NSTP Materials Overview
Posted: Fri May 20, 2016 2:18 pm
To excel on the exam, MCAT students should accomplish three things in their prep: brushing up on content, practicing reasoning skills, and simulating the real exam. Our materials are designed to help with all three of these tasks. To that end, we have the following materials available. Note that we released a significant update to our books in November 2017, so we have listed both our previous and new book offerings below.
NOVEMBER 20, 2017 and EARLIER
1. Content Review Series
Our content review series is exactly what it says: a series of review books meant to help you brush up on all of the content that's on the MCAT. Each chapter has one or more short passages at the end that are focused more on learning the materials. More importantly, each section of our books ends with a section review test with dozens and dozens of content questions and each book ends with hundreds of content review questions in a final exam.
Overall, each content review book contains over 1000 questions designed to help you master the material through lots of drills.
The content review books are: "Biology and Biochemistry," "Chemistry and Organic Chemistry," "Psychology and Sociology," and "Physics and Math" (which includes a discussion about experimental design).
Please note that the Content Review books do not contain full MCAT sections or even full, complex, experiment-based MCAT passages - the sole purpose of the Content Review books is to review the science that's on the exam.
2. Strategy and Practice Series
If you've already got plenty of content review (through another set of books, prep company, Khan, etc.) and you're just looking for lots of practice, our Strategy and Practice series is exactly what you need. Each book contains several full, timed sections for you to practice your skills. Each book also has a strategy discussion in the beginning and self-study guides at the end.
We have one strategy and practice book for each of the four sections on the test: Biological Foundations, Chemical Foundations, Psychological Foundations, and CARS. The books are titled "Biology and Biochemistry Strategy and Practice," "Chemistry and Physics Strategy and Practice," "Psychology and Sociology Strategy and Practice," and "CARS Practice," respectively.
NOVEMBER 21 and LATER
November 2017 Updates to Next Step Books
As of November 2017, we have combined our Content Review and Strategy and Practice series into a single six-book set. This book set is titled our "MCAT Review" series and contains both content and practice (in the form of discretes and passages). We did this in an effort to make our books more manageable while also combining content and strategy in the same place - just as you'll need to do for the MCAT.
The MCAT Review volumes are as follows: "Biology," "Biochemistry," "Chemistry and Organic Chemistry," "Physics," "Psychology and Sociology," and "Verbal, Quantitative, and Research Methods." Each science volume contains one passage and a set of discretes after each chapter, where the passage and discretes are relevant to the topics covered. In this way, you can test your understanding of the chapter material with MCAT-style practice right away.
Note that if you were an existing student of our online MCAT Course at the time of this update, or if you were an existing Next Step tutoring student, you have the option to receive digital versions of these new books, free of charge. However, if you are already well into your prep using the previous book sets, we recommend continuing to prep as planned, since interrupting your prep to switch to an entirely different set of content books may be disorienting (and unnecessary).
UNCHANGED IN THE NOVEMBER 2017 UPDATE
3. Additional Practice Series
In addition to the books discussed above, we also have books specifically designed for the student who wants ONLY one thing: practice questions. If you've already gotten all the content review you need, and have reviewed strategy through our S&P books or through another source, and all you want is tons and TONS of practice, our Additional Practice books fit the bill.
108 Passages in CARS: Just what it says. One dozen timed CARS sections. The only book on the market that gives you wall-to-wall CARS practice along with in-depth explanations that analyze both the passages and all of the answer choices.
QBook - Over 2,000 Science Discrete Questions (forthcoming): If you've already got plenty of passage practice (through something like Next Step's 10 pack of Full Lengths) and what you really want is to just grind out thousands of science questions to help bolster your content and question-analyzing skills, this is the book for you. It has over 2,000 discrete questions covering all MCAT content in the exact content proportions found on the real MCAT.
4. Full Length Online Practice Tests
Next Step Test Prep is offering the best full-length exams in the industry. We have built these practice tests from the ground up for the revised MCAT (no re-purposing old tests here!) and scrupulously adhered to the AAMC style. Our exams offer a rigorous test-like experience to get you the best possible simulation for the new exam.
We've also seen how companies in the past have offered their exams and we know we can do a better job. First, you're not obligated to spend thousands of dollars signing up for our full package just to get our practice tests. You can buy just the tests, if that's all you want. Next, we'll give you six months of access and allow you to take your tests multiple times, from multiple different computers. And finally, you can start taking your practice tests from the moment you sign up - no delays with paperwork or other hassles.
