Another recent MABS grad - first off, congrats on getting accepted if you have already and don't lose hope if you haven't! I thought I'd throw in my two cents since there are so many of us with so many different strategies/methods that got us through the semester.
About me:
- Applied through PostBacCAS in 2018, didn't get accepted --> worked on bringing my science GPA up so I could re-apply --> applied in Feb/March and heard back by April
- Stats upon entering: 3.08 cumulative and 3.0 science; 497 MCAT
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@medstudent8778 is right about getting it done before the program - it allows you to just focus on the schoolwork. there were a number of people who took it either right after school started or soon after. i don't know any of them personally, but i think they managed. there was also a large amount of people who took it in january so they would be ready for march benchmark review.
- made December benchmarks with 3.61 and got a 3.94 in the spring --> going to Virginia
About program:
- literally everything
@medstudent8778 is what I would say as well
- for the fall semester: biochem and anatomy were hard for some people; physiology is also notoriously hard but mainly because the professor talks fast. don't freak out - her reviews are very indicative of what's on the exams. for the spring semester: i think almost all the classes were difficult except for community health and maybe microbiology. but by the second semester, you've established your study habits, so i think most people tend to do better in the spring than they do in the fall.
- my study habits: front-loading --> you'll learn about it from one of the professors. for hard classes/classes i wanted to do really well in, i filled out the lecture objectives for class the night before, went to class and took notes, came back home and filled out whatever i learned from class into the lecture objectives. for some classes, i made anki, for others i didn't. for "easy" classes, i would still front-load but not to that degree - literally just spending 10-15 minutes looking at the slides for next day's class is a great advantage. going to lecture should not be first time you're seeing the information (that's something my dad taught me, as he's also a big supporter of front-loading). you have exams every monday (except for holidays that fall on mondays) and i would seriously start studying for the exams around wednesday or thursday. by sunday, i was fairly comfortable with the material and should only be reviewing a few forgotten details by monday morning.
- i would suggest getting a gym membership, making a home gym or just making sure you are active. i gained weight with this program because all you really do is get up, drive to class, go sit in a chair, come home or go to VCOM to review, sit there - basically it's a lot of sitting. so work out when you can - your body and brain will be thankful.
if you have anymore questions, just lmk!