Gold Standard MCAT with Online Practice MCAT Tests (2012-2013 Edition) [With Online Practice MCAT Cbts]

I don't understand how people can write a review on mcat books if they haven't even written the mcat. I wrote the april 2005 test and here is the result: PS 13 - VR 14 - WS T - BS 12; overall 39T. Here is my review of The Gold Standard: excellent science teaching/review, only pertinent information, below average verbal section (simply not in depth enough), very good writing sample advice/review, three very realistic challenging practice exams. I would have given the book 4 and 1/2 stars but it wasn't a choice. How does it compare to the others? Kaplan and Princeton also have excellent science review books but they only have one full length practice exam. You can't go wrong with Examkrackers but they are long so I stuck to their Audio Osmosis CDs which were very helpful. I supplemented this with the mcat science videos from mcat-prep. And finally, of course, I wrote all the aamc past tests and I went over them with a fine tooth comb. All I can say is I'm glad it's over and I hope that you kick some mcat butt too!

I used the GS, AudioOsmosis and the video CD's by mcat-prep.com and got a 36S on April's MCAT. This book was clear and complete. I wish that the Verbal Reasoning section had longer explanations but the science was very well covered. I used the paper exams in the book (you get free online exams but I did not try them).

I found the science review to be very clear, lots of illustrations especially clear review in organic chemistry and physics. I felt there could have been more verbal review info but the 3 exams were tough enough to make up for it. Overall: excellent!

to my surprise, this book is actually pretty good. The materials in the book are quite concise, too general, but the practice tests are excellent. Just the three practice tests alone are worth the price. The science review sections, however, could be more detailed. In addition, the author's high opinions of himself make this book somewhat annoying to read.

I used this book to prepare for the MCAT last summer (the 3rd ed). It was great. It had everything that was on the exam and no extra useless info. The practise exams were exactly like the real one. There were no surprises, and I didn't feel like I had wasted time learning things I didn't have to. The sections of the book are organized exactly like the list of topics that the AAMC is allowed to test you on. There is an excellent section at the end of the book which explains how to arrive at the correct answer for each question in the practise exams, in case you got them wrong and don't understand why. The book explained the biological and physical sciences very well- even if you had never taken science before, you could understand. The sections on organic chemistry were particularly helpful to me (I HATE orgo!). The book covered techniques for the writing sample and the verbal reasoning sections, and had other information about the application procedure. I looked at a lot of other books for the MCAT, and I think that this one is the best. I also had the opportunity to attend a lecture of Dr. Ferdinand's (he teaches courses to prepare for the MCAT) and I found him to be a very intelligent and sincere person.