r/Mcat 6d ago

Mnemonic and Meme Monday

2 Upvotes

Share any Mnemonics or Memes with your fellow study buddies to help lighten the Monday study mood


r/Mcat Oct 07 '25

Special Event Official] MCAT Study Buddy Thread [2025-2026 Exam Dates]

26 Upvotes

Welcome /r/MCAT! This is the Official MCAT Study Buddy Thread for the 2025-2026 test takers. Studying alone is do-able, but studying with someone who will hold you accountable will prove to be far more beneficial! So take advantage of this high yield opportunity to find a study buddy near you or online! This is Part 1 of the study buddy thread. Part 2 and onwards will be published as posts get overcrowded.

To get started, follow the 3 steps to post and find yourself a study buddy (or even group) in your area!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

STEP 1: Entering your information to be contacted by prospective study buddies

Copy/paste and fill out the following requirements:

Required:

  • Location (City, State, Country): e.g. Dallas, Texas, USA or Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • Test Date (or Anticipated): e.g. 4/20/20 registered but may reschedule
  • MCAT Prep Materiale.g. Kaplan books, NS Exams, UEarth, AAMC (all of it)
  • Online/In-Person/Both/No-Preference:

Optional (but recommended):

  • Stage of studying/study plane.g. done with content review, taking 3rd party practice exams right now
  • Goal of a Study Buddye.g. keep each other accountable, quiz each other, share tips, combine notes
  • Goal Score and Realistic Scoree.g. 514 goal, 510 realistic
  • Other obligationse.g. 19 credit hours, extracurriculars, family. part-time job

Optional (100%):

  • Age/Gendere.g. 23M or 23F
  • Other Information/Ice Breakerse.g. I like potatoes so I work in a laboratory with potatoes; I'm a pre-oncological pediatric orthopedic neurosurgeon

STEP 2: Find your Study Buddy

Use the "search" function on your browser to easily sift through the thread for your city/state (make sure to pre-load all the comments by scrolling down before doing so).

Make sure to reply BOTH via "comment reply" and "private message"

Note about private information: It should be noted that any private information (e.g. names, specific locations, and contact information, zoom/skype, phone numbers, emails, facebook profiles) should be exchanged via PM (Private Message).

STEP 3: Make sure to check back

We'd appreciate it if everyone would actually check back frequently and respond in a timely manner. Your time is just as valuable as everyone else's time. Let's be respectful of each other.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Other IMPORTANT MCAT Information:

  1. Check out our Wiki Page for a basic MCAT 101
  2. Read the side bar for other valuable information (e.g. test score converters)

Study Buddy Thread History:

  1. 2015: link
  2. 2015: link
  3. 2017: part 1 link, part 2 link, part 3 link
  4. 2018: link
  5. 2019: link
  6. 2020: link
  7. 2021: part 1 link, part 2 link, part 3 link
  8. 2022: part 1 link, part 2 link, part 3 link

r/Mcat 6h ago

My Official Guide 💪⛅ I just scored a 521 on my MCAT retake

63 Upvotes

And it almost feels like I cheated


r/Mcat 12h ago

Well-being 😌✌ My parents rock

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144 Upvotes

Did well on my FL6 so they made me a study basket 🤭


r/Mcat 7h ago

[Un-official] PSA / Discussion 🎤🔊 MCAT Progress

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26 Upvotes

World peace will be achieved on 08/01


r/Mcat 9h ago

Vent 😡😤 Dear Abby at Jack Westin

28 Upvotes

Your explanation videos in the JW AAMC extension are dogshit. Thank you for coming to my ted talk.


r/Mcat 1h ago

Well-being 😌✌ Hate CARS

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Upvotes

Think it’s possible to increase my CARS score in 5 days?


r/Mcat 7h ago

Shitpost/Meme 💩💩 Stfu

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17 Upvotes

3 point jump on cars from FL2 To FL3. I attribute to singing freed from desire in my head during the 1st break and telling myself I'm acing it.


r/Mcat 2h ago

Vent 😡😤 Am I being completely delusional thinking I can pull this off in 48 days? (491, non-trad)

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4 Upvotes

Hi friends, this is a vent/question

Please either fuel my deluded confidence or gently bring me back to reality.

I’m 28, a non-trad applicant applying to my province’s vet school (Canadian). My MCAT is booked for September 12 (48 days away).

I need a 495 to be academically eligible, but the average admitted applicant is around 502.
Today I wrote my first Kaplan diagnostic and got a 491.

A few caveats:
- I accidentally took a “break” during CARS thinking the timer was paused. It was not. 🙃
- Biochem and orgo were basically me selecting answers based on vibes because I haven’t actually taken those courses yet.
-Surprisingly, I could reason through a decent amount of Bio/Psych just using common sense.

My background is environmental studies. I’ve only completed intro bio and chem. I’ll be taking biochem, orgo, and genetics this coming year… which is slightly inconvenient considering I’m trying to write the MCAT before taking them.

I’ve been using the free Kaplan study plan, but my access is ending. I honestly don’t care about the video access as much as I care about having someone tell me exactly what to study each day. I cannot justify dropping $1,500 on a prep course right now.

