The MCAT is notoriously known for being the hardest Graduate school test among all professions. Not only does it require a degree of memorization of facts, but it also relies upon the ability to focus for long periods of time and not get distracted. It is no surprise that students who have been diagnosed with ADHD are often very scared to sit for this exam for fear of experiencing failure. However as someone who has ADHD and did well on the MCAT I am confident that it anyone with enough discipline and and the correct plan of attack can do well on the MCAT. In this article I will be reviewing how to take the MCAT with ADHD

Acknowledge your deficits

• The first thing to do in your preparation for the MCAT is to adopt the correct mindset. You want to first acknowledge where your weaknesses lie. Are you someone with a learning disability? Are you someone who historically has taken been poor at taking exams? If so then you need to make and a adjust your plan accordingly

Start as early as possible 

• One thing that I would have done differently when preparing for the mcat is I would have started the first day that I decided I  wanted to be a doctor
• The MCAT does not start on test day. It starts the moment you identify and outline a plan of attack. For those with learning disabilities, are slow learners, or have other crutches that puts them behind their high achievement counterparts. Beginning early will be the easiest way to increase your score, and put yourself on the same footing as everyone else. 
• Do not make the mistake of waiting until you are about to graduate. At this point you have lost your advantage, which in this case is TIME. I remember on my first MCAT attempt I foolishly thought that 5 months is enough time for studying for the MCAT. Why did I think  this way? I thought this way because everyone who I knew that took and performed well on the MCAT studied 3-5 months. So I decided that I was going to copy their methods. 
• The issue with that is that those people had not been diagnosed with a learning disability like I was, and these were people that had been excelling at taking test their entire lives (unlike myself)
• What I would recommend is to purchase an MCAT course such as Altius or Princeton Review which come with video modules as well as practice questions, and use this alongside your pre med courses. Begin doing the modules when it  corresponds to what you are doing class.
• So for example, the Altius Test Prep Course has chapter on physics which goes over electricity. Complete this module at the same time that you are doing this chapter in your courses. Then review  it in spaced intervals using some form spaced repetition such as flashcards anki, or review questions.

Set aside a budget

• The reality of things is that MCAT prep is will do damage to your wallet. While They are a lot of free resources out there consider that if you are preparing with only free resources you will inevitably be receiving lower quality than those who invested in their acceptance to medical school. 

•  I do think that there are a variety of free mcat resources which are invaluable, but the reality  is that if you are only using free resources than likely you are getting a less than premium quality service. You also are getting full length exams which are sub par and only marginally represent the real exam. Doing this only further increases the deficit that you will be starting from in your conquest of the MCAT exam.

Specific strategies

• For CARS I did a number of things. You must first accept that you will do an unusual amount of full length practice exams. Additionally you will need to understand where you are beginning from. You are beginning from a deficit. You should not be following your friends study strategies
• You should not be trying to adjust your timeline to fit when you think you will be ready. The only way you will on you are ready is if you can consistently score above a 127 on 5 consecutive full length exams each from a different source
• Eliminate distractions: This means no work or school. I think everyone should try to treat studying for the MCAT as a full time job. After all. It is your future.

Which MCAT Course is best?

MedSmarter

For those with a diagnosis of ADHD preparing to take the MCAT, I highly recommend investing in a course of some kind. There are a few MCAT courses which stand out and which are also affordable. One course that I am really fond of is by the folks at Medsmarter. There program features 9 weeks of structured Review sessions that streamed online. They also offer private 1 on 1 turning sessions as well.

The Princeton Review

Having used The Princeton Review I can personally vouch for this one. They have a variety of options for an MCAT course which includes self paced, 1 on 1 tutoring as well as Live instruction. These guys have been around for a while and many can vouch for them. You can read more on them here.

How to use full length exams?

Diagnostic tool

• Use full lengths as a Diagnostic tool. You will need to take a full length exam in the beginning to see where you at. Do not expect to do well on this one at all. This is simply to begin identifying which subject you should spend most of your efforts on

Targeted Practice

• You can also use them for targeted practice. Some full length exams you should take because you want to work on particular topic. In this case you should only be taking 1 section at a time and not necessarily the entire exam. In this way full length exams also make for good review tools

Build Test Taking Skills

• Remember that the MCAT is something which tests your knowledge, and application skills but also it tests your ability to handle very stressful situations under timed conditions. You will need to get used to this and therefore you should take one section at a time initially to get used to sitting under sressful conditions. This will likely mainly be for CARS. CARS is a section that requires hours and hours of practice. 

Where should I take MCAT full length Exams

Room in your house

This has distraction written all over it. Personally I think waking up at an early time and finding a quiet room in your house is the best place to take an exam.

Many people suggest taking MCAT Full Length Exams in a coffee shop, however I found it better to take them in my house. Why? I have control over more things. If you take it somewhere else you have less control over the outside environment. For example, if you take it at a library you risk being interrupted by some of the noisy kids that tend to run around in the play areas. You can never go wrong in the comfort of your own home.

if your house isn’t always 100% quiet, I would suggest picking up a solid pair of noise cancelling headphones. A good one that I recommend which is affordable and very durable are the Soundcore Q45s.

Classroom

This personally was my favorite when I took the MCAT. Normally on weekends most classrooms are empty and the doors are typically open. This is more so if you are on a large college campus. Because of how many classrooms there are you are likely to not run out of options for where to take your exam, and you get the added benefit of complete silence and little disruptions.

Make a plan for CARS

• This will be the msot difficult section for most of you as it relies heavily on your ability to quickly process information and critically think about a large sum of information. This is a massive challenge for those with ADHD.
• This section also calls upon your ability to sustain focus for a large period of time. Anyone who has ADHD knowns that this section is a total nightmare because it is a test that is literally made to weed and screen out those with ADHD, and who have trouble focusing. All of the required skills to excel in this section are things that slow learners and those with ADHD are quite deficient at, or have trouble with
• If your goal, however is truly to become a doctor then you won’t see this as an obstacle that is going to to stop you from achieving your goal. You must prepare strategically and play to your weaknesse. Do not make the mistake of preparing for this section as if you are someone who lacks deficits. Acknowledge your weaknesses and plan accordingly. Here is what I recommend doing:
  • Use Altius, Princeton Review, Kaplan,  and CARS testing Solution and do these as entire CARS passages timed
  • Spend a few times a week writing your own CARS questions because this will help you get into the mindset of the MCAT test writers
  • Begin doing this a 1-2 YEARS out from your exam
  • Save the AAMC CARS section for last

Use some form of spaced repetition

• One thing that plagues  slow learners is that memorizing large amounts of  information definitely does not come easy. I remember taking a practice exam once and then taking the same practice exam  3 weeks later, and I ended up doing WORSE! The reason is because I did not go back and review why I got questions wrong. Reviewing questions in some form many times over a prolonged period of time should not be ignored and should become a habit!

In conclusion

• Although MCAT may be heard for students with ADHD, it is definitely doable. With the right strategies and some discipline and determination you anyone can become proficient at MCAT CARS