The 10 Best MCAT Prep Books
Special Honors
Khan Academy Khan Academy is a respected digital education platform that provides classes and tutorials for a diversity of subjects. They've teamed up with the Association of American Medical Colleges and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to create original video explainers and review questions that cover all the content tested on the exam. The program touches on everything from organ systems and biomolecules to social inequality and human behavior. khanacademy.org
NAAHP Established in 1974, The National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions is an organization of health professions advisors at colleges and universities throughout the United States and abroad. They provide career advice, guidance, professional resources, information on meetings, networking, and opportunities, news, and more. naahp.org
Magoosh Magoosh is a company that offers rigorous MCAT prep tailored for students who require autonomous or supervised study assistance. They offer digital materials that can be accessed on a range of devices, including in-depth videos, over 380 lessons and 745 questions of varying difficulty, practice tests, and more. magoosh.com
Editor's Notes
June 10, 2020:
The MCAT hasn't undergone any serious overhauls since 2015, so anything published after that year should be sufficient for test prep. That being said, we wanted to have the most up to date selection as possible, not least to reflect the myriad changes that occur in the fields tested, which happen at a breakneck pace. So even if you've busted out your old biology or chemistry textbooks, a study guide is still your best bet.
We said goodbye to Getting into Medical School for Dummies, which is helpful for its intended audience but doesn't do much to help you prepare for the MCAT. We also said goodbye to Sterling Test Prep Biology & Biochemistry, which seems to hurt as many students as it helps, due to complaints of lean information on some topics, redundant or obscure questions, and too many errors. We replaced them with The Official Guide to the MCAT Exam, a helpful primer from the Association of American Medical Colleges, who are the people who set the exam, and Kaplan MCAT 528 Advanced Prep, an option created for high-flyers who want to dig deep into the hardest portions of the test to get a near-perfect score.
We also added two more compelling choices today to round our list out to an even ten. They are the Test Prep Books MCAT Study Guide, a budget-friendly choice ideal for those who need a jumping-off point or refresher, and Princeton Review MCAT Workout, a guide meant to help students who have already mastered the material stay sharp while they wait to sit the exam.
There are two flashcard options on this list: Barron’s MCAT Flash Cards and Kaplan MCAT Flashcards. Be aware that Barron's offering is not ideal for rote memorization, while Kaplan's is. Barron's cards are covered in notes, making them best for reviewing concepts and equations, while Kaplan is intended for internalizing definitions to make test-taking easier.