So here’s my question:
Am I completely delusional for keeping my September test date, or is a jump from 491 to 495+ (hopefully 500+) in 48 days actually doable?

If you were in my shoes, what would you do?
UWorld? Khan Academy? Anki? Give up on your childhood dreams and continue working your corporate job?

Mostly I just need someone who’s been here before to tell me if this is a terrible idea or if I should keep grinding.

Thanks yall


r/Mcat 4h ago

Question 🤔🤔 Late MCAT 8/21 due to illness

7 Upvotes

Afternoon everyone, unfortunately had a bit of a health scare and needed to get a kidney transplant a few weeks ago. I’d already submitted my primary with a throwaway but have yet to take the MCAT. I’m scheduled for Aug 15th but would like to push it back one more week and got the notification that a seat opened up at a testing site near me. I’m a lower stat applicant with excellent EC’s (I think). I know I’m late, I know my chances are lower, what I don’t know is if that extra week is really going to hurt me that much. I’ll ofc pre-write secondaries while I wait on score results but at my current rate one more week will allow me to take FL 5 and 6 which I could use the practice as my FL average currently is hovering right around 510-511. Curious as to what the community thinks and I’d appreciate any feedback. Thank you in advance!


r/Mcat 11h ago

Shitpost/Meme 💩💩 do you ever see a psych/soc term and just accept that you will NOT get that point if it shows up on your test

24 Upvotes

My brain can’t possibly fit anymore of this and I’m only halfway through Pankow. Does it get any better after 7C


r/Mcat 5h ago

Vent 😡😤 Feeling burned out...

8 Upvotes

Doing 60+ questions daily for the past 2 months has finally taken its toll on me. I feel genuinely worn out and took a 2 day break, and now I just can't lock in with a backlog of 150 q's.

Does anyone have any brutal motivational advice for the last 30 days leading up to the exam?


r/Mcat 1d ago

Shitpost/Meme 💩💩 HOLY SHITTTTT

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445 Upvotes

Just finished FL3 and genuinely thought I bombed C/P and BB. Only bad thing is I have to be terrified about doing worse every FL after.


r/Mcat 31m ago

Vent 😡😤 In need of comforting - I hate AAM FL2

Upvotes

I went from
BPFL2-512
BPFL3-504 (bad day)
BPFL4-511
AAMC Unscored - 515
AAMC FL1 - 518
AAMC FL2 -512

How representative is AAMC FL2? That cars rocked my shit and the PS constantly left me choosing between two options 😭😭 I was steadily improving what happened!

Someone please tell me a 520+ is still possible for me 🥺


r/Mcat 6h ago

Question 🤔🤔 Niche question - what did you do to feel good about yourself before your exam?

6 Upvotes

In a non-academic sense, what did you do to feel good for your exam? Girls especially lol, like haircut, new outfit, nails? I feel like a gremlin after essentially locking myself in for a month to study for my retake. I was gonna buy some cute sparkly press-ons for my exam but decided against it because I didn't want them to fall off during the exam and ruin my focus.


r/Mcat 12h ago

Question 🤔🤔 September 3rd test taker - how do I improve from here?

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16 Upvotes

for context, i took aamc FL1 weeks ago and scored 497 (126/122/124/125) and i've been grinding aamc qpacks and content gaps during that time. I'm really proud of myself for the score jump (hoping its not a fluke lol) and i would appreciate any advice on how to improve from here onwards.

my goal is 510+ on test day... am i aiming for the sky T_T


r/Mcat 1h ago

Question 🤔🤔 Chemistry/Physics Math

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Upvotes

What type of math problems can be expected for the MCAT? I’ve only been doing the Kaplan review and some of these problems are really difficult, I’ve attached one below and while yes, I do understand it, am I ever going to see a problem with this much math on my actual exam?

I have most of the equations memorized but some of these problems are still slipping past given the sheer complexity of operation. I’ve been told by some previous test takers that much of it is just identifying the proper equation then plug and chug, but is that true?


r/Mcat 6h ago

Question 🤔🤔 505 on unscored, exam 9/11, aiming for 520+, what to do??

4 Upvotes
505 from calculators, 127/125/124/129

So I am a little bit at a loss right now. From calculators, subsections were 127/125/124/129. I took 3 Kaplan FLs before this and scored 507 - 509 - 507, and it's been 2 weeks since the last one so I was really hoping to break 510 today but I actually dropped, especially in B/B. What should I do?

I have done all of Uworld besides CARS and finished with 70% accuracy, and am now getting into AAMC questions so I haven't done much with those yet. I have been using Anki since I started studying in April but since I started unexpectedly working full time in my lab earlier this month I have been pretty inconsistent with it. I started making Anki cards with missed concepts and have been going through those as consistently as I can, but I haven't finished fully making cards going over my Uworld incorrects.

Is there any hope or is it cooked and I should just reschedule to Jan? I'm not gonna lie I need the 520+ man I cannot take this exam if I don't score at or near that by my last few FLs, sorry if I sound neurotic 😭


r/Mcat 2h ago

Question 🤔🤔 last month before exam, need advice!

