Pt. 1 My 523 MCAT Strategy (99th Percentile) - Study Schedule, Test Taking Tips, & Mindset Tricks

[@Amy89244]

Hey bro thank you for your strat. I went from 496 on my diagnostics to 519 within 2 months. I didn’t do the 3rd party thingy cuz they’re expensive but I did go through the aamc material 3 times and did like 20 FLs. Just wanna let u know ur great and you’ve helped out a fellow pal on his way to med school.

[@translucentheart27]

Congratulations! :D

[@EricSun20]

James you just made my day. That's exactly why I make videos like this; for that warm fuzzy feeling of having helped someone else. To anyone else reading, I hope that you find this video just as helpful as James did!

[@johnpats7024]

Hey do you have any tips for the rest of us? I scored 492 and I really want to get into the upper teens

[@Amy89244]

@@translucentheart27 Thank you :)

[@Amy89244]

@@EricSun20 :)

[@DarrenChaiMD]

This video is as detailed as you need to get in-terms of study schedule! Eric is right, practice>>>content review especially if you're a science major. Don't get too hung up on crafting a perfect schedule either... The most efficient way to study is by reading around your mistakes on practice tests and question banks. This makes a lot of sense because it teaches you how you'll eventually be learning as a medical student: See a patient, get the diagnosis wrong, read up about the patient's symptoms. Great advice my man, keep it up!

[@EricSun20]

Exactly you always come through with the knowledge 🙌🙌 I see that name change too 👀👀

[@joecarson2436]

I love your demeanor, vibe, and music. Well done mate. Thank you

[@EricSun20]

Thanks for the kind words Joe! That made my day :)

[@venusz6134]

I have literally watched over 20 vids for study schedule and strategy. This is definitely the best and most helpful! Thank you so much :))

[@EricSun20]

It can definitely be difficult finding all the information you need. That's why I tried to consolidate it all and share my own opinions as well!

[@mrssquirtle]

SUPER prepared to write the MCAT now tysm!!!!!!

[@EricSun20]

Thank you Alicia! Glad I could help! :)

[@Weholdpen]

Thank you for the tips, Eric! Also, it's very impressive that you went through as much as 7 chapters of content review a day!

[@EricSun20]

My pleasure!

[@user-xk4ei1sb3q]

Im about 2 months out of retaking this exam. It’s been draining and frustrating. I actually had a mini break down after some wrong CARS questions but this video has helped me reset my mindset. Thank you! One of the best videos i have watched for MCAT advice.

[@EricSun20]

You got this! I'm really glad that it was helpful for you :)

[@tz6706]

How did it go tati

[@user-xk4ei1sb3q]

@@tz6706 unfortunately not great. I did improve in CARS, which is really the only section I needed to improve on, but did worse overall. Granted I was still in the thick of my long haulers symptoms which definitely did not help at all.

[@maraisfan4life517]

@@user-xk4ei1sb3q props to you for dealing with a major setback 🎉

[@user-xk4ei1sb3q]

@@maraisfan4life517 Thank you!

[@EnabIing]

I’m 17 and I still feel anxious about this test

[@HiRSquared]

Thanks for the amazing video! Definitely agree with you that we need a good balance of content review and doing practice questions in order to do well. The MCAT is for sure an exam of knowledge & concept application rather than a regurgitation of memorized facts. Subscribed to your channel and excited to follow your journey!

[@EricSun20]

Exactly, you sound like you understand it very well 😎, thanks for staying tuned to the channel! :)

[@simdeol8765]

thank you for sharing these tips!

[@EricSun20]

You're welcome Sim! Goodluck and glad these tips helped! :)

[@somefishhere]

Love the poster in the background. I can see the source of your passion for videomaking!

