Welcome to the MCAT test prep series.

The Medical College Admission Test® (MCAT®) evaluates your understanding of key natural and social science principles, along with the critical thinking and scientific problem-solving skills you’ll need to begin medical school.

This course walks you through the MCAT section by section. Each chapter focuses on one exam section and includes:

• The content you’ll need to know
• Strategies you can apply on test day
• Practice questions that check both recall and application (the same mix you’ll see on the real exam)

As you work through the chapters, you’ll get repeated practice with MCAT-style passages and questions, plus a clear approach for how to tackle each question type.

Eligibility

You are eligible to take the MCAT exam if you are planning to apply to a health professions school, which includes:

• M.D.-granting programs.
• D.O.-granting programs.
• Podiatric (D.P.M).
• Veterinary medicine (D.V.M).
• Any other health-related program that will accept MCAT exam results to satisfy a test score admissions requirement.

When you register, you will be required to agree to a statement verifying your intention to apply to a health professions school.

Exam format

The exam consists of 4 sections, all multiple-choice questions. All sections are scored equally.

Only the CARS section is completely passage-based, with no external knowledge needed, and includes 53 questions.

All other sections (Psychology and Sociology, Chemistry and Physics, and Biology and Biochemistry) include 15 independent questions and 44 passage-based questions. These questions require you to integrate information from the passage with your outside knowledge of the subject.

The exam duration is 7.5 hours.

There is not a set passing score. Instead, you’ll aim for a target score based on the admissions criteria of the schools you plan to apply to.

Content outline

• CARS - The Critical Analysis and Reasoning Section is drawn from various areas of humanities and social sciences. All questions are answerable using only information presented in the passages and accompanying questions, so there is no content to learn. The key is being able to comprehend the text both literally and abstractly, and being able to apply the passage’s information to the question being asked.

• Psych/Soc - The Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior Section includes passages that provide some of the information needed to answer questions, combined with your own external knowledge from the following subject areas:

  • Introductory psychology, 65%: the detection and perception of sensory information; cognition, emotion and stress, the individual psychological factors that affect behavior
  • Introductory sociology, 30%: social factors like groups and social norms, learning, attitude theories, the notion of self and identity formation; attitudes, beliefs, actions and processes that affect social interaction; social structures and human interactions, demographic characteristics and processes that define a society; social class, including theories of stratification, social mobility, and poverty
  • Introductory biology, 5%: the individual biological factors that affect behavior

• Chem/Phys - The Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems Section includes passages and occasional discrete questions based on these topics:

  • First-semester biochemistry, 25%: Amino acids, peptides, proteins; metabolism, carbohydrates, bio membranes
  • Introductory biology, 5%: molecules and chemical composition of cell components
  • General chemistry, 30%: Electrochemistry, atoms, nuclear decay, electronic structure, and atomic chemical behavior; nature of water and its solutions
  • Organic chemistry, 15%: Nature of molecules and intermolecular interactions, separation and purification methods
  • Introductory physics, 25%: Translational motion, forces, work, energy, and equilibrium; fluids for the circulation of blood, gas movement, and gas exchange; electrical circuits, light and sound, principles of chemical thermodynamics and kinetics; structure, function, and reactivity of molecules

• Bio/Biochem - The Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems Section includes passages and occasional discrete questions based on these topics:

  • First-semester biochemistry, 25%: proteins and their amino acids, Transmission of genetic information and heredity, bioenergetics and metabolism
  • Introductory biology, 65%: molecules, cells, and groups of cells; prokaryotes and viruses, cell division, differentiation, and specialization; nervous and endocrine systems, main organ systems
  • General chemistry, 5%: basic general chemistry principles included in other science sections
  • Organic chemistry, 5%: basic organic chemistry principles included in other science sections

Chapter mapping

Achievable’s MCAT course is structured around the AAMC’s official content category framework. The table below shows how each chapter maps to the corresponding AAMC categories, so you can plan your studying in a targeted, efficient way.

