The Prep101 MCAT course may not be as popular as other options, such as Kaplan or The Princeton Review.
Still, you may be surprised and pleasantly impressed at the breadth and quality of study and practice materials that you get upon subscribing to this course.
Perhaps the first thing to mention, though, is that this is a very detailed prep course with a ton of materials and resources. So if you are looking to get by easily, having put in minimum work, this may not be the MCAT course for you.
That being said, let’s dive right in, shall we?
Prep101 MCAT Overview
Prep101 is a top-notch MCAT test prep company perfectly designed for pre-med students who study best given some guided structure rather than on their own.
This paid service offers two course options: Classroom Plus and Live Online Flex, both courses costing the same: $2,295.
Both course options are more of a hybrid model.
With Classroom Plus, each class is offered in-person + live online + recorded. On the other hand, with Live Online Flex, each live online class is recorded and offered on-demand too.
Prep101 MCAT | |
Price | $2,295 |
Access Period | 6 Months |
Course Format | Live Online + Recorded |
Live Instruction | 138 Hours |
No. of Lessons | 44 |
On-Demand Video Lectures | 444 |
In-Class Exams | 32 |
Practice Questions | 2,300+ |
Workshops | 14 |
Full-length Practice Tests | 20 |
Integrated AAMC Material • Full-Length Tests | 5 6 1 |
Personalized Study Plan? | Yes |
Flashcards | No |
Study Notes? | Yes |
MCAT Prep Books? | Yes |
Warranty or Guarantee? | No |
Whichever course option you go for, here’s what you get upon signing up for Prep101 MCAT prep:
- 138 hours of live instruction with flexible scheduling
- Recordings of all 138 hours of instruction
- Annotated lecture notes
- 20 full-length practice exams
- 2,500+ practice questions
- 32 in-class exams
- Integrated official AAMC practice materials
- 610 on-demand MedReels
- 13 MCAT study books
- A personalized study plan
- Your own MCAT coach
- Peer study group
- Unlimited free repeat policy
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Pros
Offers the most full-length practice exams of any MCAT prep course.
Includes a personal MCAT coach.
Places a particular emphasis on CARS.
Cons
Does not offer a higher score or money-back guarantee.
Prep101 MCAT Review For 2024
Live Lessons With Flexible Scheduling
The Prep101 MCAT courses provide instructor-led learning and guided practice in all sections of the MCAT exam.
Having a total of 44 lessons spread over 11 weeks, you have these lectures distributed as follows:
Subject | No. Of Lessons |
Biology and Biochemistry | 14 |
CARS | 4 |
Chemistry and Organic Chemistry | 8 |
Physics | 10 |
Psychology and Sociology | 8 |
TOTAL | 44 Lessons |
These 44 lessons take up roughly 78 hours, meaning Prep101 allocates around 57% of your scheduled study time to content review. The other 43%, amounting to 60 hours, goes towards guided practice, giving you 138 hours of instructor-led learning.
The best part about the live lectures is that they allow for flexible scheduling.
Each live class is typically offered multiple times weekly, allowing you to customize your weekly class schedule however best suits you.
Also, just so you are fully prepared for a lecture, you are given an overview of the class, including what will be taught, the before-class reading you need to do, the in-class work and workshops that shall be tackled, and the after-class homework that will be assigned.
This way, you don’t end up attending a class cluelessly, and you may even prepare any questions you may have in advance based on what you do not quite understand on that topic.
a) Classroom Plus
Providing a hybrid study model, Prep101’s Classroom Plus comprises an in-person class offered on weekday mornings combined with a live online class offered on weekday afternoons.
Under Classroom Plus, each class is offered twice weekly, and you can attend whichever one or both in cases where you may be particularly struggling with a specific topic.
b) Live Online Flex
On the other hand, under Live Online Flex, each live online class is offered four times weekly: weekday morning, weekday afternoon, weekday evening, and weeknight.
For both Classroom Plus and Live Online Flex, all live classes are recorded, and these recordings are posted on your student portal, so even if you miss a live class, you can still refer to the recording.
There’s no need to sign up for a class in advance. Simply attend whichever one suits you and your schedule.
Practice Exams & Questions
The best way to prepare for the MCAT is to drill as many practice tests and questions as you possibly can, and in that regard, Prep101 absolutely wins.
