Module 1 - Let's get started
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Getting started with CARS
As with the Psy-Soc section, CARS has a way of taking a back seat to the science sections in MCAT preparation. People put off starting work on these two sections and, then, when the sciences never let up, they keep putting it off until late in MCAT review. Whatever you do for two weeks in MCAT preparation becomes a habit. The sciences will take more time, but make Psy-Soc and CARS a priority from the start. Taking this attitude will pay great dividends for your cumulative score. CARS only needs two or three hours per week. If you make it a habit from the beginning, you can achieve a great score in CARS. You might discover you have a higher potential for CARS than you think.
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Orientation
Lesson 1 helps us get oriented to the CARS section. In Let's get started, we introduce the curriculum of our CARS lessons. We also inventory the CARS resources at AAMC Prep Hub and introduce some 3rd party resources that might be helpful for you.
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Practice Passages
First week science passages are generally a bad idea. You want some structure to your knowledge base first. Otherwise, some of the passages will come across as ridiculously brutal, and it can hard to overcome this perception later. It's not that way with CARS. The best orientation to CARS is to do some passages at the start. As an assignment this module, we will try our hand with some passages from CARS Question Pack Vol. 1 at Prep Hub. You might wonder why we're not starting with the AAMC CARS Diagnostic Tool. We're saving Step 1 of the AAMC CARS Diagnostic Tool until next lesson.