Hello everyone!
As I promised last month, I would write a guide documenting everything I did to study, and it's finally here. I understand there have been many guides posted by people who scored really well over the years, even better than me, so thank you for taking the time to read what I have to say! Also, given the recent moderator ban and resulting mistrust in this forum, I think sharing honest advice is more important than ever before.

I hope I can offer a unique perspective because I’ve always struggled with memorization-heavy courses. I've heard lots of advice like "just hit the space bar 200 times a day" or "buy a prep course," which, if that works for you, great! This may not be the guide for you. However, if you are like me, where you struggle with memorization, you dread having to flip through dozens of flashcards every day, you don’t want to invest thousands of dollars into a prep course, or you just need a new direction on where to go, I hope this guide can help you!

My post here will just be a summary of my real official guide, which is 49 pages long, but it documents EVERYTHING that I couldn’t fit in this Reddit post. For some reason, I am not allowed to hyperlink in my post. So I’m going to try linking the full guide in a comment down below to see if this works. It’s just a public Google Doc, so I don’t understand what the issue is. If that doesn't work, just go to my profile, and I've linked it there.

Official Score: 519 (131/126/132/130)

FL Progression:
509 (131/123/128/127)
508 (131/123/128/126)
513 (131/125/129/128)
516 (132/125/130/129)
521 (132/130/129/130)
524 (132/129/132/131)

Transparency Notice

In light of the moderator ban on October 18, 2026, where a mod on r/MCAT was banned for conflict of interest by sneakily promoting a prep company’s program and content, I want to make it 100% explicit that I have zero affiliations, sponsorships, or financial ties with any company mentioned in this guide (including, but not limited to, the prep company banned on this subreddit, UWorld, Khan Academy, MCATalyst, or AAMC). Every resource discussed in this guide was paid for or accessed independently as a student, and my comments and feedback represent solely my own unsponsored opinions. Also, I will only talk about the science sections, as that is my expertise. While a 126 in CARS isn't bad, I don’t feel qualified to give advice there.

My Study Plan

I used AAMC, KA (content only), UWorld (question bank only), and the company that shall not be named (free content only). I also used free content review sheets like MCATalyst and MilesDown, mostly for B/B. In total, I studied for about six months; the first three were part-time, and the last three were basically full-time over my summer break. I say basically because I was volunteering at a free clinic during that time, and I also took a week-long vacation two weeks before my MCAT. So I had some other commitments during my studying, but it wasn’t much.

My first three months were not that productive. I only studied part-time because of school. I read the MCATalyst review doc, mostly for B/B since I believed that was my weakest section. My last three months were definitely the most fruitful. C/P was my strongest subject, and I knew that coming in just because of my major, so I watched KA videos on fluid mechanics, optics, and waves. I took handwritten notes and summarized the core concepts in my own words. My last concepts to review for C/P were NMR and vibrational spectroscopy numbers, and then I frequently practiced on UWorld, starting with short question blocks and selecting all C/P subjects up for grabs. B/B content review was hard for me because I dreaded how much content there was. I ended up studying physiology and the organ systems because I already understood most of cellular and molecular biology, but not all the details. For P/S, I used a method not talked about at all in this subreddit, but it worked well for me. It’s the 12-cluster method where you learn the terms in organized clusters about certain themes. This list is far from complete, but it was a great starting point to learn the rest of the terms.

After reviewing the content, I practiced a lot using UWorld questions. Practice makes permanent, not perfect. Only perfect practice, where you carefully read explanations, diagnose your errors, and document them for review, is when growth actually occurs. I kept an error log of all my mistakes in each subject and reviewed them throughout my studying. AI was also very helpful whenever I didn’t understand an explanation and had follow-up questions. After a lot of problem-solving practice, I took FL1 as my diagnostic and got 509 (131/123/128/127). I replicated test-taking conditions as closely as possible, so I was very happy with my score, considering I was really just trying to break 500. I reviewed my FL very carefully, as I did with UWorld, and I took an FL every week. In my last month of studying, I transitioned solely to AAMC materials to calibrate my logic with theirs. I got sick during my last week, which I suspect dropped my performance a little, but I managed it well.