You get plenty of practice tests and full-length exams, and they also include guided practice whereby an expert instructor walks you through the test once you’ve completed it.
This guided practice is offered in the form of in-class exams and workshops, comprising 60 hours, meaning Prep101 allocates around 43% of its live instruction to teaching skills and strategies.
a) In-Class Exams
Most Prep101 MCAT lectures are followed by a 30-minute in-class exam, after which you get a 30-minute review of that exam.
Each passage-based in-class exam typically comprises 6-8 passages, and these exams are allocated as follows:
Subject | In-Class Exams |
Biology and Biochemistry | 10 |
CARS | 4 |
Chemistry and Organic Chemistry | 7 |
Physics | 5 |
Psychology and Sociology | 6 |
TOTAL | 32 In-Class Exams |
b) After-Class Practice Sets
Aside from the in-class exams, students additionally get after-class practice sets whereby they are presented with 5-10 passages to reinforce what they just learned in class, ensuring they truly grasp the concept being covered.
There are 23 practice sets, having about 300 or so questions in the science sections.
The difference between in-class exams and after-class practice sets is that while an instructor guides students through the in-class exams, the after-class practice sets are more like homework that each student tackles alone in their free time.
c) Full-Length Practice Tests
Lastly, in the list of practice materials, you have 20 full-length exams, which is quite impressive and possibly the most full-length exams offered by any MCAT prep company.
These full-length exams are as follows:
- 5 AAMC exams.
- 5 Examkrackers exams.
- 10 Altius exams.
Not only that, but Prep101 takes great pride in its cutting-edge analytics that provide data-driven feedback for more efficient deliberate practice.
While the 3rd party exams are a little more cutthroat, the AAMC exams give a pretty excellent representation of what to expect on the actual exam. All the tests combined allow for top-notch practice, helping you eliminate any content gaps you may have.
On-Demand MedReels
MedReels are essentially recordings of the Prep101 live classes and other on-demand videos for students who may desire a more flexible learning schedule.
The 444 on-demand MedReels are very resourceful, covering all the MCAT content that’s tested on the exam. This guarantees you will still benefit from a comprehensive review, even if you happen to miss some live classes.
Official AAMC Practice Materials
In addition to the 5 official AAMC practice tests, Prep101 MCAT additionally integrates 6 AAMC question packs, 1 AAMC section bank, and 1 AAMC CARS diagnostic tool into its course material.
The 6 question packs have a total of 720 questions in Biology, CARS, Chemistry, and Physics, while the section bank has 300 questions in Biochemistry, Psychology, and Sociology.
Right after signing up for Prep101 MCAT, you get an email with a redemption code whereby the practice materials are uploaded to your AAMC account immediately.
The best part, though, has got to be that Prep101 provides 166 on-demand videos of their instructors solving the AAMC question packs and the section banks. This allows you to have a very comprehensive understanding of the AAMC material, extending beyond just practice.
The AAMC section bank is notoriously difficult, so having that expert-guided practice is definitely one of the best things about enrolling for this MCAT prep course.
In-Class Workshops
The 14 in-class workshops comprise 12 CARS workshops and 2 Physics workshops focusing particularly on math. Each workshop takes about 2 hours.
Led by expert prep instructors, these workshops help students master the skills and strategies needed to tackle the passage-based questions on the MCAT.
Prep101 is one of the few courses that place particular focus on building your critical analysis and reasoning skills. Aside from the 12 workshops, you also have 32 hours of live instruction dedicated solely to the challenging CARS section.
Personal MCAT Coach
Intent on guiding your learning in an encouraging and organized way, Prep101 goes one step further by pairing you up with your very own personal MCAT coach.
This coach is meant to listen to you, offer motivation, and reinforce good study habits keeping you on track with your MCAT prep.
Furthermore, the MCAT coach will help you design a personalized study plan tailored to your specific individual study style and needs.
By considering your science background, MCAT test date, target scores, and everything else going on in your life, this coach is perfectly equipped to guide you in the best way possible to get through your MCAT prep efficiently.
