 instructor s instructor. I wrote sample test passages, sample test questions, and wrote the entire Verbal Accelerator course. So it s safe for me to say that I understood the ins and outs of a test prep agency For all the passages I wrote and all the students I saw come and go, the one thing I took away from the experience was that the good instructors led their students to excellence, and the so-so instructors didn t make much of a difference at all. For all the clever and amazing practice passages I could write (I exaggerate!), a bad instructor couldn t engage the students and was unable to coach students through the logical challenges of the tests. If you remember back to high school and college, I think you ve already experienced the difference an instructor can make on your engagement with material and your understanding of the material. Did you have a favorite instructor from high school or college? Chances are, your favorite instructors used the same textbooks as other instructors, but what set them above the rest was in the way that they communicated that material to you. Their teaching style fit with your learning style, and you were able to achieve in a way that you never had before. And most importantly, their engaging personality made you look forward to class! Just like high school and college courses, the very best MCAT course for you will have a group of instructors whose teaching style fits well with your learning style and your personality. There is no one best MCAT prep course The big point here is that there is no one size fits all MCAT course: there really is no one best MCAT course because no one MCAT course fits every student. The content is basically the same among all the big courses, and the materials are all good enough to learn how to prepare for the MCAT. You re not going to find a magic technique from one source that will be superior to all other sources. It s the instructors - not only the company or the book or the test-taking techniques - who matter. How to find the best MCAT course

4 Finding the MCAT instructors who are right for you is going to take some work on your part, but it will pay off rather quickly. It s not hard work, but you will need to devote time and effort to my three-step process that will help you find the right course. When I worked as an instructor and a trainer for The Princeton Review, I saw students time and money because they entered the classroom having no idea that the instructor leading the course wouldn t work well for them. And I can t blame them, because who would ever think that a $2,000 course would be lead by a lousy instructor? I didn t like watching students waste their time sitting unengaged listening to overpriced talking sleep aids, so I developed a three-step method to help you easily avoid the instructors that don t work for you and find the ones that will coach you into earning the highest MCAT score that you are capable of achieving. CAUTION! I am making a few assumptions here that you should keep in mind because not every student will be able to follow my three steps exactly. 1.I'm assuming that you will have the time to shop around for an MCAT course. courses you can take. 2. Also, I m assuming that you have several local MCAT prep courses available to you, but in reality you may be limited to what MCAT When should you start looking for an MCAT course? About three months before you take the course. 1. Sit in on three classes Call MCAT test-prep companies in your area and find out which ones will let you sit in on three classes without having to enroll or pay the course fee. Some courses will let you sit in without having to register, others won t. Some courses will require a deposit before you even walk in the door, but if the deposit is refundable, don t hesitate to pay to sit in on a few classes. Once you sit down in a class, your goal is to determine whether the group of instructors are able to communicate effectively with you and the other students.

5 Can the instructors explain the material to you so that you can receive the material, understand it, and then apply what you ve already experienced in a testing environment? Will the instructors teaching style help you to see an improvement in your score and obtain the result you're looking for, or will they simply mirror and regurgitate the prep book in a way that doesn t improve your strategic understanding of the MCAT? 2. Talk with other students about the course Go to class early, before the class starts, and talk with other students who are sitting next to you and ask them how they feel about the instructor. 1. Ask if they feel like they are getting all their questions answered. 2. Ask them if the instructor is offering office hours or extra help and what that schedule looks like. Repeat this process with three different instructors and three different subjects for each course, and you will get a very good idea about what MCAT course is best for you. 3. Meet the instructor after class After you visit each class, ask the instructor at the end of the class if he would be willing to sit with you for a few minutes and help you with some questions that you have. This is a very revealing exercise because the best instructors - the ones you re looking for - are quite open to spending some time with you one-on-one. Other times the instructors won t be willing to give you any extra attention. You want to find if you ll be able to get personal help from your instructor before you spend your money. What to do if you have to start tomorrow If you don t have a ton of time and there aren t a variety of options available to you, you should still do your best to sit in on whichever courses you can because a really great instructor can be the best way to crack the MCAT. Only one test prep company in your area? Shop their instructors and be picky about who sign up for. Start Shopping Early, Start Prepping Early (In October!) If you re really motivated to find the best MCAT course possible and do well on the MCAT the first time you take it, start sitting in on MCAT courses six months, three months - or at the very least - one month before you plan to start the MCAT course. Also, I recommend that you start your MCAT course in the October before the year you apply. You should be shopping around September or at the end of summer prior to taking the MCAT. Whats Next?

