Settling into a CARS rhythm

There are 12 CARS lessons in this course. Some lessons have a direct test-taking focus, while others center on themes of rhetorical analysis such as the structure of argument. There is not a firm distinction between two types of lessons, however. A great deal of test-taking advice makes its way into all of the lessons. It should take about two or three hours to complete the CARS work in each module.

It's very important to establish a regular discipline with CARS early on in the course. One thing that is helpful in MCAT review is to remember that you can make doing some things you need to do into a reward for doing other things you also need to do but which are more onerous. The Premack principle is a theory of reinforcement that states that a less desired behavior can be reinforced by the opportunity to engage in a more desired behavior. CARS can serve as a welcome change of pace in MCAT review. Imagine on a certain day you plan to do two hours of chemistry problems along with an hour of CARS and an hour of psychology. Make the CARS and psychology a reward for doing the chemistry. Schedule an hour of chemistry. At 40 minutes when you start to feel like a trapped animal, you can say, "Okay, 20 more minutes and I get to do CARS!". After CARS, go back to chemistry for the second hour. Then you can do psychology! During the first few weeks, it can be a big challenge to establish and stick to your study schedule. This works!

Reading with attitude

The lesson in module 2, Reader response, is about reading with confidence and hearing the voice of the writer. The lesson also presents a method for analyzing the results of the Question Pack Vol. 1 exercise from lesson 1.

AAMC Diagnostic Tool

There are additional instructional resources for CARS included within Step 1 of the Official Prep CARS Diagnostic Tool. Step 1 is an assignment this module. We suggest you hold off on continuing into Step 2 at this time. We're reserving the passages of Step 2 for later in the course. In the interim modules, we'll take our assignments instead from the passages in Question Pack Volumes 1 & 2.