ExamKrackers MCAT Complete Study Package/ 6 Book Package

I'm an MCAT instructor with MCATProf.com and have been teaching the MCAT for 10 years having previously been an instructor with Kaplan and the Princeton Review. I've read and used all the books available for the current 2014 MCAT (Berkeley Review, Kaplan, Princeton Review, Examkrackers) and in the past wasn't especially impressed with the Examkrackers MCAT books. I've purchased all the 2015 MCAT books that are currently commercially available (Princeton Review Complete MCAT Set, Kaplan 7-Book Subject Review, Examkrackers Complete Study Package, and Next Step Test Prep Practice for Behavioral Sciences) I'd rank them in the following order 1. Examkrackers Complete Study Package 2. Kaplan Complete 7-Book Subject Review 3. Princeton ReviewnMCAT Subject Review Complete Set 4. Next Step Test Prep Practice for Behavioral Sciences. Examkrackers is the only set that completely reformatted their books to be inline with the new exam. Every book is almost completely different with reformatted content, and new practice passages that fit the format of the new exam. All their science passages reference primary research articles directly as do the MCAT passages for the 2015 exam. These new types of passages are different than the more information dump type passages for the current 2014 MCAT exam. In addition, all their passages directly involve biological systems even in the physics and chemistry books which is what you'd expect to see with the new 2015 MCAT. They also redistributed the content science content in the book to better adequately represent the degree to which each subject is tested on the new exam. These books are a complete reboot to best fit the new exam. Each chapter has comes with three well written passages and around 20 free standing practice questions. The books do not include any full lengths, which is probably their biggest weakness. The Princeton Review probably did the worst job of updating their books, seemingly not even glancing over the AAMC outline for the material covered of the 2015 MCAT. They essentially re-released their old books, almost nothing has been changed: same passages, same content, the distribution of science material, same verbal strategy but without the online practice questions and passages that came with the old book. You'd probably be better off purchasing the old books as they came with much more in terms of online practice questions and materials. The main benefit of the new books is that they include 3 full length online practice exams. To supplement the old PR books, you'd probably just want to purchase the Princeton Review Psychology and Sociology Review, and Kaplan MCAT Biochemistry Review. You'd also want to to check the AAMC content outline for the 2015 exam in order to know which Ochem chapters to skip in the PR books Kaplan did a great job updating their books to best reflect the new content but they provide no practice passages in the books. They do provide 2 full length practice exams. Next Step Test Prep Behavioral Science book is essentially just a book of poorly written practice passages and an outline you could have gotten directly from AAMC. Their passages do not reflect the 2015 MCAT passages as they're way too long, mostly information dumps instead of experiments to analyze and the questions are too easy.

I bought have the Princeton Review books via the class I am about to start, and Kaplan books. I use the Examkrackers to help review along with the Kaplan books my boyfriend uses, and then use the Princeton books/workbooks from class to practice. I line up the chapters in each review book and since there are three of them I am guaranteed to look and practice the material three times. Which also helps catch author mistakes (looking at you Princeton Review) I have to say I was pretty impressed the the EK books. They were completely updated, barely any mistakes, and a lot of practice at the end of each chapter. The pages are glossy, easy to read and follow and super organized in terms of subject matter. Also, they are right to the point on subject matter without being so over the top on vocabulary or how they write a sentence like the Princeton books. I would highly recommend them, especially for those looking to review old material you might have forgotten, it's a great start to first go through EK, then when you feel more confident the Princeton books. EK books do a great service to those of us who can't remember some of the basics, and they are more engaging to read than any of the other books out there. Wish they came with a practice workbook though, luckily I have one from Princeton review.

All in all I felt prepared for the exam using Examkrackers material. There wasn't too much detail (like in the Kaplan books) and the 30 minute exams are super helpful. However, there are an almost inexcusable number of typos (T cell immunity section labeled B cell, chapters 6 and 7 exams swapped in the Chemistry book, it goes on and on). The publisher must have some indication of them by this point, so it was frustrating to not have been provided with an erratum at the very least. It made me wonder if there were more significant content errors that I wasn't catching. Overall I would give three stars except the self-study guide on their website was so helpful (despite being completely wrong in time required per section).

