Just get the books and the tests 👍👍

Online courses like Blueprint, Princeton Review, and Altius are excellent alternatives to in-person classes. They offer structured schedules, live instruction, and effective strategies to tackle each section. Blueprint is especially strong for strategy-focused, interactive learning.

If your science background is solid, consider using AAMC materials, UWorld, and Kaplan books alongside tutoring for personalized strategy coaching.

To stay on track, use study groups or accountability partners. Online courses can be just as effective as in-person ones if you stay disciplined and consistent.

You could look for an in-person MCAT tutor in your area. This will also give you a more personalized and focused approach.

Hi there! I'm sorry that your in-person course was cancelled at the last minute. If you're struggling to find in-person courses, I would highly recommend checking out our online courses as well as our free 14-day trial for the self-paced course (linked here). This was you can try out our materials and content prior to making any purchases and see if its a good fit for your learning style and academic needs. I would also highly recommend supplementing any course you choose to attend with AAMC materials to give yourself the most thorough and complete preparation. If you have any questions about any courses or any of our products, don't hesitate to reach out!

- Dr. S at The Princeton Review

A similar thing happened to me. I had an in-person TPR course locked in at my university. I am of a generation that NEEDS in-person. I cannot learn from a computer screen. TPR said there was not enough interest within a month of the course so they switched all students who signed up to an on-line course.

I am going to try to make it work, but it looks like every MCAT prep company uses an on-line format for everything. Kaplan said there was a course in my area but it was a hybrid with 90% on-line and one or so classes during the week at a hotel convention center. That sounded worse to me.

I cant speak for other prep courses, but I have two friends that did good with blueprint self paced prep course, one that didn't score where she wanted to score with TPR's self paced course, and the rest self studied.

Hey!

If you want the honest answer, DoubleMDs consulting and test prep is by far the best source for MCAT prep and tutoring. Owned, operated, and quality ensured by two practicing Surgeons, you get unmatched expert knowledge on what it takes to succeed on the MCAT. Additionally, unlike courses such as Blueprint, Kaplan, UWorld, etc… you get a custom made study plan based on your goals, personality, and learning style. You meet with a real licensed physician in order to make this plan as well. Finally, DoubleMDs boasts an impressive stat: 95% of students earned a 515+ on their exam. How’s that for results? Give me a shout! I would love to answer any questions you may have and get you set up for sessions ASAP!

Dr. Griffin

If you can afford a course, then I do recommend Blueprint as well.

What are you looking for. It's hard to give advice on what is best without kknowing anything about you.

Generally, on Reddit, most users do not recommend prep courses.

Now, there's nothing inherently wrong with the courses. It's just hard to sometimes justify their price points. Especially, when you can get as good, and even better, resources by buying them from different companies.

The big main benefit of buying a course is some convenience.

Are you looking at self-paced or live courses?

I don't think you need a program and I think most students here self-study, but I needed some additional support and structure as a non traditional student. I found a prep program that tailors to your needs and does individual follow up that charges 400. They also have tutors that teach every single day different practice passages and content topics - and you can ask any questions. They give you a trial, so I'd def consider at least that before. I am def still finding it hard to keep up with sometimes - it's like 7 hours of work per day, but I want to test in September and want to try my shot at this cycle so they said I have to complete all of the AAMC materials and content review and I am trying to do just that.

IMO most prep courses are a giant waste of money for the following reasons.

1. You are stuck with one companies resources. No one company makes the best anything in a single category. UEarth is the best q-bank. Altius/Blueprint the best non AAMC exams. Anki is the best way to use flashcards. Kaplan probably has the best review book I personally think they all kinda suck. Youtube has some of the best video resources.
2. Prep courses require you to do a lot of extra work that probably doesn't matter. Why does TPR have people do passage-based questions on periodic motion. It isn't even on the exam anymore. Same with pedigrees.
3. The course instructors can be really hit or miss. Some instructors are great other not so much. Many of the instructors are people who have taken the MCAT previously and scored well. This doesn't mean they are good at teaching others how to do well on the MCAT. A lot of people can do well on the MCAT and not explain how to do well.

Self-studying is usually way more effective but you will want to get a plan in place for yourself and know what resources to use and when. There are lots of free guides and suggestions on how to do that.

In terms of taking the MCAT once my recommendation would be to start studying well before you actually want to be done with the exam (as in more than the typical 3-4 months). This way you have a time buffer so you aren't super stressed out about a poor practice exam score earlier on in your prep.

