How to Unenroll From a Princeton Review Course
As this is a pretty lengthy review that covers a number of topics, we've included spring-to links above for your convenience.
In the video in a higher place, John from the Examination Prep Insight team walks you through the major pros and cons of the Princeton Review MCAT prep course. For more particular regarding this course, be sure to read our full, written review below.
Princeton Review MCAT
- Cocky-Paced or Live Online
- Frequent Discounts
- Self-Paced or Live Online
- Frequent Discounts
Pros
- Fantastic alive online classes led by rotating squad of 4 to 6 subject affair experts
- Deep curriculum packed with detail for those needing strong content review
- Comes with 11 top-notch MCAT prep books (slap-up for text-based learners)
Cons
- On demand video lessons have lackluster production quality
- Mobile app not very useful (kind of clunky and only contains flashcards)
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Course Options and Pricing
Earlier nosotros dive into our thoughts on the Princeton Review MCAT course, permit's speedily comprehend their course formats and offerings to fix the phase. In short, TPR offers four primary prep options to students, which vary based on level of instruction, grade intensity and level of access. The iv prep packages include:
- Online Course
- Live Online
- MCAT 510+
- MCAT 515+ Immersion
Beginning with their well-nigh affordable option, Princeton's Online Course gives students the chance to learn at their own speed, DIY-style. This package opens access to Princeton's wide range of online content and hard copy books, simply no alive classes. This course runs right around $2,000, which makes it a hair more expensive than Kaplan's analogous course, and approximately 5x more expensive than value prep company Magoosh'southward online course.
Moving up the ladder, Princeton Review's most popular prep choice, the Live Online C ourse, gives students the gamble to acquire through alive scheduled classes, in-person or online. This grade packs a whopping 120+ live instruction hours and costs around $2,800. One time once again, this is in line with the price of rival Kaplan'south flagship in-person course, and the two tin often be plant within $100-200 of each other when considering current discounts.
At the next tier, Princeton Review offers their MCAT 510+ plan, which guarantees a score of 510 or improve on the MCAT (assuming you starting time with a base of operations score of 500 or better and end the class). If you have a base of operations score less than 500, than the course just guarantees a +10 point jump. In either case, this prep package will run you lot well-nigh $3,500 – though nosotros frequently see information technology on sale for less.
Finally, Princeton Review's most intense selection – the MCAT 515+ Immersion course – is the granddaddy of them all, boasting 860+ total hours of instruction, practice and guided prep across v long weeks. This course is not for the faint of heart; nor is it for the penny pincher. This bootcamp-mode prep class volition cost you effectually $seven,350, which is on par with other intense MCAT summer immersion programs. That figure may make your head spin, merely know that besides includes room and board and a guaranteed score of 515+ (with some limitations).
Grade options and pricing current every bit of date of publication.
Analysis of Princeton Review's MCAT Coursework
One of the first things that jumps out nigh Princeton Review'south coursework is the sheer quantity of prep they provide. Princeton gives you access to 500+ detailed video lessons, 2,500+ practice bug, 16 full-length do tests, and 123 alive pedagogy hours (assuming y'all're taking a live course). That is a TON of prep material and fourth dimension, then for those students seeking to maximize the amount of prep they get for their coin, this should catch your eye.
Their curriculum is divided up by MCAT discipline, such every bit biology or organic chemistry, for a full of half dozen sections. Each discipline is so cleaved downwards into classes, with each class covering a certain subtopic of the more than full general category. Within each of these classes you then have three components:
- Before Form – This is a primer for what is to come up in the meat of the lesson. It more often than not includes a diagnostic test, reading assignment from your bailiwick books, and some practice questions.
- Course – The class itself consists of a series of "MedFlix" videos. These video-based lessons go right to the heart of the material and serve as your primary instruction.
- After Class – This material serves to reinforce the content reviewed in the grade lessons and takes the class of drills and workbook practice.
The on demand video lessons in the online portion of the course are by and large short in elapsing (around 5-20 minutes) and encompass topic specific instruction. They accept the class of digital whiteboard with a voice-over past the teacher. The instructor verbalizes their lesson as the onscreen whiteboard updates with text, notes and dissimilar graphics. At that place are no real interactive elements and the instructor moves speedily through the content.
In my stance, the quality of these video lessons was but okay. The product value was a little subpar, with grainy footage at times and tinny audio, and the Princeton instructors move very quickly through the cloth. At that place is never any real attempt to appoint students or brand the material light – they are all business and cut through the agenda with robotic-like drive.