MCAT Books
Prep101 includes the following MCAT books and guides:
- 6 Examkrackers study guides
- 6 Prep101 classroom companions
- 1 CARS workbook
The 6 Examkrackers study guides are essentially EK’s complete study package. The full-color books comprehensively cover content review, and they even include Exankrackers verbal reasoning book with 101 passages for CARS prep.
The 6 Prep101 classroom companions work alongside the live online lessons and include interactive pictures and diagrams for you to work through.
Each week, you’ll receive an email highlighting the upcoming week’s material. You can see which pre-readings are recommended and what homework to expect to consolidate that material.
Unlimited Free Repeat Policy
Prep101 gives you 6-month access to the on-demand recording, annotated notes, and most of the student portal features.
However, you can re-apply to take the prep course as often as you wish at no extra charge.
If, perhaps, after completing the course, you still feel like you’re not fully prepared for the exam, or perhaps you even end up taking the exam but fail to reach your target scores, you can always repeat the course at no extra charge.
Basically, this prep course guarantees to stick by your side for as long as it takes you to achieve your desired scores.
And the biggest advantage here is that you can get started on your MCAT prep as early as the summer after your first year! No need to put it off till the last minute.
Prep101 MCAT Pros & Cons
– Places a particular emphasis on CARS.
– Allows for flexible class scheduling.
– Offers the most full-length practice exams of any MCAT prep course.
– Provides plenty of guided practice from expert instructors.
– Includes a personal MCAT coach.
– Does not offer a higher score or a money-back guarantee.
Verdict
Offering 138 hours of live instruction, alongside 13 MCAT books and study guides, annotated lecture notes, and 610 on-demand video lessons, it is evident that Prep101 provides plenty of study materials.
The best part, though, is that their materials all come from different sources, and this is a good thing because it helps eliminate the bias that comes with studying using just one resource.
You get to experience content presented in various ways, along with numerous practice questions and tests structured, worded, and designed differently.
Better yet, you get all this under one resource, which is quite handy, saving you the trouble of figuring out and consolidating the individual materials on your own.
Granted, the Prep101 MCAT course is pretty costly. But considering that the resource integrates official AAMC practice material, I’d say it’s worth every penny spent.
AAMC practice materials are the gold standard when prepping for the MCAT, and Prep101 guarantees that you do not miss out on that.
In addition to providing other study material, you not only prepare efficiently but can also best gauge where you stand in your preparedness to face the real exam.
The flexible online classes allow you to attend whatever lecture best fits your schedule, be it a morning, afternoon, evening, or night class.
Unlike other MCAT prep courses such as the Princeton Review, where all the subjects are taught by general tutors, with Prep101, each subject is taught by a specialist, providing quality teaching specific to each section.
Not to mention that Prep101’s amazing teachers are handpicked by pre-med students at competitive auditions, guaranteeing they do a fantastic job teaching you exactly what you need to know for the MCAT.
So is the prep101 MCAT course worth it?
Yes, it is. If you can afford it, this program will prove to be incredibly valuable in helping you ace the MCAT on your very first try!
It is an incredibly detailed prep course, and often, such a breadth of material is what can make the difference between a 515 and a 520 on the MCAT.
Prep101 MCAT FAQs
How Much Is Prep101 MCAT Course?
The Prep101 MCAT course costs $2,295 for 6-month access. But keep in mind that you can re-apply to repeat the course as often as you wish, at no extra cost.
Is Prep101 MCAT Any Good?
Yes, Prep101 MCAT is quite good for your MCAT prep.
Featuring 138 hours of live instruction, plenty of practice tests and exams, and integrating the official AAMC practice materials, this wholesome MCAT course provides a comprehensive review and practice guaranteeing to get you exam-ready in no time.
Better yet, the course includes your own personal MCAT coach to guide you throughout, motivating you and ensuring you stay on track with your studying.
So, all in all, the Prep101 MCAT course is well worth the money spent.
How Long Does The Prep101 MCAT Course Take?
The Prep101 MCAT course comprises 44 lessons spread over 11 weeks, so technically, the course lasts 11 weeks. However, you have access to all study materials and resources for 6 months, renewable.
Conclusion
We arrive at the end of this review and I hope by now you have all the information you need to decide if MCAT Prep101 is the right course for your or not.
In case you wanted to compare Prep101 with the other options in the market, you can check our comparisons below:
