To get a good score on the MCAT, you must create an MCAT study schedule before you start studying. An MCAT study schedule includes a broad overview of what you need to study divided into manageable blocks of time.
Once you choose your MCAT test date, stick to a well-thought-out MCAT schedule for studying. Don’t wait to cram at the last minute — you don’t want to end up needing to retake the exam.
Many sources recommend at least 300 study hours to be prepared for the MCAT. In my experience, the average number of study hours begets an average MCAT score, somewhere around 500, which is not optimal.
To put that in perspective, the average MCAT score is 500.6, while students who entered U.S. MD programs in 2025–2026 averaged 512.1. Your target will depend on the schools you’re considering, but a realistic, well-planned study schedule can help you work toward it.
The guide below will help you judge the amount of time you’ll personally need to study, create an effective study schedule, and determine what resources you’ll need for your MCAT test day.
“Creating a schedule was one of the most important aspects of my MCAT preparation. Being able to adhere to a schedule with set blocks of time dedicated to different types of content review and practice passages works as a powerful force on two fronts: it not only provides the foundation for highly effective studying and concentrated preparation, but also enables a compartmentalization of time that gives you space to participate in extracurricular or leisure activities.”
Former MedSchoolCoach MCAT Student
Work with a MedSchoolCoach tutor to create a custom study schedule tailored YOUR needs and goals. Find out why our students raise their MCAT score by 12 points on average.
To build the perfect MCAT prep schedule, you need to do the following:
Below, I’ll go into detail on each of these bullet points, and you can prepare your MCAT study schedule like an expert.
Read Next: How to Be a Standout Medical School Applicant
I strongly recommend taking a full-length practice test to identify your baseline. Any learning gaps that require more study hours will become more apparent, and you can plan ahead.
If you’re aiming for a 510 and score a 500 on your diagnostic exam, you’ll have a different starting point than someone who scores a 490. Use that gap, along with your section scores and the types of questions you missed, to estimate how much preparation you’ll need. Study-hour estimates can help you plan, but they can’t predict a specific score increase.
I’m not saying you can skip studying the topics you did well on, either. I simply mean you’ll know where to focus the bulk of your time and energy.
If you start with a full-length practice exam, you can also see the progress you’re making when you take additional practice exams down the line.
MedSchoolCoach practice exams are the most representative on the market. Save those AAMC exams for later – grab these for some extra practice.
Before you pick a test date, consider your other time commitments. Consider the following questions to help determine the amount of time you need to study and, therefore, when to schedule your exam:
How many hours a day should you study for the MCAT? That depends on your starting point, test date, and other commitments. For a longer study timeline, 1.5–2 hours on study days may be a manageable starting point. I recommend using 300–500 total hours as a planning estimate, then adjusting based on your practice scores and progress.
After you’ve calculated the time you’ll have outside of regular commitments, divide 500 (or however many hours you’ll need to study) by the number of hours per day (or week) you estimate to have for studying. The quotient will be an estimate of how many days (or weeks) in advance to schedule your test.
Estimated total study hours ÷ Study hours per week = Weeks of preparation
Don’t make this common mistake: Long study sessions are tiring and have diminishing returns. If your plan is to study more than six hours straight per day, you might want to reassess. Consider studying in four-hour blocks and pushing back your test date instead. Whatever you do, be realistic, stay focused, track your progress, and adjust your plan as needed.
The MCAT can be taken from January through September, with over 25 test dates for you to choose from. The latest you should take the MCAT is the end of May, the first year of your application cycle. For the 2025/26 cycle, the latest test date for the highest chance at acceptance is May 23, 2025.
Do not leave the MCAT test date open-ended by telling yourself that you’ll choose one when you’re done studying. This is a recipe for last-minute cramming, burnout, and inconsistent preparation.
Read Next: How Long Does It Take To Get MCAT Results?
Dividing your study schedule into two phases will help you get an overall idea of how much time you will need to study. The first phase should focus on MCAT content review. Reviewing content means reading books and study materials to digest the subjects that are on the MCAT exam.