So for those students that similar funny, engaging instructors and presentations that continue the textile light, this will non be for you. But if you're just looking for the adept old meat and potatoes (i.east. direct content with no fluff), these videos volition be right upwards your aisle.
With all that said, I did love the analogies and mnemonics the Princeton instructors incorporated into the video pedagogy. There were a number of times the teacher would use a lilliputian story or mnemonic to aid yous retrieve a formula or concept, which is ever super helpful. You have a ton of material to memorize for the MCAT, so someday you can accept a shortcut to improve recall, it's a win. I as well really liked the graphics used throughout the video lessons – these helped with material retention as well.
Beyond the video lessons, y'all go admission to two,500+ practice problems across all of Princeton's online content. In that location are hundreds of drills and diagnostic exams surrounding the classes, and each practice problem within these components has an attached explanation.
The practice problem explanations are incredibly thorough and I was personally very impressed with them. The explanations dive into cracking detail, breaking downward the basis of the question, equally well equally giving a thorough analysis of each reply choice. These explanations add serious value to the course and should be reviewed subsequently each missed question.
I also found the subject specific diagnostic exams within each class to be incredibly useful. These diagnostic tools establish your baseline skill level and track your progress from in that location as you motion through the form. These requite a corking opportunity to clarify your weaknesses and put extra piece of work towards those areas. The results of your diagnostic tests tin can be establish under the Reports tab and should be reviewed oft.
To cap off the lessons and coursework, Princeton Review additionally provides access to all AAMC official practise materials. This isn't necessarily a special or exclusive feature (Kaplan and Gilt Standard MCAT Prep do this equally well), but about every student searching out the all-time MCAT prep grade will expect this, so it'due south nice to see Princeton ascension to the occasion. These AAMC materials, consisting of practice tests, flashcards and online do, are all top notch and are a huge benefit to the overall prep package.
All things considered, I was very impressed with Princeton Review's curriculum and coursework. The quality of their MedFlix video lessons in the online portal was defective and the material dry out, but they were definitely effective and covered every nook and cranny of MCAT material.
I separately really liked the quality and quantity of drills and ancillary coursework around the class sessions. In sum, at that place should non be whatsoever doubts near the nature of Princeton Review's MCAT coursework – you absolutely get what you lot pay for with this course in the all-time of means.
Princeton Review MCAT Prep Books
In improver to the online video instruction, drills, assigned readings and other digital coursework, Princeton Review provides students with 11 hard copy prep books. Of these 11 books, 7 cover subject specific content review, spanning the subjects of biology, general chemistry, biochemistry, organic chemical science, physics and math, psychology and sociology, and CARS. The other 4 books consist of diverse class-based workbooks. Combined, they make for an extremely comprehensive and valuable resources.
The subject specific review books are worth their weight in gold. They encompass each topic in extreme detail, with first-class explanations and helpful graphics. They dive into details you don't get through the didactics alone and act equally a very nice complement to the core coursework. The workbooks are also very useful, serving as extra practise and a means to reinforce the content you've learned (or likely re-learned).
My personal opinion is that the Princeton books are worth virtually as much as the online content itself. I learn peculiarly well through reading textbooks, so for me personally, these books are a approval. They are well-written, clearly articulated, and do a great job breaking down complex material. All together, they are a powerful study resource.
Princeton Review MCAT Do Tests
In total, Princeton Review offers its users the opportunity to take up to 16 full-length practice tests. Given the importance of practice when it comes to the MCAT, this is an incredibly valuable offering. With respect to pure numbers, 16 is a very generous figure and is less than simply Golden Standard MCAT Prep when it comes to quantity (Aureate Standard offers 20 practice tests).
However, just as important equally the quantity of practice tests is the ability to practice under exam-like conditions. To be fully prepared, information technology is critical that students exercise like its game-day, so practice tests must match the real MCAT in terms of question content, structure and format. Fortunately, Princeton Review does a great job on all fronts.
Their practice examination bug are amazingly close to the real questions y'all will see on exam day. Honestly, I could hardly tell the difference, and the digital platform Princeton employs to administer the practice tests is a very adept representation of the bodily software you volition come across. Together, the near identical questions and testing software make for a true exam-like experience.
Post-obit each practice test, you are given an interactive score study. These reports are extremely detailed and break downwards your operation by subject and subtopic. This gives you a clear view into where your weaknesses lie, allowing for further practice in those areas.
You can besides jump into individual missed questions from the score report to review problem explanations. I found these score reports to be extremely well-designed and very beneficial for purposes of reviewing mistakes. I peculiarly like how yous can dive into specific questions to encounter where y'all went wrong.
