Terms on MCAT

[gildas]

This might seem like a stupid question but I seriously want to know if we need to memorize or know every biological terms for the MCAT?

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[MoosePilot]

No. I didn't and it had been a long time since I'd been in school so I know I didn't know them all. Do you have some examples of the kinds of terms you're concerned with? If they're common, sure.

I know this kicked my butt in organic (my worst subject). I'm in a TPR class and I missed a question because there was this group coming off a substituted benzene ring labeled -OAc The question asked about the number of carbons in the molecule. I didn't realize that -OAc meant something specific, so I miscounted. I couldn't believe I missed that simple a question, but it was because of a simple convention that I just didn't know.

 

[Medikit]

This might seem like a stupid question but I seriously want to know if we need to memorize or know every biological terms for the MCAT?

No. There will be like 0-2 questions where you needed to memorize a term.

 

[Sahani]

Beyond the basics, you should be fine. By basic, I mean RNA, DNA, etc. You certianly do not need to know something like what technique PAGE is or every protein in some far flung complex. It really is an application exam that tests assesment of information with a background in the subjects, much like a doctor is not a human encyclopedia, though there are some free rider questions that test pure recall as example #2 shows. (much like a doctor is a human encyclopedia, hehe.)