(The second phase is the MCAT practice test phase, and I’ll talk more about that in the next section.)
Half of the time you intend to spend studying should be on content review. To better plan how much time you will need for your study schedule, count how many chapters you’ll need to read for each subject. Consider your own reading pace and break up the content review phase into manageable blocks for your time and study abilities.
The MCAT is divided into 4 content areas:
Our MCAT experts painstakingly figured out exactly what topics and content areas had the highest yields based on extensive study of full-length MCAT exams. Spend 75% of your content review time on these 36 high-yield topics and devote the remaining 25% to other areas.
When planning what you’re going to study, be as specific as you can, and write the details down in a format that is both organized and helpful to you. The most common format is a table/calendar. For example, on January 12th you might choose to cover topics in genetics-maybe transcription, translation, and the post-translational modification of proteins.
MedSchoolCoach offers free resources like our MCAT Study Tips and MCAT Equations Sheet. And because you can’t use a calculator on the MCAT, I suggest you review MCAT math strategies to help you get through the necessary calculations without a calculator.
A good study plan should balance content review and practice questions. You’re not “sacrificing” one for the other. You should plan on comprehensively covering both for a good study plan.
WEBINAR: Everything You Need To Know About the MCAT
Think you know your MCAT material? Put it to the test with our free MCAT Runner Game. Answer MCAT-style questions, clear obstacles, and see how far you can get.
After the content review phase, the second phase of studying for the MCAT is the practice test phase, which involves plenty of practice passages, practice tests, reviews, and filling in learning gaps.
Many students do too much content review and not enough practice. About half of your study schedule should include doing practice questions (stand-along passages or full-length exams) to help you find knowledge gaps and test-taking issues.
The early weeks in the practice phase may be spent using non-AAMC practice questions to review your progress, as well as spending significant time with an MCAT tutor.
A tutor can help teach you content, plan your studying, go over your practice materials, and improve your test-taking ability. This will definitely reduce some of the stress of having to do everything on your own.
Once you’ve raised your score a few points from your baseline, start using the official AAMC practice materials.
The AAMC currently offers seven full-length MCAT practice tests: two free and five paid. The free scored practice exam can help you establish a baseline, while the free Unscored Sample Test can help you get familiar with the exam’s format. Although the Sample Test won’t provide a scaled score, our AAMC MCAT Score Calculator can help you estimate one from your results. Use the AAMC question banks between full-lengths for additional practice.
Just remember to add all this to your study schedule or calendar to keep yourself on track. Also, pro tip: give yourself a day off after taking any full-length practice exam to allow mental recovery. Work this into your study schedule ahead of time.
Resource: Self-Guided Learning to Ace the MCAT
Setting a study plan that spans several weeks and months will give you plenty of time to adjust, cut, or repeat any steps. At the end of every week, reassess your situation and decide if you accomplished everything you needed to accomplish that week.
Even after you have covered all the study material you had hoped to, you should make room to go over any weak content areas.
You are in charge of your study plan and can make changes accordingly. If you find that you study better before a meal, adjust future weeks so that you read your chapters prior to lunch or dinner and do your homework in the morning.
Do what is best for you, but make sure to adjust your sleep schedule and other commitments accordingly. Do not sacrifice your physical and mental health to study — planning a study schedule is meant to avoid health deterioration.
One of the best ways I recommend studying for the MCAT is to download the MCAT Prep mobile app, which features a built-in scheduling function, as well as hundreds of MCAT science content videos, sample questions, and flashcards.
Read Next: What Is a BS/MD Program? Pros, Cons and Considerations
Your weekly MCAT study schedule should include content review, science practice questions, CARS passages, spaced review, and time to review your mistakes. As you progress, make room for full-length exams and leave time for rest and unexpected commitments.
I recommend planning around specific tasks rather than just a total number of hours. “Review amino acids and complete related practice questions” gives you a clearer direction than “study biochemistry for three hours.”
