How did you study for the MCAT to get a good score?

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Nicholas Singh, Took the MCAT 3 times. Founded my own MCAT company.
Updated Oct 3, 2018

I retook the MCAT - twice. The first time I took it, my heart wasn't in it. I didn't know why I was taking
it. I felt like I was taking it because it was expected of me. My frustration with the exam bled into my
relationships, resulting in a stressful loop of discouragement. As a result, my first scored exam back in
August 2014 was pretty bad. Below 50th percentile. Below average. I don't know anyone who could give
me a straight face and say "Great job, Nicholas! That's a great score!" I was NOT satisfied.

Fast-forward a year, I finished my undergraduate studies, claimed my degree in Chemistry and

certificate in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
and went back home to Phoenix, AZ. My father took me out to lunch the next day that summer, where I
expressed to him my doubts about medical school. He calmly looked at me and asked "Would we be
having this conversation if you got a perfect score on the MCAT?" I didn't know how to answer him. In
my heart, I felt "yes," but there was only one way to know for sure - I had to retake it. This time, I
needed to give the effort I knew I could give - not for my father or anyone else, but purely for the
freedom that comes with knowing I did my best. I wanted options. If I didn't go to medical school, I
didn't want it to be because of some test. I felt imprisoned by the exam, and, more than anything, I
wanted the freedom to choose my path, not have it chosen for me.

I worked as an analytical chemist during my first year out of college, so I signed up to take the MCAT in
the winter of 2016. I thought I could balance a full-time work schedule with MCAT studying and other
relationships and activities. Again, I was making the same prideful mistake. I was chasing some
idealized path instead of walking the path based upon my own capability. So, the second time I took the
test, I still wasn't ready. I took it anyways, didn't feel good about it at all, and ended up voiding the
scores. I was humbled, frustrated, but determined.
Test #3 - June-August 2016 - two years after the first MCAT. I quit my job in June and studied 10
weeks straight. I committed 8 hours a day x 7 days/week x 10 weeks = 560 hours of studying. I
realistically only put in 460 hours. But I knew I had to make every hour count AND also make it so that
I didn’t burnout after week one. I would sleep at midnight and wake up at 6:30am as often as I could
(sleep was key to make sure I didn’t burn out). I went for a walk every morning. Meditated. Drank a
large bottle of cool water (it was in the Summer remember). Did pullups on the trees in the
neighboring park. Stuffed weights in my backpack sometimes too. Said hi to the old ladies in the
neighborhood who were awake walking their dogs. I came back home to shower. My eyes, body and
mind were all ready to get to work.

I studied from 8am-3:30pm just like the real MCAT session, with a 30 minute lunch in between and a
couple 10 minute breaks after 90 minutes of studying. (8am-9:30am study. 9:30am-9:40am break.
9:40am-11:15am study. 11:15–11:45am lunch. And so on). Then I would nap. Then I would exercise.
Then I would cook and eat dinner. Then I would chill a bit. Then I would start studying again from
8:30pm-11:30pm with a 10 minute break in the middle. Then I would spend the next half hour just
closing my eyes and thinking and dreaming and maybe talking to loved ones and writing something
positive to myself in a little notebook I kept to keep my focus on what matters and throw away the rest.
This ensured a good nights’ rest. Lights out at midnight and start the whole thing over again. **Notice
how I “coated” my sleep - before sleeping and after waking up - with things that are
positive and mentally relaxing (going for walks, saying hi to neighbors, doing pullups,
drinking water, showering, meditating, reading, talking to loved ones, writing little
notes, thinking, dreaming, focusing).

I would practice problems from Day 1. Analyze them thoroughly. Every word. Every phrase. Every little
detail that I missed. Whether it was on the AAMC “list of topics to know” or NOT - I couldn’t care
less. If I didn’t know it, I studied it. And I took a practice test every three days or so. In 10 weeks of
studying that amounted to I believe 18 practice tests. The 19th test was the real thing. And it was like
just another day at the office by that point.

I knew I was free the morning I walked into the testing center for the third time. I knew I put in the
work. I knew I did my best, but that day was where I proved myself. I ended up improving my score so
much that my percentile group increased by roughly 50 percentile points. As an example, my CARS
score increased from 52% to 98%. Now I was satisfied.

If this is a story - then who was the villain? Me. What changed? I got out of my own way. I stopped
rationalizing. I stopped biting off more than I could chew. I started enjoying the process of learning
and growing as an independent thinker.

And that’s how I studied to get a good score.

To recap:

1. Learn to be more self-aware of when you DON’T know something

2. Study those things
3. Practice more passages to discover more and more and more and more things that you don’t
know. Realize and get comfortable with the depth of your ignorance. There is no such thing as
high yield. Remove that phrase from your mind.
And remember, this is my story. You might not be able to quit your job and study 10 weeks. So don’t!
Take 15 weeks or 20 weeks! All these “schedules” are ARBITRARY. They are COMPLETELY
SUBJECTIVE to you and your pace.

So yeah, go at your own pace. Practice from day 1. Read slowly (like a 3rd grader - I still read by tracing
the words with my finger haha). Read with emotion. Discover what you don’t know. Study those things.
Rinse and repeat. Speed will come with practice.

Lemme know if you need anything else, I could literally write a book on this. I hope this was helpful :)…
I got sidetracked at work while typing this so I’m sure I may have lost my train of thought.

Good luck!