I highly recommend giving Anki a try to see for yourself how effective it is for studying for the MCAT.

Classification of certain molecules (strong acids, exceptions to rules, etc.).

Metabolism processes (glycolysis, krebs, glycogen pathways, etc.).

Anything you deem memorization-heavy is fair game, but here’s where I put my focus: Biology But for the MCAT, a test that is highly application-based, there are certain topics that work really well with Anki. What kinds of concepts should I use Anki for?īy the time you get into medical school, the answer to that question is: basically everything. Unlike other forms of studying, you don’t necessarily need a large stretch of time to reach your flow state when you use Anki. The great thing about Anki is that even short bursts of review - during your commute, when you have an awkward pocket of time, in the bathroom, etc - are all extremely effective.

Sure, learning new cards on the first pass may take extra time, but as you continue to review and master a portion of the deck, you’ll start speeding through those cards. Spaced repetition only works if you’re actually sticking to the schedule for card review. Everyone has different suggestions for what works best (see Essential Anki addons : Anki), but here’s a quick glance at what I have: The Anki interface is extremely barebones, but the power of it is that you can append “add-ons” to your application that will enhance all sorts of features for your studying. The most common card types that I’d recommend for the MCAT are: basic, cloze deletion, and image occlusion. Unlike typical blank flashcards, you can customize the card type in Anki to best suit the topic at hand. If you don’t have the time to make each card yourself, you can download other people’s decks and load them into your own Anki app. There are tons of open-source decks that other people have made and shared on the internet (just look through Reddit).

With Anki, you can either create your own flashcards (which inherently helps you learn the material) or use pre-made decks. Here’s a guide for how to get started with Anki and tailor the app for your MCAT studying. Because of this, spaced repetition has been shown to be incredibly effective for studying. With Anki, the time intervals gradually increase so that you’re no longer mindlessly reviewing cards that are already ingrained in your memory. So every time you study with typical flashcards, you’re forced to review cards you already know well and do not spend enough time on the cards you’re still memorizing. Typical flashcard applications are uncustomizable in terms of when you study the different cards in your deck. When you learn a new card, you can indicate your mastery of the concept and Anki will automatically schedule its next review time for you (see below). The developers of Anki thoroughly researched spaced repetition and integrated the technique into the application. Cards that are difficult for you will be displayed much more frequently than cards you have mastered. Spaced repetition is an evidence-based learning concept centered around creating variable time intervals between each card review. However, it’s the second point that makes Anki unique and particularly helpful for studying for the MCAT. The first point is really nothing new, as you can get the same features from Quizlet or paper flashcards. Schedule your learning and review of these cards using spaced repetition.

Create your own curated decks of flashcards.What is Anki?Īnki is a powerful flashcard application (mobile and desktop)* that allows you to: So here’s my guide for how you can use Anki to study for the MCAT.

And let me tell you, it has completely changed the efficacy of my studying. Then I heard about an application called Anki. Sure, I used the occasional Quizlet, but it always felt mundane and ineffective. If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably never taken a strong liking to flashcards.

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