[@EricSun20]

Thanks for tuning in! Next week, I'll be posting part two of all the study strategies that I used for the MCAT from start to finish. Stay tuned to the channel for more MCAT content! ⚡What strategies were the most helpful for you? Comment below ⚡

[@mrssquirtle]

I really liked your mindset tip - I know it'll help me stay on track this summer ☺️

[@EricSun20]

Glad my tips could help you. Always happy to help you out! :D

[@yuhantang5334]

Thanks, I will adopt the techniques and see if they would help me as well. My last full length was 502 and I still have 4 months and a week to study. Thanks for sharing!

[@maraisfan4life517]

That’s long as for me. You’re killing it 🎉

[@chowder607]

My mans DOES NOT MISS

[@EricSun20]

Thank you for the support 🙏

[@katsbooksshelf]

I love this video! Thank you so much for this. I plan on taking the MCAT this July so your 3 month plan helps me out tremendously.

[@EricSun20]

Good luck!! I really hope studying is going well :)

[@alexwyler4570]

you are the second guy from McMaster that can study full time for 3 months! You go Canada!

[@EricSun20]

Thanks Alex! Love the support! :)

[@ulyanashumnyk5264]

This was so simple and digestible - I was so nervous originally

[@EricSun20]

Glad you were about to take something away from this video! :)

[@Martin_Leung]

Congrats on 100 subs, keep up the great work!

[@EricSun20]

Thanks Martin! Really appreciate that 😍

[@Akimbo247]

This is amazing!! Thanks for such an in-depth great down! This is something you can sell, yet you want to help people for free. Thank you so much!

[@EricSun20]

Glad it is helpful and well received :-)

[@NganLe-bs9wb]

Hi. I'm working on GNAT but I think your tips on Error Log does add value. Agree that we should note in detail where did we get wrong and review it in a sheet. Your idea on the demo test and review should be 2 different days is helpful as well. Keep it up!

[@EricSun20]

Thanks Ngan, glad you liked some of the ideas there and hope that they helped you out :)

[@amqve]

Idk how u did it but this video got me motivated to dive right into studying again! Thank you! Lets get that dream score 😌✨

[@EricSun20]

You got this!

[@SeanOchiagha]

This is really good. I’m actually about to start studying this December. Very good tips that I will definitely take!

[@EricSun20]

I'm really glad that this video was helpful Sean :) Goodluck on your MCAT and feel free to reach out to me!

[@sams3677]

Loved the mindset advice!

[@EricSun20]

Thank you! Glad it was helpful :)

[@matthewdugan2575]

This was all excellent advice. Thank you for your insight and clarity.

[@EricSun20]

Thanks Matthew! Glad I could help out :)

[@smivlibee5936]

Yay thank you i am retaking the mcat. First time around i skipped the content review and that was a mistake. Also I flopped on the Cars so bad. I will use the Princeton cars for practice

[@elizabeth5986]

Another awesome video. Super helpful!

[@EricSun20]

Thanks Benson!

[@asmasheikh6819]

Great video!

[@allyonightmare]

Actual video starts from 2:31

[@EricSun20]

Thanks for that!

[@michaelwu3994]

Nice videos man! Keep up your good work :)

[@EricSun20]

Thanks Michael! :)

[@nurmutmainnahrahim974]

Amazing!! Thankyou very much

[@EricSun20]

You're very welcome!

[@dangerouslypink2394]

I noticed 90% of the people discussing how they studied for the mcat used Kaplan, while I ended up going with TPR. TPR’s chapters are like 3x as long as Kaplan chapters so when I tried doing the whole “3-5 chapters a day” I got burnt out SO fast😭

[@bloop8691]

excellent tips

[@anchalkumar4035]

these are really great tips!! i feel like i'm rushing through the NS tests because I want to see a score jump and i'm just not seeing it, but this is definitely motivating! while reviewing practice tests, did you also review the different concepts pertaining to the question you missed? or just why you missed it? thank you!