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Princeton Review MCAT Classes
If you elect to accept one of the Princeton Review MCAT courses with a classroom component, you will exist treated to an affluence of live teaching hours. The Live Online and MCAT 510+ course offerings each boast 123 hours of live educational activity. Yes, you read that correctly – 123 hours.
That is more than than 3x the number of classroom hours that you get with Kaplan, and is frankly a piffling mind boggling. And if you really up the ante for Princeton'due south 515+ Immersion form, you lot volition get close to 200 hours of live classroom time. Whatever path you take, that is a lot of classroom time. And while more grade hours don't necessarily mean improve scores, I believe the extra fourth dimension dedicated to learning from a MCAT pro certainly helps.
Rather than the grade being led by one teacher, the classes are taught past a rotating squad of field of study matter experts. You will unremarkably get a mix of 4 to vi different Princeton experts, who are masters of a particular field. This ensures that you are getting specialists teaching your classes rather than generalists who perhaps only have a surface level knowledge of a particular topic.
I took the Alive Online Course and had 5 unlike instructors across my classes. They ranged widely in personality and teaching style, only all had the common trait of being very outgoing and knowledgeable. Each seemed incredibly invested in making sure we all understood the material they were teaching.
It really seemed similar each took a sense of pride in their work and making sure they were doing a practiced job. Equally function of that, all the instructors were very open up to questions and comments, and sidebar conversations during breaks.
I frequently would inquire a quick question one-on-ane during a break and the instructor had no upshot at all giving up 60 seconds of their pause time to respond my questions. They were all truly friendly and open.
Following each class session, you will be assigned some personalized homework. The homework is a mixed bag and can be anything from reading assignments to drills to diagnostics. And don't think the homework is a light load that you tin can breeze through while watching TV – it frequently took hours to complete.
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User Feel and Interface
It is clear that Princeton Review has dedicated considerable time and resources to perfecting its digital platform. The online portal that houses a bulk of your coursework is clean, professional looking and very intuitive. I would non say that it is sleek or mod, merely it is certainly aesthetically pleasing.
The layout is likewise very easy to use and maneuvering through the portal is a breeze. The navigation bar at the top serves to straight you to the various sections of resources and study material in a very easy to empathize manner. And the drill-downwardly functions and organization of online classwork simplify the tracking downwards of a desired resource.
To the extent the video-based lessons brand up part of the user experience, that attribute is significantly lacking. I understand that it is difficult and expensive to produce 500+ high quality videos with not bad production value, simply these videos merely don't make the cut. They were often pixelated and the audio sounded metallic. I would but await ameliorate on that front. Simply autonomously from that aspect, the overall user interface and experience of the Princeton Review online content is visually appealing and piece of cake to use.
Extra MCAT Study Resources
While not always at the summit of students' priority lists when it comes to features they are looking for in a MCAT prep course, supplemental resources are e'er a nice bonus. Fortunately, for Princeton Review students, the test prep behemoth offers a few actually valuable add-ons.
The most of import and useful resource offering is Princeton'south "MCAT Topic Focus." This resources is generally only bachelor to MCAT 510+ and MCAT 515+ Immersion students. It is a series of teacher role hours-type sessions that encompass various subjects on the MCAT.
There are over 12 sessions offered per week, where instructors dive into deeper detail on particular topics and allow students to inquire questions. This is a nice resources for students seeking more than knowledge on a certain subject area or a chance to inquire some follow-upward questions from class.
Princeton's Ultimate MCAT Pupil Guide is as well a helpful feature. This 20+ page downloadable PDF covers everything students needs to know about the MCAT in general, the Princeton Review prep grade, how to effectively prepare for the MCAT, med school admissions and more. By and large, you can think of information technology as your go-to manual for MCAT prep.
Lastly, through your Princeton Review MCAT prep course, you lot will also get access to Princeton's Med School Admissions Advantage sessions. These video sessions offer communication from Princeton med school admissions counselors and experts on tips for optimizing your med school admissions application and qualifications, among other things. Together with the MCAT Topic Focus, Educatee Guide and other ancillary resources available through the portal, Princeton offers a overnice parcel of resource.
Princeton Review Private MCAT Tutoring
For those students seeking out some personalized attending from an expert on the MCAT, Princeton Review offers a couple different private tutoring packages. The ii packages are equally follows:
- MCAT Targeted Alive Online Tutoring – 10 Hours
- MCAT Comprehensive Live Online Tutoring – 60 Hours
The 10-hour parcel costs right around $2,000, while the 60-hour package will run you lot an centre-popping $11,000. Yes that is a crazy, crazy number, only when you break information technology down across lx hours and factor in that you are likewise getting access to all of the aforementioned content and materials equally the Online Course students (a roughly $2,000 value), it is actually a adequately decent rate per hour for top tier tutoring.