6 What s Next? Hi! I m Don Osborne, founder of INQUARTA and author of this free report. Thanks for getting this report! I hope you got a lot of value out of it. My goal for this report, and for everything I offer at INQUARTA.com, is to help you to: Achieve your admissions goals. (I've helped more than 10,000 premeds get accepted!) Eliminate any worry or fear you might have about the admissions process by giving you the smartest admissions strategies and tactics. Discover Your Next Step Read my Five Step Path to Medical School below to learn more about where you re at right now, and where you need to be next. My online admissions courses will help you to discover what you need to do next, then "ace" whatever admissions task comes your way. Your 5 Step Path to Medical School Step One: Assess Your Chances and Create a Game Plan Did you know that there are 11 different factors that medical schools use when they consider your application? One of the factors, the timing of your application, accounts for 15% of the total! Where do you stand on all 11 factors? Are you good enough to get in? Medical schools look at a lot more than just your GPA and MCAT score, so I recommend that you fully assess your candidacy and find out how you can shine in each of the 11 areas and maximize your chances. Take my self assessment: What Are My Chances? For Medical School Admissions. It s an easy and affordable way to see what your chances are right now, and it can teach you how to become a more competitive candidate. Regular Price: $147 Special Offer Exclusively For Readers of This Report! Only $47! Learn More What s next? Once you know your chances, you need to...

7 Step Two: Write a Unique and Outstanding Personal Statement Why do you want to become a doctor? Do you have a convincing and unique answer to the medical school application personal statement prompt and do you know your motivation to medicine? Are you confident that you can communicate it to the admissions committee persuasively? A strong personal statement is oftentimes the deciding factor between similar candidates, so it s important that you stand out from the crowd by discovering your unique motivation to medicine and learning how to communicate your message convincingly. I recommend that you learn all the ins-and-outs of the medical school personal statement by enrolling in my online course How to Write Your Medical School Personal Statement. How to Write Your Medical School Personal Statement offers: Personal Statement Samples -- Model your essay after others who have succeeded Writing Templates -- Save time by using my easy plug and play templates Video Coaching -- Watch as I teach you all the tips-and-tricks you need to know! Price: $97 Special Offer Exclusively For Readers of This Report! $47! Learn More What s next? After you ve written your essay, you will need to... Step Three: Earn Strong Letters of Recommendation What s the difference between letters of recommendation that help your chances, and letters of recommendation that don t really help your chances at all? The difference is detail. Generic letters of recommendation that lack detail don t show medical schools who you really are or what kind of impact you ve made on the world around you. Letters packed with rich insight into your character are a major asset to your application. How do you get such great letters of recommendation? Who should you ask, and when should you ask them? What should you do if you re asked to write your own letter? I have all the answers! Learn everything you need to know about letters of recommendation in my book Great Letters of Recommendation. It includes a complete how-to guide that has conversation scripts and templates, along with tons of sample letters of recommendation, so when you re asked to write a rough draft of a letter, you ll know what to do. Price: $19. Learn more or find out how to get it free.

8 What s next? Your essay is done and your letters are turned in. You re all set -- BUT WAIT -- What about the... Step Four: Write Your Secondary Application... Quickly! Here s the typical scenario that all applicants face: You write your personal statement, prepare your letters of recommendation and transcripts, fill out AMCAS, then send it all in. Whew! That s a relief. What a big accomplishment. Time to rest. But don t get too relaxed, because a there s still more work for you to do. Before you have time to breathe, medical school will send you secondary applications, and suddenly you re drowning in essays to write. You might have to write up to 100 more pages of essays. The secondaries can be a big shock, but there s good news: Many medical schools use the same secondary essay prompts, so you can use one essay for several secondary applications with only small changes. That should reduce your workload by a lot. But there s still a lot of mystery around the secondary that causes stress and worry. What does a good secondary essay look like, and how can you write strong secondaries without just rehashing what you wrote in your personal statement? I cover the secondary application top-to-bottom in my online course How to Write Your Medical School Secondary Application. It will help you to quickly submit strong secondaries by giving you the master list of prompts most schools use, sample secondaries, and a video course that gives you the tips and tricks you need to write amazing secondaries. There is no other resource online that dives this deep into the secondaries! Price: $247 Special Offer Exclusively For Readers of This Report! $147! Learn more What s next? There s just one more thing...

9 Step Five: Ace Your Interviews You ve worked hard, finished all the apps, and now you ve received an interview invitation. Congratulations! That means that medical schools were so impressed by your Primary and Secondary applications that they want to know more. Once the joy wears off and nervousness sets in, you ll start to wonder how to put your very best foot forward in your interviews. If you want to ace your interviews you need to begin practicing your answers long before you ever step into the interview. But what are the questions? And what makes one answer better than another? The Medical School Interview Video Course gives you the training you need to give the best answers to all the common interview questions. You will learn how to present yourself with the kind of poise and confidence that will make medical schools send you an early acceptance letter. Price: $247 Special Offer Exclusively For Readers of This Report! $147! Learn More What s next? There is one more thing you can do...

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