[@EricSun20]

Hey Anchal! I'm glad my tips are helping you. To answer your question, I would review the concepts if I didn't understand the concept and that was the reason I missed the question. If I missed it because of something like misreading the question, I would briefly check to make sure I understand the concept but not take the time to review it in depth. Hope that helps! :)

[@nemoelk5230]

Hi Eric, did you use The Princeton Review - Hyperlearning MCAT Verbal Workbook 2011 Edition?

[@EricSun20]

Hey Nemo, yes that's the one!

[@saradawood178]

you are sooo great!!! I love your information:)

[@EricSun20]

Thank you Sara! :)

[@salahace6535]

It's a good idea bro...I am gonna try it on my university entrance exam✌

[@EricSun20]

Great 👍

[@isidrochan7567]

This was a really helpful video man! Quick question, how many next step practice tests did you take?

[@EricSun20]

Hey Isidro, thanks for the kind comment! All together I took 8 practice tests - 4 from Next Step and 4 from AAMC. Hope this helps :)

[@leeyoung4749]

I heard the preference of Kaplan vs Princeton, glad I did some research.

[@EricSun20]

Good idea; always do your own research!

[@itisdidi]

this video was amazing, thank you so much : ) !

[@EricSun20]

Glad you liked it!

[@erfong1913]

Thanks for sharing.

[@EricSun20]

Thank you for watching! :)

[@burninglightwotcc5266]

Procrastination is my problem smh, God help me 🙏🏾 thanks for the video

[@raheelahabib1646]

this was an amazingly helpful video.

[@EricSun20]

Glad it was helpful Reheela! :)

[@depensharma]

during content review did you use Anki daily for every subject or jus p/s? also great video, probs the best one I've seen

[@EricSun20]

For every subject! Thanks for the support Depen :)

[@emily2567]

Hey Eric. What else did you do other than the Kahn academy practice questions to practice your understanding of the sections that you read the day before? Did you end up completing all of the questions in book as well?

[@EricSun20]

I skimmed over some of the questions, but they are a little too specific for me. I prefered using Anki instead; check out my video on that to learn more about how I use Anki! :)

[@emily2567]

@@EricSun20 awesome thanks!

[@Unsubbification]

Thank you Eric! How did you go about using the 300 pg KA document? Did you take any additional notes on it or just read it? Did you supplement with the KA videos too?

[@EricSun20]

Hey Oscar, I just read the 300pg doc start to finish. If there was something particularly confusing, I would sometimes make some side notes. I didn't use the videos too much as the notes were very detailed. Hope that helps! :)

[@RobertoAvila]

Important Question! Durgin the first month, what did you use to practice each chapter? The practice questions at the end of each chapter or something else??? Very NICE video by the way!!!!!

[@EricSun20]

Hey Roberto, I just used some practice questions from Khan Academy. Really nothing that serious during content review :)

[@RobertoAvila]

Eric Sun MD Thank you for the clarification!

[@angelcamille2071]

My dream is to go to Mac one day..thanks Eric for this video!!!

[@EricSun20]

Any time! Glad it helped :)

[@Deardhra]

Really helpful! thank you

[@EricSun20]

Glad it was helpful!

[@coolbeans2380]

It sounds like you already did great in school and had solid knowledge on all these topics. But for an average students who doesn't necessarily have a great grip on gen chem or other subjects. Only a month of content review and just reading chaps doesn't seem effective. Do you recommend to still follow these steps if you didnt do as well in these classes?

[@EricSun20]

Hey Cool Beans, my suggestions in this video are general guidelines to follow that worked for me. I would suggest trying these guidelines out and adjusting to fit your own individual needs. Everyone is so different in terms of knowledge, available time, and timeline so it only makes sense that everyone's schedule is tailored towards their individual needs too!

[@coolbeans2380]

@@EricSun20 I'm sorry but I dieddddd at the "Hey Cool Beans," idky it made me laugh so much but thanks so much for the reply!