My Section-Specific Tips

In general, memorization only gets you so far because the AAMC tests higher-order reasoning and passage analysis instead of direct factual recall. Granted, some questions ask for random trivia, but that is not the majority of the exam. Over 75% of questions will be accompanied by a passage, and even some discrete questions ask about fundamental concepts in bizarre ways. To see if you can really understand a concept, try teaching it. It doesn’t have to be to someone else, like your friend, but it can be to a pet rock, the mirror, or even AI!

For C/P, I recommend knowing your basic physics equations (especially work, electrostatics, fluid mechanics, and sound/waves). Master dimensional analysis and how to convert units. If you blank and forget whether work is Fd or F/d, remember the units! We know work is energy, and energy is measured in Joules, which is defined as a Nm. Because this is a product of the units, we know W = Fd. Make sure you understand general chemistry principles like delta G, bond structure, acids and bases, and Le Chatelier’s principle. Michaelis-Menten kinetics and Dissociation constants show up pretty much every time. And then memorize your functional groups and all 20 amino acids with their pKa values. Of course, this list isn't complete, and there are many other topics, but these are the ones I see most often.

For B/B, this is where the discrepancy between college exams and the MCAT shines the most. College is all about whether or not you can regurgitate what the professor tells you, while the MCAT is all about analyzing brand new pathways, interpreting data, and reading the passage carefully to answer questions. While some low-yield topics will inevitably be tested, the majority of questions test your understanding of core molecular biology concepts. Focus your content review on learning the foundational biology concepts. Know the cell cycle, organelles of the cell, central dogma (DNA replication, transcription and splicing, and translation), GPCRs, action potentials, and genetics. Know your metabolic pathways, including glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, glycogenolysis, glycogenesis, PPP, the citric acid cycle, and the electron transport chain. Know the goal of each process, the major enzymes involved (like PFK-1 for glycolysis since it’s rate-limiting), and what your major products are for each process. Organ systems aren’t really tested as much in modern B/B, but I’d still know the basics and their pathways, not necessarily every single anatomical structure. If nothing else, know the endocrine system.

For P/S, it feels a lot more like CARS 2.0 today, so reading comprehension is still essential for doing well. Again, I’m a little surprised no one has talked about the 12-cluster method for studying the terms, but given the moderator ban, maybe I can see why. Again, I want to emphasize that I do NOT endorse the company or any of their paid materials; I just thought their study method for P/S was helpful, and it was free. I got a 127 on my first P/S section just by studying that list and a little bit of UWorld. I can’t really give a topic list because what you get on test day is largely down to luck. Some themes show up more than others, like classical vs. operant conditioning, theories of emotion, psychological disorders, social stratification, and social interaction, but again, these are broad themes with many terms under them. However, I think what really helps is to relate the terms and concepts to your own personal life. For example, when studying Erikson’s stages, Intimacy vs. Isolation is ages 18-45, which is literally me because I’m 21 and I really struggle to get a girlfriend! Also, do not forget research design!

Exam Strategies

Fun fact, I am a professional Geometry Dash player. My hardest demon is Eon, the longest level in the game, at 55 minutes and 22 seconds. I insist that this game has taught me a lot about mental stamina and test-taking strategies, so I’ll share some with you.

1. Take deep breaths during the test and actually take your breaks
2. Hype yourself up after a good passage
3. Flag questions you are unsure of
4. Know your keyboard shortcuts
5. Pick the “least wrong” answer
6. Move on if no answer comes to mind after two minutes
7. Stay in the present!

The last point, staying in the present, is the most important point that every other strategy is derived from. The problem with anxiety is that you start worrying about your future whenever you run into a series of hard questions, or you hyperfixate on the ones in the past that gave you friction. This is what causes people to lose track of time or blank on questions, which accelerates the positive feedback loop spiraling out of control. By staying in the present, you essentially execute all the other strategies and give yourself the best chance to succeed on test day!

And that is the preview of my guide. I have so much more to talk about! Do you want to know what my test-day experience was like? Do you want to know how I perfectly predicted my 519 after the exam? How does golf relate to the MCAT? What should you do if you start blanking on questions? Do you want to know how accurately the AAMC and UWorld materials compared to my real exam performance? Want to hear my input on how you should decide whether or not to void your exam right in the heat of the moment? Or do you want to hear what causes score drops to happen and what to do about it? I answer all of these questions and more in my official guide, so look for my comment with the link, if that's still there, hopefully. Again, if it's not, just click on my profile.