I know the absolute dollar figure is still nutty to contemplate spending, but if you're going to exist ownership the Online Class anyway and really want to invest in getting into a elevation school, this would likely be your ticket.
Information technology is a little odd to me that Princeton jumps from a 10-hour parcel to a lx-hr parcel with nothing in betwixt. Given that large gap in hours with no packages, I would simply note that Blueprint MCAT also offers some very high-finish tutoring packages in that in-between range. I take personally used their tutoring services and plant them to exist top shelf.
Content Access Period
Princeton Review boasts 1 of the more than favorable content access periods in the MCAT test prep space. For online just, Online Course students, yous will get access to your online materials for 270 days. That means you get roughly 9 months of study time, which should be ample opportunity to get yourself set for the MCAT.
For all other course options, you lot will go the same 270 days PLUS any enrollment period before your form begins. So if you enroll 30 days before the starting time class session, y'all become a bonus thirty days of access to your content. This is a really dainty feature and in theory, you could clasp out x-12 months of access to your study materials. Compared to other test prep courses, these access periods are quite generous.
The Princeton Review Mobile App
Keeping up with other examination prep companies that offer MCAT prep courses, Princeton Review has rolled out its own MCAT mobile app. While this may perk your ears, practice not go besides excited about the content it offers. The mobile app is limited to 550 content-based flashcards. There are no practice quizzes, problems, video lessons or anything else from your actual coursework on the app.
Personally, I would like to see Princeton Review connect their mobile app with your coursework, and allow you to do practice issues and watch video lessons from your phone. That would be a true add in value.
Don't get me wrong, I like the flashcards and retrieve they are great in their ain right, but I just would like more. The flashcards make for some bang-up quick-hit studying while on the train or killing time, but they are non game changers.
Does Princeton Review Have a Score Increase Guarantee?
Princeton Review offers a score increase guarantee for all of its courses, with a particularly strong guarantee for the MCAT 510+ and MCAT 515+ Immersion packages. For the Online and Live Online courses, Princeton guarantees that your MCAT score will increase with the utilize for their grade (noting that some restrictions apply). Yet, it is the two upper echelon courses where the real guarantee kicks in.
For the 510+ program, Princeton Review guarantees that you will get at least a 510 or better. At present, to qualify for this promise, y'all must accept a baseline score of 500 or better. Otherwise they only guarantee a score jump of +ten points (which is still pretty liberal in its own right). And for the 515+ Immersion program, there is a similar promise.
Score 515 or better or your coin back – bold you started with a 505 score or ameliorate. If you offset below a 505 score with that offering, y'all get the same +10 indicate increase guarantee.
Each guarantee requires that you complete all your coursework, along with some other requirements, just the aforementioned is expected from any company's guarantee program. Overall, the Princeton guarantees are quite generous.
Princeton Review Refund Policy
By and large speaking, if y'all cull to withdraw from your Princeton Review prep course for whatever reason inside 7 days of buy, you will go 100% of your money dorsum. Beyond that 7-day period, yet, yous volition be out of luck.
This refund policy applies to tuition costs simply and not shipping expenses, which volition non exist reimbursed. Note that this liberal refund policy does not apply to the 515+ Immersion program though, so check those requirements closely.
Verdict: Princeton Review MCAT Prep Course
If you lot're looking for a tried and true, proven MCAT prep formula that is almost certain to enhance your score, Princeton Review is likely your course. They offer an absolute mount of prep resources and study time through 120+ live pedagogy hours, 16 total-length practice tests, 2,500+ practice problems, and one of the most robust curriculums we have reviewed. The practice problem explanations are thorough, the drills hammer habitation the almost of import MCAT subjects, and the lessons target loftier-yield topics. Overall, I was very impressed with Princeton'south grade.
All that said, I did have issue with their online video-based lessons and mobile app. The product value of the video lessons is non cracking, having a grainy pic and tinny sound; nevertheless, they are nonetheless effective, cut to the point of every subject field and covering every MCAT subtopic imaginable. And while I don't intendance for the usefulness of their mobile app, information technology is a small feature in an overall strong package. For students that want results and little risk when spending their money on a prep course, I would not hesitate to pull the trigger on Princeton Review'southward grade. It'southward a surefire prep choice.
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Source: https://testprepinsight.com/reviews/princeton-review-mcat/
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