[@garlic98]

how in the world did you read 7 chapters of Kaplan a day? I can barely do 1 chapter a day 😭

[@EricSun20]

Hey Hye In Cha, that was just worked for me. Some people may need more, others less. What's important is to find a good balance between your personal life and your work life. Studying 24/7 or not studying enough will both be detrimental to your test performance and well being

[@alarheam7981]

Great video man! My question is, for someone that didn’t take Ochem, BioChem, and Physics; what would your recommendation be? I find it hard to finish content in 1 month if one did not take those courses. Looking forward to hearing from you!

[@EricSun20]

Hey Al, if you didn't take those courses, it may take a little longer. I would recommend checking out the online resources that are out there which I outline in my MCAT resources video. It may be more difficult, but with the right amount of work, anything is possible :) Best of luck!

[@irenepark9106]

thank you for this great video, could you attach the link for the exact aamc question pack please?

[@freshj749]

Yo Eric! Were your practice blocks of 118 questions on M/T/F timed or un-timed? Thank you for your help!

[@kailiemcgee497]

Hi Eric, hopefully you will see this! I was looking at your schedule and wondering for the uworld portion did you do 108 per day (Monday, Tuesday, Friday)? Or did you do 108 questions over the span of 3 days? :)

[@EricSun20]

Hey Kailie, I did 108 questions per day so that would be about 2 full length sections per day. With review of those sections, it would come close to about 3-4 hours/day on practice questions, but was very helpful in that last stretch before the exam!

[@AbdullahKhan-vg7xv]

What were your scores like on the TPR Hyperlearning CARS book? Just started it yesterday and I'm getting 2 wrong per passage (sometimes 1). However, my time is slightly above 10 minutes per passage (so not bad). Do you recommend not worrying about time at this point or should I just keep doing what I'm doing? (I'm still 3 months away from my test date)

[@EricSun20]

When I did the TPR Hyperlearning CARS book, I was getting 0-2 wrong per passage (depends on the difficulty) with a time around 7-8 minutes. However, I was significantly ahead of where you are right now in terms of how long I had been studying. I would say you're on a great track towards getting a very excellent score in CARS and to continue what you've been doing. Keep up the good work! :)

[@kal7708]

Thanks a lot for the tips!! Would you say uworld significantly helped you to reach your ideal score? I'm considering buying it.

[@EricSun20]

Yes definitely Kalkidan! Would highly recommend UWorld :)

[@josecarranza9032]

Did you do anything else during that summer?

[@EricSun20]

I was involved in a sports team and I did some research! Feel free to reach out if you want to know anything more :)

[@aqualife88]

Thank you for this video it was helpful. I will be taking MCAT April 2022. Curious, when we get our MCAT scores, is our score there right away or do we need to do conversions? Thanks!

[@EricSun20]

You will get a score that has already been converted :)

[@tonyle5106]

Did you take the diagnostic exam from AAMC, BluePrint, or Kaplan? Which do you recommend I do?

[@EricSun20]

Quite late, but hopefully your studying has been effective. I would recommend the BluePrint diagnostic for anyone reading this. Save the AAMC material for later in your studying.

[@alexanderyu565]

For your content review, did you ever try using Anki? Or did you supplement it with Khan academy practice instead?

[@EricSun20]

Definitely started using Anki. Great way to memorize all the psych terms/physics formulas/etc. I supplemented with some practice from various sources mentioned in the video :)

[@darlin.smile100]

I'm subscriber #703 XD ahhhhhhhhh. Hello !(: Nice to meet you!

[@EricSun20]

Thanks for supporting the channel Sunny! Glad to have you here :)

[@NurseCD]

MacUMed represent!!!

[@EricSun20]

WOOO! Are you from Mac too?

[@NurseCD]

@@EricSun20 class of 2017 ;)

[@EricSun20]

That's amazing! Love how social media can bring people together. Hope to see you on the wards one day! :D

[@gRaViTyNaVi]

When you went through content review, did you also try to answer the concept questions behind each chapter?

