Top 2 MCAT Prep Courses: The Princeton Review  &  ExamKrackers 101

Number 2:  The Princeton Review MCAT Prep Course 

If you consider Kaplan to be the McDonald's of the MCAT Prep Universe, then The Princeton Review is the Burger King.  Those who don't like Kaplan usually end up enrolled in The Princeton Review courses and it is also a quality way to prepare for the MCAT.  The Princeton Review has many similarities to Kaplan and comes in a bit more forgiving on the bank account.  A self-prep course costs only $1,699 with the most popular In-Class course coming in at $2,199.  This is nearly $1,000 less than Kaplan so it is a good alternative to consider if money is not a luxury.  

With enrollment, students will receive 123 hours of In-class and On-line tutelage with over 650 hours of material to work through. Students will also have access to 14 practice tests with the purchase as well as personalized reviews to help target what they are weak in.  

When studying for my MCAT, I had friends that chose Princeton Review material over Kaplan and I heard good things about their course. The course textbooks provide more detail about topics than Kaplan in subjects like Physics and Biochemistry and can help you feel more comfortable with the material.  It was also easy to digest and I found myself switching between textbooks at times to have a deeper understanding of the material.  A few friends did complain that their teachers were not as thorough as what I experiences in Kaplan so be aware that this could be an issue if you are leaning towards Princeton Review at the moment.  

Number 3:  ExamKrackers 101 MCAT Prep Course 

Keeping up with our fast food metaphor, ExamKrackers would probably be the Wendy's in the MCAT Prep Universe.  Some people will prefer this one over the others but in reality, it is not as popular as either Kaplan or The Princeton Review.  ExamKrackers does not offer an On-line Self-Paced option like the other two but does provide an Intensive Six-Week Course to quickly run through the material leading up to a test.  This costs $475 and a student will have 18 hours of classroom experience.  Students also have the option of enrolling in a more conventional classroom like Kaplan and Princeton and this is the cheapest of the three coming in at $1,848.99.  A student will have 72 hours of course material and access to over 3,300 MCAT-styled practice questions.  You will also have access to 8 practice tests in order to maximize your study time.  

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ExamKrackers may not have the magnitude of study material or coursework that the other two provide but what was beneficial about ExamKrackers is the textbooks you can purchase to supplement your study material.  Out of the three, these books are the most detailed and comprehensive so you will be able to understand almost all topics without much difficulty once you read through the material. I found them as a great tool to supplement my Kaplan course and found that they provided a different perspective that really simplified a difficult concept.