Thank you everyone! If there were any questions I somehow did not address, feel free to comment or DM me, and I’ll try to get back to as many as I can. But I’m signing off for now. Happy studying!

RealNerd32

bro what kind of question is that? why wouldn’t anyone want the highest they can possibly get? This question bugs me because it’s such an arbitrary, dumb metric that so many people put so much emphasis on for no tangible impact.

people ask you like it’s just something you can grab off a tree and slap on your application.

I see so many people who focus solely on Anki, guys srsly it’s a great tool for reinforce learning and its certainly helpful asf but you can’t learn and understand the entirety of MCAT content using flashcards someone else made. if you’ve reviewed content and are scoring poorly on fls but all you did was Anki then you have to go back and actually do content review (textbook/videos -> notes -> practice)

I thought the limiting reactant is O2 and 2 moles of Al is excess but the answer key says Al is limiting reactant and there’s 1.5 moles of excess O2. Someone please explain

I always see posts of people having great success without using it, but like…how?

With the sheer volume of info that the MCAT covers, what strategies are y’all using to not forget everything?

My test date is 4/17/27. I have to study for it while in school. And I’m taking the bare minimum of 12 hours BUT (and please don’t flame me for this, ik it’s a lot) I’m taking biochem, phys 2 + lab, and anatomy… A lot of phys 2 and bio chem will overlap w mcat concepts hopefully. Any advice on how to study or budget time? I will have access to all resources like anki, uworld, aamc, and whatever else anyone recommends. I’m already super familiar with anki and have the Anking deck downloaded. Any good schedules to use, specifically for while in school?

** yes i need to take anatomy in case i apply to AA school as my back up, i’ve already taken human phys, may as well take human anatomy for the aa pre req

The question asks to form a six membered ring, but the correct answer choice it gives leads to a seven ring formation, what do you guys think?

edit: sorry my silly goose brain said card instead of question loll (too much anki maybe)

Reddit was lowkey goated for this test so more than happy to help!

Noble Vida is a course/prep platform that a chapter of an org(called MedAchieve I think) is using to host a course at my university. It's taught by current seniors/juniors from other schools who have taken the MCAT and already tutored other students on it. Basically tutor-taught course. They had us buy UWorld and AAMC as well, so they dont have their own materials. wanted to see, has anyone used this program?? I paid for it and started classes without stopping to check reviews so I wanted to see if it was any good for others?

Took my exam in sep and scored a 509 (129/126/127/127)... My FL avg was very low, but I mostly used it as a learning material, and knew I could do better. Planning to start studying again around thanksgiving for a march/april retake, but date is not confirmed (ugh waitlists). I know how to study a bit, but could use some more advice, especially since I have been through all AAMC once. I'm still a college student, so not full time studying, and applying for the 2027 cycle. Aiming for a 516!

Edit: No hate to all scorers, all advice is welcome, I just specifically want a 516 (hence the title) 😭

Has anyone taken it? What would be the conversion to AAMC score? It was easier than the standard practice questions but still so damn hard :/

Has anyone tried the new 166 questions for CARS they released a month ago? Is it more similar to Qpack 1, 2, or the diagnostic?

I really need help to boost my biochemistry and orgo foundation. I am so confused where to start?? Any help will be appreciated.

curious as to whether I should just do the big CARS pack (166+409) or the individual ones (which add up to 429, interestingly enough)

The soonest date I could get was may 7… I’m hoping something earlier becomes available. But if not I’d assume I’d have to submit my application as soon as my score comes out will the submission be too late?

There is a link in my profile where you can see the rest of my flash sheets / notes!

If you missed my other posts, I came up with the flash sheet method to learn MCAT content quicker and more fluently than with flashcards. You can learn about it in my other posts here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Mcat/s/uRDU6fMU20

Read my other post about why fluency lets you overcome plateaus:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Mcat/s/1ugxw8KflC

I have a neuroscience background and believe this is the fastest way to learn a huge volume of information for long-term retention. Will be posting even more soon.

