I’ve worked with MCAT students long enough to notice patterns, and honestly, the struggles usually start way before they ever consider joining an MCAT CARS course. Most students come to me already carrying this quiet fear that something about the way they read is “off.” And it’s heartbreaking because these are bright, driven people who’ve survived years of tough science classes, yet a CARS passage can shake their confidence faster than any physics problem ever could. When you’re doing MCAT CARs practice on your own, and every passage feels like decoding a message from another universe, it’s easy to start wondering if the problem is you.

What I often see is a kind of mental tug-of-war. Students try so hard to handle CARS the same way they handle everything else, by memorizing patterns, tips, and shortcuts. And when that fails, they blame themselves instead of the fact that CARS plays by different rules. Before joining a structured MCAT exam prep course, they usually spend months bouncing between YouTube videos, Reddit threads, practice books, and half-baked strategies that don’t actually help them think differently. And the worst part? They work hard, genuinely hard, but they still feel stuck. That feeling sits heavily on them.

And somewhere in that frustration, they start losing trust in their own reasoning. I can often hear it in their voice when they talk about CARS: they sound defeated, almost embarrassed. But the truth, which I wish more students believed, is that nothing is wrong with them. They simply haven’t learned how to approach CARS yet. No one taught them how to analyze arguments, interpret tone, or break down complex writing. S,o of course they struggle. They’re basically trying to build a house without being shown how to use the tools. Once they get proper guidance, though, everything starts shifting in a way that feels almost surprising.

The Hidden Struggles Students Face Before an MCAT CARS Course

1. Misunderstanding What CARS Actually Tests

One thing I say to students all the time is, “CARS isn’t a reading test, it’s a thinking test.” And I can almost see the relief on their face when they realize they don’t need to remember every detail or understand every sentence perfectly. Before joining a course, students often approach MCAT CARS Course as if they’re reading a textbook. They try to memorize, analyze deeply, and hold onto every fact. But CARS doesn’t care about any of that. It cares about whether you can trace the author’s motivation, their logic, their shifts in attitude. And if no one has taught you how to do that, then yeah, MCAT practice will feel like a constant uphill battle.

2. Overthinking Until Every Choice Feels Wrong

If I had a dollar for every student who tells me, “It always comes down to two choices, and I pick the wrong one,” I’d probably retire early. This overthinking spiral is incredibly common, and it usually happens because students don’t have a clear decision-making framework. So they analyze… and analyze… and then overanalyze. They go back and forth between two answers until everything blends. It’s exhausting. And without structure, they rely on hope instead of reasoning. That’s when doubt creeps in, and time pressure makes everything worse.

3. Leaning on Memorization Instead of Building Real Skills

Before joining an MCAT exam prep course, most students try to solve CARS with the same mindset they use for science. They memorize tips like “avoid extreme answers” or “look for positive or negative tone,” and while some of these ideas aren’t terrible, they only work on the surface level. CARS is intentionally designed to punish shortcuts. You can memorize every “strategy” on the internet and still miss the point if you don’t understand the author’s reasoning. That’s why so many students plateau; they’re using skills that don’t align with what the test actually wants.

4. Pacing Problems: Reading Too Fast or Too Slow

Let me be blunt: most students pace themselves terribly before joining a course. Some race through passages like they’re trying to catch a train, hoping speed will save them. Others read painfully slow, terrified of missing something important. Neither approach works. CARS pacing is more like developing a rhythm; it’s about understanding what matters and letting go of what doesn’t. And that’s not something students just magically know how to do. It’s something they’re taught.

5. Not Seeing the Underlying Structure of Passages

A lot of students read CARS passages as if they’re one long stream of information. They don’t see the argument developing, the subtle shifts in the author’s tone, or the hidden clues about the author’s true stance. They miss the “architecture” of the passage, and that’s completely normal before training. When the structure isn’t obvious, everything feels equally important, which means everything feels equally confusing. Once students learn how to spot structure, though, CARS stops feeling like a mystery and starts feeling almost predictable.

6. Confidence Crashes and Emotional Burnout

I can’t talk about CARS' struggles without talking about confidence. CARS has a way of getting inside your head. Students who were top of their class suddenly feel slow or inadequate when they can’t “get” a passage. And that emotional drain is real. Doing MCAT practice without support feels lonely, sometimes even discouraging. I’ve watched so many students blame themselves for something that’s not their fault; they simply didn’t have the right training yet.

What Changes Once They Join a CARS Course

1. Clarity Replaces Confusion

One of my favorite moments as a tutor is when a student says, “Ohhh… that’s what they’re looking for.” That clarity is powerful. It’s like someone finally turned on the lights in a room they’ve been stumbling around in for months. Once they understand how to approach passages, they stop relying on luck and start relying on logic.

2. They Finally Learn Strategies That Work

Real CARS strategies aren’t flashy, but they’re incredibly effective. Students learn how to pinpoint the author’s main idea, interpret tone shifts, and break down arguments. These aren’t hacks; they’re real thinking skills that make CARS feel easier and more predictable. And the best part? These skills transfer to every passage, not just the “easy” ones.

3. Accountability Helps Them Stay Consistent

Let’s be honest: CARS is the easiest section to avoid when you’re studying alone. It’s uncomfortable. It’s slow. It doesn’t give you that instant satisfaction of memorizing something. But in a course, students show up because they have structure, and structure is what leads to real improvement. Consistency is what raises scores, not random bursts of studying.

FAQs

Why does CARS feel harder than other sections?

Because it focuses on reasoning rather than memory, students aren’t used to that shift.

How long does improvement usually take?

You can see meaningful changes in 6–10 weeks with consistent practice.

Do I need a course to improve?

Not necessarily, but most students progress faster with guidance.

Does reading novels or articles help?

It helps with comfort, but you still need structured MCAT practice to build skills.

Should everyone join an MCAT exam prep course?

Not everyone, but almost anyone struggling with CARS would benefit.

Resources

Internal:

“How to Handle CARS Anxiety”

“Daily Reading Habits for Stronger Critical Thinking”

External:

AAMC Official CARS Packs

The Atlantic

Aeon Essays

JSTOR Daily

Conclusion

If you’re feeling stuck with CARS really stuck, the kind where you finish a passage and immediately feel defeated, you’re not alone. Every student who eventually succeeds in CARS has felt that same frustration at some point. But you don’t have to keep spinning your wheels. With guided MCAT CARS practice and the structure you get from an MCAT exam prep course, CARS becomes something you can actually understand, not fear. And once you finally learn how to think the way the exam expects you to, the entire section starts feeling different, calmer, clearer, more manageable. If you’re at the point where you’re tired of guessing and ready to actually improve, then maybe this is your sign to take the next step.