Use the following as a checklist when planning your week:
| Part of your week | What to Schedule |
| Content review | Review topics from the AAMC MCAT content outline, prioritizing areas your practice results show need attention. |
| Science practice questions | Work through questions and passages related to the topics you’re reviewing. Include time to understand why you missed questions or guessed correctly. |
| CARS practice | Schedule regular passage practice and answer review. Resources like CARS Mastery can help you work on your approach. |
| Spaced Review | Revisit earlier material through flashcards, self-quizzing, or explaining concepts from memory. Spread this review across the week. |
| Full-length exams and review | Schedule MCAT practice exams at intervals that fit your preparation stage. Reserve separate time to review each exam and work on the weaknesses it reveals. |
| Rest and catch-up | Build in time to recharge and some flexibility for tasks that take longer than expected. |
Early in your preparation, content review may take up more of your week. As test day approaches, shift more time toward passages, timed practice, and full-length exams while continuing to review weak topics. The AAMC recommends a study-and-practice cycle that combines recall, practice, and reflection rather than relying on reading or videos alone.
You don’t need to fit every activity into every day. Aim for a manageable weekly balance, then adjust it based on what you’re learning and how you’re progressing.
Following a template can be a helpful way to get started on your MCAT study schedule. A template can guide you through dividing your study topics and creating a visual to see if the schedule is realistic and manageable.
Below, I cover one-month, three-month, and six-month MCAT study plan templates.
Read Next: Is Retaking the MCAT a Good Idea for You?
A one-month MCAT study plan is very ambitious, considering it would require more than a full-time schedule just to get your 300 hours in. This isn’t the best fit for the majority of students.
Can you study for the MCAT in 30 days? You may be able to study for the MCAT in 30 days if you have aced all your previous MCAT practice tests, have the bandwidth to study 8-10 hours a day, and have already read all of the test prep books.
To study in one month, use this as a general guide:
Looking for some extra MCAT practice? Try our ultra-realistic half-length MCAT exam for free.
A 3-month MCAT study plan is the most common for a majority of my tutoring clients. Here’s how I recommend breaking up these weeks of studying:
Is 3 months enough time to study for MCAT? A three-month study plan allots 3-5 hours of study per day, not including rest days, which is ample for most students. There are plenty of MCAT resources to add to your self-study plan, including flashcards, practice problems, and review books.
Read Next: 2025/26 TMDSAS Application Guide for Prospective Doctors
A 6-month MCAT study plan is ideal for those with busy schedules (e.g. full-time students) who don’t have lots and lots of time each week to study. This plan allows you to pace yourself and really absorb the material. You don’t need to rush into practice tests each week to identify areas of weakness — although we still recommend an initial diagnostic for a baseline.
Just like the 3-month template, this schedule prioritizes content review in the beginning before shifting the focus to practice in the lead-up to the exam. Studying for 6 months is pretty much the same as studying for 3 months – you’ll just have a little more flexibility to study less when things get busy.
Read Next: A Guide to Medical Schools That Don’t Require the MCAT
Studying for the MCAT can be demanding and may bring up test anxiety. A realistic study plan can help you stay on track while leaving time to rest and recharge.
Here are 20 tips to help you prepare consistently and avoid burnout:
Consider getting an MCAT tutor. The MCAT is a tough exam to prepare for and getting a tutor to guide you through the process can be tremendously helpful.
Read Next: 15 Best Pre-Med Schools in the US in 2025 & How to Choose One
With so much to study, you’ll need the best MCAT resources and prep books for high performance. Fortunately, plenty of these resources are readily available online for test-takers:
If you work with one of our expert MCAT tutors, you’ll gain easy access to all of these resources and more. You’ll also get personalized tips, advice, and insights that are proven to boost your MCAT score.
Looking to add 12 points to your MCAT score? That’s the average score improvement for MedSchoolCoach tutoring clients. Partner with a tutor and unlock your full MCAT potential!