If you do decide to go with a prep course in spite of the above DO NOT go with KAPLAN. Seriously as a tutor 80-90% of the students who come to me for additional help after completing a prep course took a Kaplan course. They have repetitively told me it was 98% useless. It comes with the AAMC material and their prep books which accounts for the other 2%.

I also wouldn't recommend TPR or Altius both require tons of busy work and have materials that don't match the AAMC. I think Blueprint is the best option of all of them but still think it is a bad option overall. Just my 2-cents though.

Yes, I think if it's between doing by yourself vs. a course, do it yourself. Better is probably to find a good tutor. I used MCAT Nerds, and it worked out well for me (went from 498 to 512).

Similarly to another commenter, I'm taking the 510+ Princeton Review course and do NOT recommend it. I thought going in that I needed to take a course to keep me on track (studying for the MCAT right after graduating from rigorous undergrad during the pandemic so I recognized I'd be burnt out/have trouble concentrating) but I can say with confidence that it's not worth it, at least for me.

Here are the pros and cons, from my experience (currently in the class, ending 8/5, testing on 9/2) ((sorry this is about to be long lol, I wish I knew this before dropping so much $$ on the class))

Pros:

1. I am finding the TPR books to be helpful on a basic level, particularly organic chemistry and physics
2. Comes with all of the AAMC material (definitely the best part, but absolutely not worth the thousands of dollars the course costs)
3. Absolutely excessive amount of practice material and FLs, so you won't run out
4. Some classes (C/P, B/B) are helpful in that they go over high yield material, whereas the books are excessively in depth, so it helped me understand more of what I absolutely need to know
5. The interface of the website they use is smooth and intuitive

Cons:

1. The schedule makes no sense. I didn't mind that the subjects are kind of intermixed on the day to day, but if you want to do all of chemistry content in a row, for example, this is not for you. My class is every day 5 days a week, but it didn't even start P/S until over a month in so I felt really behind and decided to start studying with Anki on my own. Also, if you do the 510+ guarantee (more on that later) you have to take the exam for real within 3 weeks of the "content review" ending, which is not enough time at all. Spending a whole 2 months on content review also is way, way too long when you should be practicing.
2. P/S and CARS classes are, quite frankly, useless. I don't even bother to go to these anymore. The one takeaway from CARS was to read the questions first, and nothing else has been helpful from their strategy.
3. Tied to pro #4, but while the books are too in depth, the classes are too surface level for getting a high score/don't reach the level of detail that is tested in the TPR practice content
4. Perhaps most importantly, the practice content isn't representative at all. This is a big problem re: getting used to AAMC logic, but it's also a problem if you experience a lot of anxiety. The FLs and practices are HARD. Way harder than the actual thing, but in the beginning I didn't know that. I have been dreading taking the MCAT, and when I spent a month using TPR practice content I got so discouraged because it felt like I wasn't improving, and that made me freeze up and waste a lot of time. If you do decide to take a course, remember to only use the FLs to understand content gaps and not to inform how you're doing score-wise. The answer explanations suck. A month in, I switched to using UGlobe instead of the TPR content associated with whatever subject we went over in class that day, and the improvement was enormous.
5. The 510+ guarantee is a SCAM. I didn't realize I was paying more for it until it was too late, but if you do take a course absolutely don't use the score guarantee. Essentially it means you'll get your money back if you don't improve by 10 points or to a 510. But, you have to do like 1000 passages every day (which are not helpful for the actual MCAT and take more time than there are hours in a day), go to extra classes that are also not helpful, and take the actual test before you've had enough time to concentrate on AAMC material.

Long story short, don't do TPR 510+. Having someone giving me a schedule was not worth thousands of dollars.

I am really hoping to matriculate by then. The program I am in posts success stories frequently with students having taken the test later in the cycle so I am optimistic. I am applying to primarily DO programs for this cycle.

I’m currently taking TPR (ends aug 5) and would not recommend unless you haven’t taken a science class in years. Most of the lectures I am skipping because classes are all over the place and I’ve learned it from UGlobe. Like one day is Ochem and u won’t have the next class for another 2-3 weeks, and personally I like to learn all consecutively. Not only that, but they require a lot of dumb assignments and extra classes (510+ course) that are not representative of content, but instead specific details. I am only attending the classes I really need help with like physics and Ochem to clear confusion since u can ask them questions, and substituted the rest of the content with Uglobe. Psych and CARS I don’t even attend.

What advice do you have to get the bio score to 132?

I was a huge fan of Blueprint. Feel free to message me with questions.

