Jack Westin MCAT Podcast

MCAT CARS Reading Skills Workshop: Struggling to find the main idea on MCAT CARS passages? In this Jack Westin MCAT Podcast, Molly and Usher break down the Jack Westin Daily CARS Passage "Hamburger University" sentence-by-sentence, showing you exactly how to track competing ideas, understand arguments efficiently, and identify the most-supported argument even when the author buries it mid-passage.

In this episode you'll learn:
✅ How to read actively and ask "why?" at every step ❓🧐
✅ How to track a dichotomy (old 🏛️ vs. new 🆕) across multiple paragraphs
✅ Why the main idea isn’t always the broadest topic — and how to avoid that trap 🚫🪤
✅ How to map repeated ideas 🗺️ without losing passage context 🔎

Practice this passage: jackwestin.com/daily/mcat-practice-passages/cars-practice-passages/hamburger-university

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Struggling with the AMCAS Work & Activities (Experiences) section and the Most Meaningful entries? In this episode of the Jack Westin Pre-Med Admissions Podcast, Dr. Anita Paschal (MD, double PhD, 30+ years on medical school admissions committees) breaks down exactly how admissions committees evaluate your 15 AMCAS experiences, your 700-character descriptions, and your 3 Most Meaningful (1,325 characters) sections.

You’ll learn:
🧑‍⚕️📋 How adcoms use Work & Activities after GPA/MCAT screening
✍️✅ What to include in the 700 characters (role, impact, outcomes, growth)
🏆🧠 How to choose the 3 Most Meaningful experiences (what schools want to see)
🚫💥 Common mistakes that cause applicants to “crash and burn” in this section
⏳📌 How to handle anticipated vs completed hours (and what you cannot anticipate)
🔤📝 Why formatting like bullets/bold/italics won’t display in AMCAS (plain text only)
🧩📖 A practical framework to write Most Meaningful entries with a strong narrative and reflection

Dr. Paschal also shares real examples and a simple structure you can follow to make your experiences read like a compelling, high-impact application.

🎧 More Pre-Med Admissions episodes: personal statement strategy, AMCAS timelines, and what adcoms actually look for.

Want to learn more? Shoot us a text at 415-855-4435 or email us at [email protected]! 📱
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In this Jack Westin MCAT Podcast episode, Mike and Molly break down how vision works from start to finish, tying together physics (optics) and biology (retina + neural pathway) in the exact way the MCAT can test it across Chem/Phys, Bio/Biochem, and Psych/Soc.

You’ll learn how light refracts through the cornea and lens, why the cornea does most of the refraction, and how the eye focuses images onto the retina. Then we walk through transduction in the retina (rods and cones → bipolar cells → ganglion cells), how signals travel through the optic nerve, cross at the optic chiasm (by visual field, not by eye), relay through the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), and arrive at the primary visual cortex in the occipital lobe for perception.

We also cover high-yield MCAT optics and vision topics, including:
Cornea vs lens refraction and why LASIK reshapes the cornea
Fovea and why cones drive high-acuity color vision
Rods vs cones (low light vs color/detail)
Myopia vs hyperopia and which lenses correct each (diverging vs converging)
The blind spot and why it exists
Why real images are inverted on the retina and how the brain interprets vision

🎧 Listen, take notes, and use this as a clear, connected review for any MCAT passage that mixes optics + anatomy + perception.

Want to learn more? Shoot us a text at 415-855-4435 or email us at [email protected]! 📱
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In this episode, we break down the Jack Westin daily CARS passage “Sibling Relationships” (Feb 11) sentence-by-sentence to train you how to:

Identify key ideas in each sentence and paragraph
Track repeating themes across short paragraphs
Lock in the main idea (without bringing in your own opinions)
Build a clean passage map you can use on test day
Avoid the #1 trap: letting your personal experience change your answers

We also unpack the passage’s biggest throughline: how sibling competition, family roles, and birth order connect to personality traits (first-born vs last-born vs middle child), plus terms like de-identification and finding a “niche” in the family environment.

✅ Try the passage before you listen (recommended): pause here, attempt it, then come back and follow along with the walkthrough.

📌 Daily Passage Link: https://jackwestin.com/daily/mcat-practice-passages/cars-practice-passages/sibling-relationships

Want to learn more? Shoot us a text at 415-855-4435 or email us at [email protected]! 📱
📌 Free Academic Advising: https://calendly.com/academic-advising-4/jack-westin-academic-advising?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
💻 Try our Chrome Extension (video solutions to every AAMC passage) https://tinyurl.com/4jw5pad8
📚 Free Resources: https://jackwestin.com?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
🎓 Live Education Sessions: https://jackwestin.com/sessions?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
👨🏻‍🏫 Courses: https://jackwestin.com/courses?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
🙋 Tutoring: https://jackwestin.com/services/live-online-mcat-tutoring?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
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Med school admissions is not just GPA and MCAT.

In this Jack Westin Pre-Med Admissions Podcast episode, Mark White sits down with Dr. Anita Paschal (35+ years on admissions boards) to break down how admissions committees actually read your application and what separates “qualified” from “accepted.”

In this episode, you’ll learn:
🧠 Why more applicants get denied than accepted (and what that means for your strategy)
📊 The seat math: ~52–58K applicants vs ~20–22K seats (about 40–44% acceptance)
🎯 What your personal statement must do in 5,300 characters (AMCAS)
🎬 How to write a 2–3 sentence hook that makes reviewers keep reading (think: trailer)
🧩 The recommended structure: 3–5 body paragraphs + a reflective conclusion
🚫 The most common clichés that make essays blur together (“help and serve,” “in that moment,” etc.)
👀 “Show, don’t tell”: how to prove empathy without saying “I’m empathetic”
✍️ The “I, I, I” problem and how to fix repetitive, self-focused sentence structure
🧱 Clear transitions: how to stop your essay from reading like a resume
🔁 The rewrite rule: why your personal statement should be developed over 5–6 months
🧯 Addressing weaknesses: when to acknowledge gaps (and where it actually belongs)
✅ What makes a strong opening (with a real example breakdown)

Mentioned in the episode:
✅ AMCAS personal statement limit: 5,300 characters (including spaces)
✅ A simple framework: Write → Rewrite → Review → Write again
✅ Tip: Have someone who doesn’t know you read it to spot clarity gaps

🎧 This episode is part of an ongoing series. Next up: experiences / work & activities and how to maximize impact.

Want to learn more? Shoot us a text at 415-855-4435 or email us at [email protected]! 📱
📌 Free Academic Advising: https://calendly.com/academic-advising-4/jack-westin-academic-advising?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
💻 Try our Chrome Extension (video solutions to every AAMC passage) https://tinyurl.com/4jw5pad8
📚 Free Resources: https://jackwestin.com?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
🎓 Live Education Sessions: https://jackwestin.com/sessions?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast
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