Our goal was to create the best tests with the most convenient user experience, and we think we've done that.
NOVEMBER 20, 2017 and EARLIER
1. Content Review Series
Our content review series is exactly what it says: a series of review books meant to help you brush up on all of the content that's on the MCAT. Each chapter has one or more short passages at the end that are focused more on learning the materials. More importantly, each section of our books ends with a section review test with dozens and dozens of content questions and each book ends with hundreds of content review questions in a final exam.
Overall, each content review book contains over 1000 questions designed to help you master the material through lots of drills.
The content review books are: "Biology and Biochemistry," "Chemistry and Organic Chemistry," "Psychology and Sociology," and "Physics and Math" (which includes a discussion about experimental design).
Please note that the Content Review books do not contain full MCAT sections or even full, complex, experiment-based MCAT passages - the sole purpose of the Content Review books is to review the science that's on the exam.
2. Strategy and Practice Series
If you've already got plenty of content review (through another set of books, prep company, Khan, etc.) and you're just looking for lots of practice, our Strategy and Practice series is exactly what you need. Each book contains several full, timed sections for you to practice your skills. Each book also has a strategy discussion in the beginning and self-study guides at the end.
We have one strategy and practice book for each of the four sections on the test: Biological Foundations, Chemical Foundations, Psychological Foundations, and CARS. The books are titled "Biology and Biochemistry Strategy and Practice," "Chemistry and Physics Strategy and Practice," "Psychology and Sociology Strategy and Practice," and "CARS Practice," respectively.
NOVEMBER 21 and LATER
November 2017 Updates to Next Step Books
As of November 2017, we have combined our Content Review and Strategy and Practice series into a single six-book set. This book set is titled our "MCAT Review" series and contains both content and practice (in the form of discretes and passages). We did this in an effort to make our books more manageable while also combining content and strategy in the same place - just as you'll need to do for the MCAT.
The MCAT Review volumes are as follows: "Biology," "Biochemistry," "Chemistry and Organic Chemistry," "Physics," "Psychology and Sociology," and "Verbal, Quantitative, and Research Methods." Each science volume contains one passage and a set of discretes after each chapter, where the passage and discretes are relevant to the topics covered. In this way, you can test your understanding of the chapter material with MCAT-style practice right away.
Note that if you were an existing student of our online MCAT Course at the time of this update, or if you were an existing Next Step tutoring student, you have the option to receive digital versions of these new books, free of charge. However, if you are already well into your prep using the previous book sets, we recommend continuing to prep as planned, since interrupting your prep to switch to an entirely different set of content books may be disorienting (and unnecessary).
UNCHANGED IN THE NOVEMBER 2017 UPDATE
3. Additional Practice Series
In addition to the books discussed above, we also have books specifically designed for the student who wants ONLY one thing: practice questions. If you've already gotten all the content review you need, and have reviewed strategy through our S&P books or through another source, and all you want is tons and TONS of practice, our Additional Practice books fit the bill.
108 Passages in CARS: Just what it says. One dozen timed CARS sections. The only book on the market that gives you wall-to-wall CARS practice along with in-depth explanations that analyze both the passages and all of the answer choices.
QBook - Over 2,000 Science Discrete Questions (forthcoming): If you've already got plenty of passage practice (through something like Next Step's 10 pack of Full Lengths) and what you really want is to just grind out thousands of science questions to help bolster your content and question-analyzing skills, this is the book for you. It has over 2,000 discrete questions covering all MCAT content in the exact content proportions found on the real MCAT.
4. Full Length Online Practice Tests
Next Step Test Prep is offering the best full-length exams in the industry. We have built these practice tests from the ground up for the revised MCAT (no re-purposing old tests here!) and scrupulously adhered to the AAMC style. Our exams offer a rigorous test-like experience to get you the best possible simulation for the new exam.
We've also seen how companies in the past have offered their exams and we know we can do a better job. First, you're not obligated to spend thousands of dollars signing up for our full package just to get our practice tests. You can buy just the tests, if that's all you want. Next, we'll give you six months of access and allow you to take your tests multiple times, from multiple different computers. And finally, you can start taking your practice tests from the moment you sign up - no delays with paperwork or other hassles.
Our goal was to create the best tests with the most convenient user experience, and we think we've done that.