I used kaplan self study and THEIR VIDEOS ARE PRICELESS. LEANRED SO MUCH SO FAST AND IT KEPT IT SIMPLE! but besides those videos kaplan sucks lol

Have you looked into The Berkeley Review? They are less known but have an insane track record. The course is a lot of work but people swear by it. I think it’s only offered 3 times a year and usually fills up pretty fast so your timing has to be right.

Prep courses are expensive but not always a waste of money!!! I did TPR 510 guarantee and I loved it.

The way it works is that you pay $$$ and they send you access to their online curriculum which you have access to for 1 year from the day you bought your course, you get the complete book set, complete access to all of the AAMC material (I think), and you get to enroll in a virtual class.

I bought my prep course last September and scheduled my class to start in January. It was the three month long course 4 days a week (you have multiple options) and there were only about 10 people in my class.

My problem is that I tried to do the prep course while I was still in school and working so it was a total distaster and I ended up not really attending the class sessions. So basically I wasted the “live” class with instructors.

HOWEVER. They record all classes. I began to study for the MCAT full time during the summer once I could fully dedicate myself to it. I still had access to absolutely everything. Plus there’s live office hours and stuff you can attend throughout the year that you have access to the online platform.

I studied for 2.5 months and took my MCAT at the end of August. I did all my content review + practice problems during those 2.5 months and I went from a 500 (taken after first week of studying) to a 513 on my actual exam.

The thing about the 510+ guarantee is that they require you to study for the MCAT as if it is a full time job. There’s just no mercy. It is so so so so so much reading and course work and classes and etc. of course you’ll get a 510 if you do all that crap. So you gotta be prepared to sacrifice absolutely all your time for a few months to take advantage of all the resources given to you during your prep course. I didn’t actually do all the HW and reading that they asked bc it was simply too damn much 😅 but I still improved and did well on my exam!!! The prep course is overkill but I don’t think I could have done it without it!

Berkeley Review is the best if you can get in. The small class sizes were personalized and cool because you get to know your classmates. Very demanding though so make sure you have enough time.

Looking for feedback also

I just purchased it. Haven’t activated it just yet! I seen the demos and the free trial and just decided to take the leap! I felt it was an important purchase so i can have content videos + Q bank + flashcards + study schedule and progrsss all on one website! 

I know that prep courses are pretty unpopular in this sub, but as a non-trad with a full time job and volunteer responsibilities, I’ve found Blueprint to be perfect. It’s extremely flexible based on your schedule and it’s a good blend of modules, live online sessions, and practice questions. I’m on the all-access online version and I think it was worth the money. My score has gone up 7 points from my diagnostic (506 to 513 - both BP) and I haven’t even finished my content review or started AAMC material.

Yeah I have blueprint and it’s really great so far, flexible and digestible. It definitely eased my MCAT stress, I knew I would be to worried about forming my own MCAT study plan. But they make it for you so u just need to focus on the actual learning and practice aspect

Used blueprint live course. Loved it. My instructors (tanner and Angela) were so helpful and have such great tips and advice. Also having the live course made me really push through the content they supply bc it made me feel like there was a “deadline” to do it. Overall really happy with it and took the test 1/20. Hoping I did well.

I also recommend Blueprint. I work full-time as well, half-remote/half-in person, and it's super convenient to pull up their videos on a second monitor during work and have it play while I'm answering emails or writing reports. Their classes also includes the entirety of the AAMC material so you won't have to pay for it separately. Plus they have their own Qbank and I really like their breakdown of question stats and user data. Since modules are scheduled, it also motivates me to actually complete the modules and practice questions. It's honestly just super convenient as someone who is not in school.

I am taking their Live classes which are 2 hrs 30 min long but in the evenings. The teachers are really great but there is very little engagement because all of our cameras and mics are turned off. We only use the chat and Q&A function. If you want engagement, a friend took Altius and she said classes are small enough that they had their cameras on and were able to ask questions.

Whatever you do don’t go with Princeton, I made a huge mistake selecting them

I did not like blue print. UWORLD and AAMC is the best combination. Reviewing UWorld answers is amazing for content review. I would not recommend doing weeks of passive content review- I.e- reading Kaplan or notes online. The sooner I stopped this, the quicker I noticed improvements in my score.

UWorld + Anki is a great combo.

From experience, even if money isn't an issue, try not to get too many resources. The grass is always greener on the other side. Just pick 2-3 and really know them well. That is what makes the largest improvements in scores

Uworld 100%

I used Jack Westin's Complete Course and I really enjoyed it. Supplemented with Anki and a few YouTube videos. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk about it/ask questions about it :)

UWorld is the best third party website imo