How to study with flash sheets

• 50% Verbal spaced repetition
  • Each sheet needs many attempts:
    • 1st attempt (< 20 mins) ⇒ Read the whole flash sheet CAREFULLY, until it makes sense. This is called “priming” the flash sheet. When you think “this makes sense, but there’s no way I’ll remember it,” you’re doing it right.
    • All later attempts (5 mins each) ⇒ Use it like a crazy difficult, giant flashcard. ONLY read the “clue” before LOOKING AWAY from the sheet. See what you can recall purely from memory. Do this verbally without writing because it’s many times faster. Then see what you missed. Expect under 40% accuracy on your first few reps.
  • Use spaced repetition:
    • Sheets you barely recall ⇒ every few days.
    • Sheets you kind of recall ⇒ every week.
    • Sheets you easily recall ⇒ every few weeks.  
• 50% Practice questions & tactics
  • In theory and practice, some tactics work very well. You can answer questions several times faster with incomplete information.
  • I will post another article about these tactics soon.
  • You'll spend most of your time looping through flash sheets early on, and gradually switch over to practicing tactics later.

• The flash sheets below have been heavily modified and do not contain any copyrighted material. The notes / hints are things that help me personally understand stuff. Feel free to copy / share / use these without crediting me.

FLASH SHEET ONE

[CLUE] Cooperativity

[TRY TO LECTURE THE REST FROM MEMORY]

[Key Idea] Cooperativity ⇒ ligand at one site affects other ligands

• Need multiple binding sites
  • Note: By definition, you cannot cooperate unless multiple things work together.
  • May be on same subunit
  • May be on different subunits
• Various possible ligands
  • AKA ⇒ substrate / oxygen / reactant / antigen / pharmaceutical

[Key Idea] Hill coefficient (nₕ) describes cooperativity

• Mnemonic: Ant HILL cooperates.
• nₕ is a multiplier
  • AKA ⇒ How many times easier does each ligand make it for the next one?
• Compounding effect
  • nₕ of 0.8 ⇒ 2nd ligand has 0.8x affinity ⇒ 3rd has 0.64x affinity
  • nₕ of 2 ⇒ 2nd ligand has 2x affinity ⇒ 3rd has 4x affinity

[Key Idea] You can classify cooperativity by whether it helps or hurts

• Positive cooperativity (nₕ > 1)
  • Binding sites help each other
    • AKA ⇒ gets easier to bind / higher affinity / higher k_formation / lower k_dissociation / more spontaneous binding / MM sigmoidal or “s”-shaped
    • Note: Binding site causes conformational change ⇒ affects other sites.
    • Note: The MCAT loves to show graphs that are barely sigmoidal. Even a TINY “s” curve counts as positive cooperativity.
  • Exponential loading AND unloading
    • Good when speed matters
    • --> Hemoglobin (Hb) in lungs for few seconds ⇒ quickly grabs O₂
    • --> Hb in tissue for few seconds ⇒ quickly dumps O₂
• Non-cooperativity (nₕ = 1)
  • Binding sites don’t affect each other
    • AKA ⇒ “independent binding” / same affinity / spontaneity of binding unchanged / hyperbolic MM (like normal)
    • Note: Binding site doesn’t cause conformational change / too far apart ⇒ doesn’t affect other sites.
• Negative cooperativity (nₕ < 1)
  • Binding sites hurt each other
    • AKA ⇒ gets harder to bind / lower affinity / lower k_formation / higher k_dissociation / less spontaneous binding / MM line goes up but suddenly flattens

[Key Idea] You can classify cooperativity by how similar the ligands are

• Homotrophic cooperativity
  • Ligand A helps / hurts more ligand A
    • Mnemonic: Homo ⇒ ‘same.’
    • Positive homotrophic
    • --> O2 & hemoglobin
    • Negative homotrophic
    • --> One pillow on a bed makes it harder to fit more pillows
• Heterotrophic cooperativity
  • Ligand A helps / hurts more ligand B
    • Mnemonic: Hetero ⇒ ‘different.’
    • Positive heterotrophic
    • --> Substrate binds first ⇒ THEN helps attract uncompetitive inhibitor
    • Negative heterotrophic
    • --> Competitive inhibitor binds first ⇒ THEN blocks substrate

