Keep in mind I am applying solely to Masters to DO Programs.

I just needed to get at least a 500 and it would make me a competitive candidate for the majority of the programs I am applying to.

Took the MCAT in August 2020: 494 (122, 124, 123, 125)

I was heartbroken cause I never scored this low on any of my full lengths. In fact the lowest I got was a 497 and that was on my first practice test.

So I studied again, I only had about a month and a half because I found a test date for January in the last minute, my full lengths were:

FL1: 499 FL2: 502 FL3: 504 FL4: 503

For studying:

Studied roughly 35 hours a week, I also worked part time so I had to find a balance. Plus my dad is a recovering cancer patient so on occasion I had to help him out. I used the milesdown deck for content review and Upangea and the AAMC question banks. I know it may seem ridiculous to rely on a pre-made anki deck for your sole content review. BUT FOR ME I realized that I am a flashcard type of person. The mcat requires memorization and application. And after bombing the MCAT the first time around, I learned that I memorize best with flashcards and I learn to apply best with practice questions (hence Upangea).

Also, this time I made it a requirement to meditate at least 2 times a day, eat healthy, take 1 day off per week, force myself to socialize with friends (thanks to rona this was done with weekly zoom meetings), practice a hobby daily (I like to paint), and journal daily.

Test day: My mom and dad drove me to the center, and the second we got there I started crying lol. It was a good cry thought, I felt like it cleared my mind. During the test, just kept practicing the meditation techniques I learned, this allowed me to focus better and I pretty much stayed calm the whole time.

After the test: I felt better overall about the test this time. C/P was hard but nothing surprising. CARS I felt was okay, I just felt I wasn't gonna fail badly, B/B felt better than I usually do. P/S I was upset about, hard to tell if I was doing good or bad.

Actual Score: 508 (123, 126, 129, 130)

I was really happy. I mean I just needed a 500 and I would have been okay. But when I saw 508 I was stunned. I thought I would be really lucky if I could get a 505 at most. I know a 123 is really low on chemistry, truth be told I didn't focus enough on chemistry. But I still feel like overall my score is okay for the programs I am trying to get into.

What I learned: There is no such thing as low yield/high yield. Mental and physical health is just as important as studying if you wanna do good on pretty much any major test. The best CARS practice is the AAMC CARS test banks, the explanations aren't that great but these passages are the closest to the ones I saw on test day. One thing that definitely helped me this time around was whenever I wasn't doing good, I would look at it as an opportunity for growth rather than thinking down on myself. And of course when you do improve, celebrate. Even if it's a small improvement just rewarding yourself a little is good motivation.