[@EricSun20]

Hey, no I found those questions to be way too nitty-gritty and testing details that would never show up on the real thing. Stick with UWorld and AAMC material

[@gRaViTyNaVi]

@@EricSun20 Alright, appreciate it!

[@EricSun20]

No problem! :)

[@EricSun20]

Maybe don't focus on perfection when you're doing content review. Practice questions are your opporutnity to improve your knowledge and actually apply it! Don't stress too early on :)

[@peacewellnesshealth8995]

Hi. How many month it takes to completely prepare for MCAt? How to get a GPA score if you have completed undergraduate in different country?

[@EricSun20]

Hey! It really depends on person to person based on your background, how quickly you study, and a whole lot of factors. I would recommend a few months (2-3), which is a good baseline for most people. Not too sure about the GPA score! Hope that helps :)

[@peacewellnesshealth8995]

Thanks

[@HokusMommy]

I'm going studying for the MCAT as a freshman in college just because I'm a terrible test taker and so I can keep myself motivated and in focus to become a doctor in the long run. Is that a good idea?

[@MandyRazon]

probably not if you study now and say you take it summer going into junior year/senior year you’re going to have to restudy again anyway.

[@MysticMD]

Hi Eric! Great to see fellow canadian med students! I am a first year family medicine resident in Canada! I have a different pathway as i studied in Quebec, anyhow its great to discover your channel :) My make videos on my channel as well Best of luck to you !

[@EricSun20]

Hey Mystic! Really glad to see people in medicine branching out onto KZbin. Will check out your channel right now! :)

[@karamtahera4339]

You said we can contact you via email but you didn't provide any email address in the description. Can you put it in a reply if possible?

[@EricSun20]

Hey Karam, my business email is [e-mail]

[@superboy3220]

Hello, I from India in 12th standard and I want to get into medical in usa for that I must have a pre med degree So I want to know that bachelor degrees such as BSc,BPh,Bio-Tech, Bachelor in clinical research, BPt . Will be accepted as pre med or not?

[@hussamm9605]

Thank you

[@EricSun20]

You're welcome! :)

[@cr22nr]

I’m currently a freshman in college, should I only work on Cars right now?

[@EricSun20]

If you had to study anything, it would definitely be CARS :)

[@himanshugohil]

Hi bro I'm inadian. I like MCAT.

[@КнайфЛайф]

Is the MCAT online or offline?

[@EricSun20]

It's done on a computer, but it is entirely offline

[@RedFaceeee]

If you’re being honest, do you have to have a high IQ to do well on the MCAT? Like I wonder if an average joe like myself could do well

[@EricSun20]

Like many things that may provide you with an advantage on the MCAT, a high IQ is also potentially beneficial. But remember that many factors will play an influential role in achieving on the MCAT so don't count yourself out until you give it an honest shot!

[@meganmchugh5508]

Is it helpful to study a different subject every day or go through an entire book on one subject first and then move on to the next?

[@EricSun20]

For me, I found that it was better to keep things fresh and bounce around from subject to subject. That might be different for you so give both a try and see what you like! :)

[@maraisfan4life517]

🇻🇳

[@karamtahera4339]

Hey bro, what's your email?

[@EricSun20]

Hey Karam, my business email is [e-mail]

[@ETurns]

This video saved my parents divorce, thank you 🙏

[@EricSun20]

The power of friendship

[@ryankelly8077]

1:10 minute mark That’s actually false - according to research, eventually there’s a point where more studying does more harm I recommend you check out “med school insiders” youtube page that talks about this

[@Weholdpen]

That's a nice fact that nobody can relate to. What's the point you're making here?

[@EricSun20]

Ryan, you're right. Sometimes overstudying can be more detrimental. What I would suggest is study until you feel confident that you can perform to your standards and without any regrets!