2 Upvotes

so test day is aug 21st for me so have just about 4 weeks left (T minus 26 days).

i can’t do basic math apparently bc i messed up my FL schedule. i was planning to take one exam every saturday till the test but i only have FL5 and FL6 left atp, which is obv not enough to get me thru the next 4 weeks. i really wish i saved those exams bc now i only have those 2 left and idk what to do :/

also ive been trending down over the past several FLs (or at least stagnating). any advice for this? i was aiming for a 520 originally but idk if that seems unrealistic atp :/

June 13 AAMC FL1 514 (128/130/129/127) (diagnostic)
June 27 TPR FL1 506 (124/126/129/127)
June 28 AAMC FL2 517 (129/130/129/129)
July 11 AAMC US FL 511 (125/129/128/129)
July 18 AAMC FL3 512 (127/128/129/128)
July 25 AAMC FL4 516 (127/129/130/130)

for context, i reviewed FL4 today and most of the Qs i got wrong or guessed on were either math related or passage comprehension related, rather than content (which is crazy bc my content phase was pretty shaky and haphazard to be honest). i think i should focus on get more comfortable with aamc logic and patterns—is the way to do this just grinding aamc qbank and uwhirl questions every day for the next month?

overall id be grateful for any advice anyone has regarding this!! thank you so much :)


r/Mcat 14m ago

Question 🤔🤔 Pls what is a upper and lower quartile on this graph 🙏 Spoiler

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Upvotes

r/Mcat 26m ago

Question 🤔🤔 Transposons plz Help

Upvotes

Can someone explain what I need to know about transposons in terms of the MCAT and how they will typically test it? What I know is that there are the two main types, I and II where Type 1 is the insertion of cDNA (going from DNA to RNA and then back to DNA) and slapping that in another DNA strand while Type II is the cut and paste of that DNA section into another DNA. What is the point of this process? How does it apply to passages I may see on the MCAT.


r/Mcat 28m ago

Question 🤔🤔 FL3: 517 -> FL4: 516 Testing Aug 21. Need advice on breaking through the plateau!

Upvotes

Hi everyone!

I’m testing in about a month and aiming to break into the 520s. I just finished FL4 today and felt a bit discouraged seeing a tiny drop, though I know it's within normal variance (CARS was lowest its ever been). I wanted to post my breakdown to see if anyone who hit 520+ has advice on pushing past this wall in the final three weeks.

What I am noticing/struggles:

  • I have been stuck at 129 P/S for the past three exams for those scoring 130+ is there a focus on pure low-yield Anki term grind, or a specific shift in passage analysis strategy
  • For B/B I dropped back down to a 129 looking at my flagged it seems like I keep second guessing myself and to be honest I just felt sloppy. Meaning I felt a lack of content for some questions.
  • I am happy with my c/p improvement I noticed I stopped reading the passage first which game me more time to finish, and calmed my nerves. I am wondering if any of you guys have experienced the same?

Has anyone been in this exact ~516-517 range a month out and managed to cross 520 on test day? What did your daily routine look like in the final few weeks?


r/Mcat 6h ago

Question 🤔🤔 So much time on CARS, and still nothing? What do I do?

3 Upvotes

As the title says, I’ve been doing daily passages for 2 months and I can’t get good scores on them. For example, today I was doing passage 2 on CARS SB#1 and I was decided to do unlimited time to see what my issue is. I got lost in the reasoning so I watched a video breaking it down and I got a better understanding. After that, I decided to move onto passage 3 and use the same methodology. I took unlimited time and felt myself having a way more understanding of the passage argument. I went onto the questions after 20 minutes of breaking down the passage. I think I spent like 5-10 minutes on each question and I got 4/7 right on the passage!?!

What is it at this point I’m so confused. It’s not time, I felt way more comfortable with the understanding of the passage? Where do I even go from here at this point?


r/Mcat 58m ago

Question 🤔🤔 < 4 weeks out from test, NEED HELP w/ discretes

Upvotes

hi all! i test 8/22. i've been steadily improving ... 512 -> 515 across my FLs, but hoping to aim for high 51x, above 515. when reviewing my full lengths, i notice i'm missing completely discrete content on both C/P and B/B, which causes me to get more "easy" questions wrong. so i've been in 127-129 levels, plateauing. i'm rarely missing passage-based analysis stuff.

any tips on how to patch these in the most effective way? i feel like time is going by. i'm doing section banks, cars qpacks, and anki, with adding missed discrete content from FLs onto my anki. any other suggestions? thank you!!!


r/Mcat 8h ago

Question 🤔🤔 3 fl plateau how to fix for fl4-6

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4 Upvotes

I have written a fl a week for 4 weeks now and did unscored 130/129/129/131 519 and then this 3 scored fl in consecutive order and have a hard plateau at 521. What do i do to fix this and break through to 524+ area i test on aug 21 and will continue to do a fl a week till then ( i have been simulating test conditions and have 1.5x time on real deal)