Why Content Review Shouldn’t Take Up Most of Your MCAT Prep

It’s easy to fall into the trap of endless content review. You tell yourself you’re being responsible, that you need to cover every topic before moving on. So you spend weeks, sometimes months, reading, rewatching, and rewriting material. But your scores don’t budge.

Here’s the reality. Yes, you should finish content review before starting full-length exams. But if content review takes more than one-third of your total study time, you’re not preparing efficiently. The MCAT doesn’t just test what you know. It tests how well you can apply it under pressure. That skill only develops through practice.

Quick Version

You should complete content review before diving into full-length exams. But content review should take up no more than one-third of your overall study time. The rest should focus on practice questions, passage-based work, test review, and targeted reinforcement. The MCAT rewards reasoning and application, not memorization. To improve, you need to shift from reviewing to doing.

Content Review Builds the Base, Not the Score

Content review is important. It gives you the foundation you need to begin. You need to understand systems, equations, and basic concepts before you can apply them. But after you’ve built that base, the goal shifts. You don’t need to know everything. You need to be able to work with what you know.

Many students delay practice because they want to feel “ready.” But mastery doesn’t come from watching another video or reading another chapter. It comes from doing the hard work of applying information to unfamiliar scenarios.

Studies consistently show that retrieval-based study outperforms passive review methods. One study found that medical students who used self-directed retrieval practice performed significantly better on licensing exams than students who relied on rereading and review². Another study found that even testing without feedback led to better retention than review alone¹.

If you’re stuck in content review, you’re not getting the reps you need. You’re building theoretical knowledge, but not the practical skill the MCAT requires.

Review Feels Productive. Practice Builds Results.

Content review feels comfortable. You’re in control. You can move at your own pace, check off boxes, and feel like you’re learning. But the MCAT isn’t designed to be comfortable. It tests your ability to think under pressure.

When you shift into practice, you expose gaps. You realize where your understanding breaks down. That’s uncomfortable, but it’s also where growth happens.

Research shows that retrieval practice strengthens learning more than passive methods like highlighting, summarizing, or rereading³. Even when students make mistakes, the act of recalling information builds long-term retention⁴. If your prep feels too smooth, you’re probably not pushing hard enough.

Spaced Practice Works Better Than Cramming

Cramming gives you a short-term boost. It might help on a quiz tomorrow, but the MCAT doesn’t test what you crammed yesterday. It tests what you truly remember and understand.

Spaced repetition and active recall improve long-term retention far more than repeated exposure. One study showed that students using spaced flashcards outperformed peers who relied on passive exposure⁵. Another found that spaced instruction led to stronger retention of both facts and application⁶.

If you’ve finished your content review, your focus should shift to applying that knowledge consistently over time. This is where spaced practice shines. You reinforce what matters and build recall in the exact way the MCAT demands.

Let Practice Drive Your Review

Once your initial review is complete, you shouldn’t be guessing what to study next. Let your practice sessions show you. Your mistakes should guide your next steps.

A recent study emphasized the benefits of starting testing early in the learning process. Students who began practice sooner retained more and studied more efficiently⁷. Waiting until you feel “ready” wastes time and slows improvement.

Missed a series of questions on enzyme kinetics? That’s your signal. Go back and review that one topic. Struggled with reasoning in CARS? Focus on passage analysis, not another round of biology content.

Review becomes powerful when it’s driven by data. It’s not about checking boxes. It’s about targeting weak spots and improving them through focused effort.

Final Thoughts

You should absolutely finish your content review before jumping into full-length exams. But that phase shouldn’t dominate your prep. Once you’ve built your foundation, it’s time to train for the actual exam.

Spending more than one-third of your study time on content review is a mistake. The MCAT is about application, not memorization. You need to practice how to think, not just remember what you read.

Don’t wait to feel ready. Get uncomfortable. Make mistakes. Review smarter. And let your performance guide your next move.

Sources

¹ Roediger, Henry L. III, and Jeffrey D. Karpicke. “Test-Enhanced Learning: Taking Memory Tests Improves Long-Term Retention.” Psychological Science, vol. 17, no. 3, 2006, pp. 249–255. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01693.x

² Deng, Francis, Jeffrey A. Gluckstein, and David P. Larsen. “Student-Directed Retrieval Practice Is a Predictor of Medical Licensing Examination Performance.” Perspectives on Medical Education, vol. 4, no. 6, 2015, pp. 308–313. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-015-0220-x

³ Miyatsu, Toshiya, et al. “Five Popular Study Strategies: Their Pitfalls and Optimal Implementations.” Perspectives on Psychological Science, vol. 13, no. 3, 2018, pp. 390–407. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691617710510

⁴ Roediger, Henry L. III, and Jeffrey D. Karpicke. “Test-Enhanced Learning: Taking Memory Tests Improves Long-Term Retention.” Psychological Science, vol. 17, no. 3, 2006, pp. 249–255. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01693.x

⁵ Sun, M., et al. “Spaced Repetition Flashcards for Teaching Medical Students Psychiatry.” Medical Science Educator, vol. 31, no. 4, 2021, pp. 1523–1528. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-021-01286-y

⁶ Timmer, Michiel C. J., et al. “Making a Lecture Stick: The Effect of Spaced Instruction on Knowledge Retention.” Medical Science Educator, vol. 30, no. 4, 2020, pp. 1341–1349. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-020-00995-0

⁷ Fraundorf, Scott H., et al. “Best Practices in Using Testing to Enhance Learning and Retention.” Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, vol. 8, 2023, pp. 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-023-00508-8