Just took the MCAT today after using the 10 week course suggested by Examkrackers, and using their 4 online exams that are 50 dollars each. I am very satisfied and felt completely prepared. The books continually test you from week 1 using actual science journal passages just like the MCAT. I would highly recommend this course. I also previously bought and reviewed Kaplan's books on biochemistry and Psychology/Sociology to help me in the areas I was weaker. Update on 6/15/16, I got my MCAT scores and unbelievably I got 96 percentile!!! Equivalent to a 37 in the old MCAT. I am incredibly pleased and grateful to Examkrackers for the outstanding preparation offered by these books and the online exams. Thank you so much. For background I am 45 years old and considering medicine as a second career. I took the MCAT in 2014 with Kaplan and got a 30 and felt unprepared. This time I first used the Kaplan Biochemistry book and read it through, then the Kaplan Social Sciences book and read it through, then I purchased Examkrackers and followed their 10 week course schedule posted on their website and followed it over 11 weeks as I am working and needed a bit of extra time. It prepares you so well that I was completely calm and in control during the exam and finished each section with 5-10 minutes to spare. My best score was CARS, where I got a 99%. Thanks again. Highly highly highly recommend.

This came so quickly! I noticed that they had a distribution center in my state, but I didn't think I would receive it by the next day. The pages are really nice and the books come in a cardboard casing that holds them together. I like the visuals a lot and am really excited about studying with this. I have seen other MCAT prep books and they just look really uninvolved. This one is engaging and passage-based like the real test.

I think EK assumes a good amount of background knowledge. If you took general chemistry three years ago (like I did) EK won't be enough to grasp the material. However, if you just finished biochem a few weeks ago, then the Biology I (Biomolecules) book will be a good refresher. It's concise and definitely a review book--not textbook-- so you'll likely need supplemental resources for subjects you haven't covered in a while. For context, I took the MCAT July of 2017 Things that stand out: EK's CARS strategy is probably the best out there. I tested Kaplan, TPR and EK, timing how long it took to read passages, how long it took to answer questions, and the accuracy of my answers. EK's strategy is very effective and takes less time than the others. The CARS book develops the strategy one chapter at a time with really great examples in each. BUT I had a hard time with the passages in the 30 minute exams. Some answers were plain wrong and had horrible explanations. The passage content was least similar to AAMC material relative to the other prep companies I tried. In the end I used EK's strategy and only AAMC CARS packs for practice (scored 128). After every section, EK provides a set of review questions (usually 9-12 questions) that really help gauge how well you grasped the material you just covered. The back of the book explains why the right answer is correct and why the wrong answers were incorrect (that's confusing huh). I would answer the question set two days after I went over the related content and then took a good look at the explanations. A lot of my learning actually happened during this process. I had a good amount of background knowledge in biology and biochemisry when I started studying for the MCAT. For concepts I was already familiar with, I skipped the review part and went straight to the questions, going back to read the book when I got more than 3-4 questions wrong. I scored a 129 in the bio/biochem section. The psych/soc book is the worst of the bunch in this edition. There are entire chunks of content listed in the AAMC guide that are nowhere to be found in EK's book. I think they rushed to print this edition before AAMC had released all of the content. I stopped using this book after the first chapter. Instead I used Khan Academy and an older version of an introductory psychology textbook (Exploring Psychology by David Myers). I scored a 132 in the psych/soc section. I had a hard time with physics and chemistry. It had been more than two years since I took either of these classes. I used Khan Academy and Kaplan's online content (short and long videos covering complicated topics). I scored a 127 in the chem/phys section. There are so many errors!!!! EK gives you a 6-month free subscription to their forums where you can download the errata, and there is a lot. It was really annoying, especially for chemistry and physics. It made me distrust the material. Like what if I'm learning this all wrong?!? With biology it was a lot easier to spot the errors because of my background knowledge. Three stars because it's okay, but not sufficient. Wherever possible practice with AAMC material and use Khan Academy for review.

Honestly I love these books vs. the competition because it was the only set of MCAT books that actually made me WANT to study for the exam. Since you won't have any friends while studying for this beast, Salty the Kracker became my new best friend. His jokes were definitely cute and kept me engaged. Content wise it has all of the major topics you need to know, but you will notice later on that there are some details missing from this book as opposed to others. Don't be worried though, as those holes will become apparent in practice exams and AAMC practice materials and you'll be fine. I would highly suggest using Khan Academy on the side for any content you feel weak on from this book. If you want a total, exhaustive review of all of the content on the MCAT exam, your best bet would be to watch all of the Khan Academy videos.

These are great review materials and discounted from exam krackers actual website. The books are really useful for someone who understands the material fairly well and needs a refresher. They also have tons of really good tricks for memorizing things. If its been a while since you've taken your prerequisite classes or you didn't get an A or B in them, I'd suggest using Princeton or Berkeley Review books instead. However, there are a few typos in the books, but they dont take away from the materials.

Incredible book. Tells you all of the tips and tricks that will definitely get you a high mark on the MCAT. I recommend this to everyone. Very well structured and written book. 10/10!

Excellent review materials, very clear and concise explanations for all topics. The author gets right to the point in a humorous and amiable style. Highly recommended!

Fantastic study guide and I highly recommend it. ​

The books were great, and showed up on time.

These books make great use of examples and lots of questions for practice! Really helps to reinforce the information.