Princeton Review MCAT Review

Princeton Review Self-Paced Course

The self-paced course is their standard option. This is the most affordable option of the bunch and is their base package. With that being said, it is a really great course. It comes in 2 options:

• 12-Month
• 6-Month

Students will be able to complete the course at their own pace and study when they want. The course includes the following key items:

• 500+ video hours
• 4,900+ questions
• 17 full-length exams
• 12 subject practice exams
• 35 diagnostic exams
• 8 physical textbooks
• All official AAMC resources

This course includes a money-back and satisfaction guarantee.

Bottom Line: Very comprehensive course. Great for someone who has the discipline to self-study at their own pace.

Princeton Review Ultimate Course

The Ultimate course is a step-up from the self-paced course. This package is pretty much the self-paced course along with 123 hours of classroom hours (online or in person). The key items included in this course are:

• 123 hours in the classroom (live or in person)
• 500+ video hours
• 4,900+ questions
• 17 full-length exams
• 12 subject practice exams
• 35 diagnostic exams
• 9 physical textbooks
• All official AAMC resources

This course also includes a money-back and satisfaction guarantee. Note, this package only lasts for the duration of your program. This is typically about 3-4 months.

Bottom Line: Excellent option for students who are looking for some additional features and enjoy learning in a live environment.

Princeton Review 515+ Course

The Princeton MCAT 515+ course is where we start to get into the “heavy-hitting” options. This course is called the 515+ course because they guarantee a 15+ point score increase or a 515+ score. Princeton Review boasts that this course has a refund rate of less than 2%.

The key features in the MCAT 515+ course are:

• 123 hours in the classroom (live or in person)
• 500+ video hours
• 4,900+ questions
• 17 full-length exams
• 12 subject practice exams
• 35 diagnostic exams
• 9 physical textbooks
• Unlimited access to everything for 365 days
• Unlimited Q&A sessions with instructors
• Access to topic focus sessions
• All official AAMC resources

This course includes a 515+ score guarantee (if you already scored 500 or higher) or a 15+ point increase (if you scored less than 500 to start).

When you signup for this course, you will be able to pick a block of dates that best fit your needs. These dates usually run about 2.5 months.

Bottom Line: If you are looking for a top score and something to ensure that you stay on top of your studies, the 515+ course is a great option.

Princeton Review MCAT Features

Since most of these courses include cross over between features, we will review all of those features and what they look like below.

Coursework

Princeton Review offers very comprehensive coursework. All of the courses above contain 500+ hours of detailed video lessons, 4,700+ practice questions, and 17+ practice exams.

The “coursework” tab is where all of your learning will take place. The course is divided into 6 sections. Each of those 6 sections is further broken down into specific topics. The course follows a great flow.

Each of those specific topics has the following:

1. Before Class: Prepare for the class/lesson. This usually includes instructions on which chapters to read, some primer questions, and more.
2. Class: This includes the actual class and online videos.
3. After Class: This includes practice questions and quizzes to reinforce the concepts taught.

The on-demand video lessons are usually shorter in duration – lasting between 5 and 20 minutes. The instructor uses a digital whiteboard to make notes and annotations. Users will find these lessons are straight and to the point. They are relatively un-engaging and can be dry at times.

With that being said, the lessons get the job done and teach the concepts. These videos lessons are strictly business.

The before class aspect is unique and helpful. The primer questions, diagnostic questions, and sample passages help you develop a base of knowledge that will help you better follow along during the actual lesson.

The after-class portion is also a nice feature. The material in this portion includes drills, passages, and questions to ensure that you grasped the material that was taught.

Overall, the way Princeton Review organizes their content is very helpful and makes logical sense. Having a before-class, class, and after-class section for every topic is really great. The videos are a little dry and boring, but you will learn what you need to learn from them.

Practice Tests

Every option Princeton Review offers includes 16 full-length practice exams. Princeton Review values their practice exams, which is why they include 16.

Princeton Review matches the feel of the actual exam with their practice tests. The exams match the questions, format, structure, and feel of the actual exam. It is a very underrated feature that the format and structure matches the actual exam.

After each practice test, you will be given a detailed score report. These reports break down each section and each question. The report is super detailed and allows you to review every single question which includes an answer explanation and the concept that it is testing (so you can review if you want).

The score reports are well-designed and should be utilized by everyone who takes these practice exams. You can learn more by reviewing the questions and why they are wrong than by taking the actual practice exams.

LiveOnline Classes

The LiveOnline classes are included in every option besides the self-paced course. Students will receive 123 hours of instruction.

These LiveOnline classes really give you a sense of being in a classroom. The classes are taught by subject matter experts, not one specific instructor. This is an underrated feature as you are being taught by someone who strictly focuses on that specific MCAT topic.

There are typically 4-6 subject matter experts at any given time. TPR MCAT does a great job of finding and training these subject matter experts. You can rest assured that you are getting the best of the best with these subject matter experts.

The instructors we had when we took the course seemed very engaged and like they actually cared about the other students in the course. They took time to explain complex concepts and ensured that everyone understood the material.

Students were asking questions in the comments and sidebar conversations were had. The instructor would answer any questions that arose during the lessons. Finally, personalized homework was assigned after the lesson which included readings, passages, and questions.

User Interface

The Princeton Review user interface is easy to navigate and very simple. To be honest, we like the simplicity of it, but it is not the most modern interface we have seen. You can easily navigate everywhere you need to be and find what you are looking for.

The navigation bar at the top is broken down into the main portions of the course, so you can easily navigate to different parts of the course. The organization of the course content makes sense and it is easy to see what you have completed.

The dashboard gives you a summary of your current test scores and what your goal scores are. You can edit your goals from the dashboard as well. The dashboard is very simple and does not have as many features as some of the other dashboards we have seen from other MCAT prep classes.

The only issue we have with the user experience of these courses is the quality of the videos. The videos are a little outdated and not the highest quality. However, they present useful information and help you learn the material, so we give them a pass on this.

Books

Every course includes physical textbooks that are shipped to you when you purchase a Princeton MCAT prep product. The books are made and published by Princeton Review. You will be given chapters to read throughout your courses.

Once you read the chapters, you can mark them as “in-progress” or “completed” within your prep course so you can keep track of your progress. The textbooks are classic textbooks and are very in-depth.