How Long Should You Study for the MCAT?
By
30 Day MCAT Team
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Published
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Updated
Most students prepare for more than two months. In the AAMC survey, 74% of examinees prepared for more than eight weeks, and about half studied over 20 hours a week. Your own timeline depends on your starting point, your target score, and the hours you can protect each week. This guide shows you how to build an MCAT study timeline that fits your schedule.
Key Takeaways
There's no official number. The AAMC says there's no conclusive evidence about a right or wrong way to prepare, and it points students to a plan built around the time they actually have.
Most examinees study for months, not weeks. In the AAMC survey, 74% prepared for more than eight weeks.
Weeks and weekly hours work together. Your total study time is weeks multiplied by hours per week, so a shorter timeline means bigger weeks.
Work and school stretch your timeline. In the AAMC's Post-MCAT Questionnaire, 59.0% of respondents said balancing study time with a job was a challenge.
A 30-day plan is a last resort. It can work if you can study full time, but we recommend a longer timeline whenever your schedule allows.
How Long Should You Study for the MCAT?
The honest answer is that it depends on your starting point, your target score, and how many hours you can study each week. The AAMC's study-plan guide says there's no conclusive evidence about a right or wrong way to prepare, and it asks you to build a plan around your own schedule and how well you already know the content.
So what can you use instead of a magic number? The AAMC asks examinees how much time they spent preparing, and it reports the results in its study-plan guide (see the Sources list for details). Here is what examinees reported.
Weeks spent preparing:
0 to 8 weeks: 26% of respondents
9 to 12 weeks: 27%
13 to 16 weeks: 19%
More than 16 weeks: 28%
Hours per week:
0 to 10 hours: 21% of respondents
11 to 20 hours: 28%
21 to 30 hours: 22%
More than 30 hours: 29%
Add those up and 74% of respondents prepared for more than eight weeks, while 51% studied more than 20 hours a week. These are survey answers from people who had already taken the exam. They describe what examinees did, not what guarantees a score, so use them as a range to check your own plan against, not as a target.
How to Work Out Your Own MCAT Study Timeline
Total study time is just weeks multiplied by hours per week, so you can trade one for the other. (Don't worry, it's the only math in this post.) Here's a simple way to turn the range above into a plan that fits your life.
Find your starting point. Take a full-length practice exam before you study anything, ideally in one sitting, so you can see where you stand in each section. The AAMC recommends this in its study-plan guide.
Count your real hours. List your classes, work, family time and everything else, then work out how many hours you can actually study each week.
Pick a test date you can work back from. The AAMC suggests checking its MCAT testing calendar and your application deadlines to see which test dates fit.
Do the math. Multiply your weekly hours by the weeks until your test date. For example, 12 weeks at 20 hours a week is 240 hours. Stretch the same 240 hours over 16 weeks and it's 15 hours a week. Squeeze it into 8 weeks and it's 30 hours a week.
Check in after a few weeks. The AAMC notes that your plan will likely change, and it suggests taking a second full-length practice exam to see how far you've come.
Those numbers are only examples of the arithmetic, not a recommended total. The right total is whatever it takes to get from your first practice exam score to your target score, which is why that first exam is the best place to start.
How Much Time Do You Need If You Work or Take Classes?
If you're juggling a job, classes or family, plan for a longer runway. In the AAMC's Post-MCAT Questionnaire, which about 15,000 examinees answered, 59.0% of respondents said balancing time between studying and their job was a challenge. Another 48.9% said the same about school, and 49.2% about family obligations.
That's why the same number of total hours can take much longer when your week is already full. If this sounds like you, you can lower your weekly hours and extend the timeline, protect a few fixed study blocks instead of studying whenever you find a gap, and plan lighter weeks around exams or busy stretches.
If you're in a gap year with open days, you can compress your timeline. Just make sure the weekly schedule you pick is one you can keep up for the whole stretch.
What Should Your Study Weeks Include?
Time matters, but so does what you do with it. In the same survey, 75.8% of respondents said they created a study plan to fit their schedule, 79.2% used a practice exam to find their strengths and weaknesses, 75.5% focused study time on their weaker subjects, and 80.5% tracked their progress with practice exams. These are things examinees reported doing, not proof that any one of them raised a score, but they make a sensible checklist for each week:
Review content, starting with your weakest areas.
Answer practice questions as you study each topic. 85.9% of respondents did this.
Take a full-length practice exam at the start and again after a few weeks.
Plan breaks. 58.8% of respondents planned time for relaxation or breaks.
Expect the plan itself to be the hard part. In the same survey, 61.6% had difficulty getting through the amount of material, and 42.4% had difficulty sticking to their study plan. If that's you, you're in good company, and building in extra weeks is a sign of good planning, not a lack of ability.
Can You Study for the MCAT in 30 Days?
Sometimes, but it's a last resort. At 30 Day MCAT, we build 30-day plans for some students, depending on where they are in their prep and how much time they have. A 30-day plan can work if you can study full time and give the exam your complete attention. It's hard to sustain, though, and we recommend a longer timeline whenever your schedule allows.
If 30 days is all you have, protect long daily study blocks, start with your weakest sections, and use practice exams early to decide where your time goes. The AAMC's guide also advises taking the MCAT only once you feel fully prepared, so keep your test date flexible until your practice scores say you're ready. Rescheduling fees may apply, so check the AAMC's deadlines.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many hours should you study for the MCAT?
There's no official total. The AAMC survey showed a wide spread, from 10 hours a week or less (21% of respondents) to more than 30 hours a week (29%). Use your first practice exam and your weekly availability to set a total, then adjust as you go.
When should you start studying for the MCAT?
Start by taking a full-length practice exam and picking a test date from the AAMC's testing calendar. Then work backward from that date, adding extra weeks if you work or take classes. The right start date is the one that gives you enough weeks to reach your weekly hours without burning out.
How many hours a day should you study for the MCAT?
It depends on your weekly total. Studying 20 hours a week works out to just under three hours a day if you study every day, and 30 hours a week is a little over four hours a day. You can also spread the same hours across fewer days with longer sessions.
Is two months enough to study for the MCAT?
It can be, if you can put in enough hours each week. In the AAMC survey, 26% of respondents prepared for eight weeks or less and 27% for nine to twelve weeks. Whether two months works for you depends on your starting score, your target score, and the hours you can protect each week.
Can you study for the MCAT in 30 days?
Some students do, but we treat it as a last resort. It works best if you can study full time. If you have more time, we recommend using it.
How do you know when you're ready to take the MCAT?
The AAMC suggests taking a full-length practice exam under test-day conditions and comparing your results with where you started. It also says to take the MCAT only once you feel fully prepared, and you can reschedule if you aren't ready (fees may apply).
Put It Into Practice
Start with a full-length practice exam, count your real weekly hours, and work backward from a test date. If you'd like help turning that into a day-by-day schedule, that's what our MCAT preparation course is built around. It was created by doctors who scored in the 90th percentile and above, and it includes a personalized study schedule based on your start date and test date, with daily study tasks and built-in review days.
Not sure which timeline fits you? Take our qualification quiz to see if you're a fit. Qualified students can book a free strategy call with one of our MCAT instructors to talk through their goals, timeline and next steps.