AAMC content category	Achievable chapter(s)
1A: Structure and function of proteins and their constituent amino acids	• Amino acids • Enzyme structure, function and activity • Protein structure and non-enzymatic functions
1B: Transmission of genetic information from the gene to the protein	• Eu/prokaryote chromosomes and gene expression • Genetic code • Nucleic acid structure, replication and repair • Transcription and translation • Recombinant DNA and biotechnology
1C: Transmission of heritable information from generation to generation and the processes that increase genetic diversity	• Evolution and analytic methods in inheritance • Meiosis and other factors affecting genetic variability • Mendelian concepts
1D: Principles of bioenergetics and fuel molecule metabolism	• Bioenergetics, free energy, ATP and redox in biology • Carbohydrates • Glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, metabolic regulation • Citric acid cycle, ETP, OP, hormonal regulation
2A: Assemblies of molecules, cells, and groups of cells within single cellular and multicellular organisms	• Plasma membrane • Membrane-bound organelles, characteristics of eukaryotic cells
2B: The structure, growth, physiology, and genetics of prokaryotes and viruses	• Cell Theory, prokaryote structure and physiology • Virus structure and life cycle
2C: Processes of cell division, differentiation, and specialization	• Cell cycle and mitosis • Cellular aspects of reproduction and development
3A: Structure and functions of the nervous and endocrine systems and ways in which these systems coordinate the organ systems	• Lipids and the endocrine system • Nerve cells, electrochemistry and biosignalling • Nervous system
3B: Structure and integrative functions of the main organ systems	• Circulatory system • Digestive system • Excretory and reproductive systems • Muscular and skeletal systems • Respiratory system • Integumentary (skin, hair, nails) system • Lymphatic and immune systems
4A: Translational motion, forces, work, energy, and equilibrium in living systems	• Equilibrium and work • Force • Translational motion • Work, energy, periodic motion, wave characteristics
4B: Importance of fluids for the circulation of blood, gas movement, and gas exchange	• Fluids and circulatory system fluids • Gas phase
4C: Electrochemistry and electrical circuits and their elements	• Circuit elements, conductivity, and magnetism • Electrochemistry and nerve cells • Electrostatics
4D: How light and sound interact with matter	• Geometrical optics • Molecular structure and absorption spectra • Sound • Light, electromagnetic radiation
4E: Atoms, nuclear decay, electronic structure, and atomic chemical behavior	• Atomic nucleus and electronic structure • Stoichiometry • The periodic table
5A: Unique nature of water and its solutions	• Acid/base equilibria • Ions in solution, solubility, titration
5B: Nature of molecules and intermolecular interaction	• Covalent bonds • Liquid phase - Intermolecular forces • Multiple bonding and stereochemistry
5C: Separation and purification methods	• Separation and purification methods
5D: Structure, function, and reactivity of biologically-relevant molecules	• Alcohols and carboxylic acids • Protein structure, non-enz protein function, lipids • Nucleic acids, amino acids, proteins • Carbohydrates, aldehydes and ketones • Acid derivatives, phenols, polycyclic and heterocyclic aromatics
5E: Principles of chemical thermodynamics and kinetics	• Bioenergetics, thermochemistry and thermodynamics • Rate processes in chemical reactions - Kinetics and equilibrium • Enzymes
6A: Sensing the environment	• Sensory perception • Signal detection and sensory adaptation • Psychophysics and receptors • Sensory pathways and sleep physiology • Touch/somatosensation • Vision • Hearing • Gustation • Olfactory, kinesthesia and vestibular
6B: Making sense of the environment	• Attention • Cognition, cognitive development and issues • Intelligence/intellectual ability • Consciousness and sleep • Conscious-altering drugs and drug addiction • Memory and processing, sensory and short-term memory • Working and long-term memory, forgetting • Memory dysfunction, neural networks and plasticity • Language
6C: Responding to the world	• Emotion • Stress
7A: Individual influences on behavior	• Bio basis behavior and components of CNS • Endocrine system and behavior • Human physiological development • Personality • Psychological disorders • Motivation • Attitudes
7B: Social processes that influence human behavior	• How presence of others affects behavior • Agents of socialization
7C: Attitude and behavior change	• Habituation and classical conditioning • Operant conditioning • Observational learning
8A: Self-Identity	• Self-identity
8B: Social thinking	• Prejudice and bias, stereotypes, stigma, ethnocentrism • Situation and disposition’s influence
8C: Social interactions	• Aggression, attachment, altruism • Discrimination • Groups and organizations • Self-presentation and interacting with others
9A: Understanding social structure	• Culture • Education as a social institution • Family as a social institution • Government and economy as social institutions • Health and medicine • Religion as a social institution • Theoretical approaches
9B: Demographic characteristics	• Age and gender as demographics • Demographic shifts and populations • Race and ethnicity as demographics • Social movements, globalization, urbanization
10A: Social inequality	• Power, privilege, poverty, health disparities • Spatial inequality and social class

Final thoughts

The textbook’s wrap-up section includes more details about taking the MCAT exam, including how to register, exam cost, and test-taking options.

You can move through the course at your own pace and prioritize sections based on your needs. Use the quiz items built into each chapter to strengthen both recall and application skills.

Welcome to the Achievable MCAT Online Course.