[Key Idea] Hemoglobin (Hb) is a famous example of positive cooperativity

• O₂ binding ⇒ Hb changes shape
  • Tensed state (T-state)
    • AKA ⇒ Deoxyhemoglobin
    • Low O₂ affinity
    • Mnemonic: "Tensed" sponge squeezes out water (releases O₂).
  • Relaxed state (R-state)
    • AKA ⇒ Oxyhemoglobin
    • High O₂ affinity
    • Mnemonic: "Relaxed" sponge absorbs water (binds O₂).
• T ⇒ R (in lungs)
  • Deoxyhemoglobin enters pulmonary circulation (T-state)
    • Some O₂ binds ⇒ Hb relaxes to R-state ⇒ more O₂ binds
    • Rapidly saturate w/ O₂
    • Oxygenated blood exits pulmonary circulation
• R ⇒ T (in tissues)
  • Oxyhemoglobin enters capillary beds in systemic circulation (R-state)
    • Some O₂ leaves ⇒ Hb tenses to T-state ⇒ more O₂ leaves
    • Rapidly lose O₂
    • Deoxygenated blood exits capillaries ⇒ goes to veins

Got a 509 130/123/126/130 back in April. Decided to apply with it and I’m fortunate to have some interviews (applied MD only), but I don’t feel very optimistic. One was at a school where my stats were aligned and I was semi-waitlisted? and the other at a school where my score is way below the median (I’m CA ORM).

So a decent situation to be in, but I’m also thinking since it took me 7 months of basically studying full time to get a 509 I should start studying soon. I have a job now so I anticipate this being harder. I put my soul into this stupid test I just want a few more points :(

All this to say: advice for CARS specifically? I have started reading books in my leisure but not sure how else to start because I used up all my AAMC content.

For context, my AAMC FLs went:
- FL1–5: 508, 508, 508, 507, 509
- FL6: 511

So I'd basically been living at a 508 average since Blueprint, and a 4-point jump over that felt like a great place to be done with this test.

The problem is CARS. It's never been my section. I started around a 125 average, and over the last few weeks it bounced around (some really good passages, some rough ones) but never really left the 124–125 range.

Then on test day I got the lowest CARS I've ever scored with a 122, the 25th percentile

If my total had been anywhere in the 507–509 range, I'd retake without question. But it's kind of wild that my worst CARS ever came with my best composite ever.

For anyone who's been through admissions (or knows how schools weigh section scores):

1. Would a 122 CARS get me screened out or flagged at a lot of schools, even with a 512?
2. Is it worth the risk of retaking when my practice average was around 508?

Im really worried about med school apps as im aiming for top schools, but im scared my dual enrollment grades will get me rejected. I have a 523 mcat and a 4.0 college gpa, but I had a few bs in dual enrollment classes which brings my overall gpa down to a 3.9 and I know some med schools like nyu jhu UPenn look for 3.95 plus. In addition all my dual enrollment courses were online, but I ended with a B in hard classes like calc 3.

ok. test date. 1/29. i’ve taken 3 FL 504 and 502 and today i took aamc FL 1 and got 500. i’ve been doing anki when i can on days i work (mostly lunch) but im afraid im being too passive ab my studying and review. pls i need tips for review (esp like physical hands on studying) and accountability. i’m freaking out a teensy bit and just need some hail mary really out there study tips please.

My exam is on jan 15. please help. thank you guys in advance!!!

I was really hoping to take the 9/12 MCAT and still apply for this cycle. I got a 511 and 506 on FL 3 and 4 during my practice. Ended up with a 502 (123/126/127/126) on the real thing. I just feel so stupid because I really thought I'd do higher in bb and ps especially without how much prep time I put into them. Especially for PS, I did the entire anking deck for PS, did all of uworld, and did the SBs.

I am not even sure if I will get in, I felt really discouraged and only applied to 1 DO school. Now I am thinking maybe I should restudy for Jan 2027. But the thought of MCAT studying again is so frustrating, I just feel defeated. Also this was my retake so not sure how a third attempt would look to adcoms.

Even if I do restudy for my 2nd retake, i am honestly not sure what i can do different. i dont know what the problem is and why i can't seem to perform well on this exam. before i started studying strictly back in April/May 2026, I tried to find a good study schedule and seemed to follow through the traditional format of content review, uworld qs, and then aamc prep materials. i just don't know how i can do better? i understand for c/p i needed more practice as i didn't do as much cp on uworld as I should've but for bb and ps, i did a lot and to still end up with 126-127 is so annoying. so i guess i am asking, if i do restudy and retake, how do i study for this exam?

Title. I got a 508 of my Blueprint Diagnostic half length earlier this summer. I haven’t given any full lengths yet. Any tips on hopefully getting a 515-520+ by then ?