A Family's Cry...
5 years ago
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Hmmm. Thoughts on teaching MCAT test prep?
So has anyone taught for a MCAT prep course before, and if so, is it worth it? How much time does it require to prep for the sessions? I am just supposed to be teaching bio right now so I think I know the material pretty well, but I'm wondering about all the other class specific stuff that comes along with it. Is this an appropriate job/time commitment for a 2nd year med student??
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I'm outside (for now) of med school looking in, but I think you'll find this a bit low-yield as an income generator, especially at first. In the beginning, as you're re-familiarizing yourself with the material (there's plenty on the MCAT BS section that isn't stressed much in MS1/MS2) you'll have to put in some significant prep time outside of the classroom. Remember, there will be plenty of gunners in your class that will want to ask questions above and beyond what you'll be trying to cover, and you are expected to be the expert who can at least point them in the right direction. As you move on to your 2nd/3rd/etc iteration of teaching the material, your prep becomes less and less. Prep time is individual, of course, and your number of times getting prepped for the exam will be an asset here. Being a current matriculated student will also give you some instant cred in the class, and you'll get lots of questions about that and requests for application preparation coaching. Best of luck.
ReplyDeleteI've taught for a popular MCAT prep company before and I know that in my case it wouldn't be worth it in medical school unless I knew for sure I'd only ever be teaching bio. The other science sections take a lot of prep time in order to catch the mistakes in the teacher's lesson book and answer student questions adequately (being only 2 semesters past the material, it took me roughly 5-6 hours per session of out of class time).
ReplyDeleteBut if you're sure they'll only ask you to teach bio, it could definitely be worth it. Teaching is rewarding. The only downside is potentially the strategy that they ask you to teach - and that depends on which test prep company you're with and how you feel about it. I'd make sure that you're clear on how their strategy works, and whether it's something you can endorse without feeling guilty.
I disagreed with a major point of my company's strategy, but taught it anyway on the basis that the students were paying $2,000 for my company's opinions, not for mine. But when students struggled with the strategy, I felt guilty about it.
When I moved for medical school, I could've signed up with the company here (and it would've taken me closer to 1-2 hours to prep each lecture now), but since there's 2-3 classes a week, 3 hours each, it still would've been too much time for me as an M1.
I know your case is different, but hopefully that helps.
Thanks for the info! This pretty much reinforced how I feel, and I don't think I'll be doing this. I'm not very good at pushing nonsense, and a friend of mine worked for them and said it was 99% corporate BS. Bleh.
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