Examkrackers Mcat Study Package

Amazing set of books. This was by far my favorite test prep company to use. They focus on teaching you the big concepts for physics and chemistry instead of getting you bogged down in the details. The conceptual approach worked a lot better for me than focusing on memorizing formulas. These books have questions after every chapter and exams just like the real MCAT at the back of the book. These books also have helpful tips written in the margins, nice color, and are relatively straightforward to read. I had to do some searching for the perfect books but I found them! These books helped me get my dream MCAT score.

I am taking the MCAT in May 2017 and have been using these books for a few months as supplemental resources during my Orgo/Bio year and they have been extremely helpful. The colorful drawings and helpful hints in the margins make memorizing key facts easy. I have yet to try the practice exams that go along- will update once I do.Note: I also have the 2015 Kaplan books. I think that the Examkrackers books are easier to read and cover more!

Warning for buyers: be aware that the Examkrackers (EK) 10th ed. verbal reasoning book may be repeating pages 85-102, and missing pages 102-121. I purchased this package from "Dirtcheapbooks4u" and it arrived with damage and had the defective verbal reasoning book just described in the sentence above. I'm not sure if this is a manufacturer error where these defective books are being dished off in bulk to third party companies or if it was just a random fluke. I made EK aware of the issue and their 10th edition in stock seems to be fixed.Now for the differences between EK 9th and 10th editions; The 10th edition fixes many mistakes from the 9th edition, thus saving an individual a days worth of correcting errors from the EK errata.I would like to address the 3 biggest changes;1) The actual text of the 10th ed. biology 1 book, now labeled "biochemistry" instead of "biomolecules" has included some more extensive research and content.2) The Psychology & Sociology book in the 10th ed. has been amplified with more terms and sufficient content.3) The five science books now have updated 30-minute exams. Instead of just 3 passages, it is now 4 passages and 5 discrete questions per chapter exam. The first 3 passages of the science books are no different from the 9th and 10th ed.The other four books; Physics, Chemistry, Biology 2, and Verbal Reasoning seem to be nearly 85% identical to the 9th edition. I will note that the verbal reasoning strategy has had some changes that were noticeable, especially in chapter 4. Basically, EK seems to have updated their verbal strategy. I would just be cautious and check the 10th ed. verbal book to make sure you don't receive a defective. Overall, the 10th addition has been revamped and corrected for precision and accuracy. Excellent investment for quick content coverage.

There were other people that said that for the English book things were missing, but my copy of Examcrackers was great. Examcrackers as I was studying this for the MCAT's does have some pros. It's extremely concise and gives a general overview, however there is a lot of details missing. This book matches those that already have a foundation in the required scientific classes b/c of this lack of detail and explanation. EK does give some good hints and after each topic gives tough but well crafted questions that require some critical thinking. However, if you need more detail and a more foundational approach, Kaplan might be a better approach, as I found that Kaplan's method of attacking the CARS reading section is far superior to EK b/c EK only suggests to focus on the main idea. EK's are for those once again that just need a brief refresher in their sciences. The books are a quick read with great and colorful pictures and illustrations however, you won't get all the information you need.

I used solely this and AAMC materials and felt prepared for the MCAT, scoring well on the practice tests hopefully indicating a good MCAT result (pending). Really enjoyed the shortcuts & 3 keys throughout the chapters since they helped with memorization and nailing the general ideas AAMC tried to address with their passages. 30-minute exams in these books were also helpful with pacing and practicing experimental-based passages! I found the bio and physics exams particularly helpful because of this. CARS tips were also helpful though summaries can be found through other resources (i.e. Reddit). I looked at other review books but this seemed the most concise and engaging to me overall.

These books are great for people who already have a strong foundation in the sciences. They’re review books so they’re not going to teach you anything you haven’t already learned well at some point. The bright pictures and “salty” cartoons are childish but they keep you entertained while you study for hours. The end of chapter questions and quizzes are really where it’s at! They are some of the most difficult and realistic prep Qs I’ve come across! They are certainly more challenging than the AAMC material however, train hard so on test day, it’s easy!

These books are saving my life, I really feel that EK does a great job with content and is easy to follow and break down. Books are not excessively overburdened with unnecessary information.