Mid-90s nostalgia is a heck of a drug, but we shouldn’t get our fix from MCAT study tech.

There’s been over a century of cognitive science research demonstrating that spaced repetition is the most efficient way to retain large amounts of information, like what you need to know for the MCAT.

Breakthroughs in AI are making 2024 feel like 2050, but the current spaced repetition experiences feels like 1995. There’s no easy-to-use tool that has a robust pro-feature set and the high quality content that your MCAT studies deserve.

At Etch, we’re building the spaced repetition tool that we wish we had while studying for the MCAT. The goals behind our designs were simple:

• More powerful than Anki
• Easier collaboration than AnkiHub
• Smoother user experience than Quizlet
• Affordable for long-term use
• Save premed students over 80 hours during their MCAT preparation period (compared to the current tool stack). 

Find out how we’re accomplishing those goals by looking through our feature list below.

Spaced Repetition: Learn like a human.

This isn’t another post espousing the virtues of spaced repetition. It just works. If you’re here you probably know that but are looking for an easier way to use it.

The core problem with current spaced repetition algorithms is that they treat learners like memorization machines. Missed cards on your birthday? Happy Birthday, tomorrow you have to pay for it. You have more time to study on Mondays than Tuesadys? It doesn’t matter, you’ll be using the same amount of time for reviews either way. Don’t even get us started on the number of questions asking how to create filtered decks on Anki for this week’s test 🙄 .

Because Etch’s learning algorithm considers way more than just your confidence on a card, it can quickly provide a learning experience tailored to your needs and circumstances. 

To create a schedule optimized for you, Etch considers dozens of data points, including:

• Your exam schedule
• Your weekly study routines
• Taking a break

Etch’s Chief Learning Architect, Dr. Jerome Rekart, has over 20 years of experience designing evidence-based learning experiences built to meet learners where they are and work within their daily experience. He’s constantly looking at learner data coming in to make the algorithms more efficient, more effective, and more human-centered.

We’re not saying that using Etch isn’t work, we’re just saying that Etch makes spaced repetition work for you.

Measure your progress in real time.

Where we’re at now: Through the Stats page, Etch users can get a real-time look at their current proficiency level. With Etch, you don’t have to worry about knowing whether or not you’re ready on the day of your exam. You’ll have the information you need to take the exam or make the shift from fundamental research 

Where we’re headed through Etch Pro: Leveraging LLMs and data analysis to create easily accessible nuanced insights including: 

• Where you’re at now and the amount of work you’ll need to do to meet your goals
• Creating short-term study plans with easily accessible resources to address gaps in your knowledge
• Know which current content aligns with future goals. A lot of the content on the MCAT will be on Step 1, there’s no need to start your personal learning algorithms over. Etch Pro will combine standards created by the AAMC and NBME with the magic of spaced repetition to smooth the transition to medical school and beyond.

With Dynamic Cards, internalize concepts instead of just memorizing. 

As a long-time spaced repetition power-user, we’ve seen it all. Here are some of the problems our team has experienced with spaced repetition that we’ve solved:

Cloze deletions / fill-in-the-blank are absolutely incredible at a few things:

• Creating cards quickly
• Rote memorization without context
• Making students feel like they’re learning because they can click through them quickly

Learning engineers agree that the core benefit of Cloze deletions generally relate to speed of card creation, and not actually quality of learning. At best, Cloze deletions shine when used to chunk content to granular sub-competencies. However, a question and answer card that is well-worded to also only have a precise answer will be as, or more, effective than a Cloze deletion without suffering from issues related to unintentional over-reliance on pattern recognition, lack of depth of understanding, and reduced association between the deleted word and the rest of the sentence.

Because of this, at Etch, precisely worded question and answer concepts are the standard. Other types of assessment including innovative AI-powered dynamic assessments, image occlusion, and Cloze deletions can be used when appropriate. 

When you’re learning,  you should use what is best, not settle for what is quickest.

Pattern recognition is a problem that plagued myself and many of my classmates while using spaced repetition. Similar to problems experienced with Cloze deletion, many times simply seeing a flashcard will bring the correct answer to mind. This does not occur because of real learning, but simply due to pattern recognition. Unfortunately, the same patterns won’t be available on the day of your exam.

Etch solves this problem through Dynamic Cards. With Dynamic Cards, the spaced repetition algorithm schedules reviews by concept and not by individual cards. Dynamic Cards have multiple variants for each concept. This means that the next time you’re prompted to review the concept, the variant will appear differently while testing the same concept. This means that, with Etch, spaced repetition will efficiently sharpen your concept mastery, rather than wasting time pattern matching.

Studying math, chemistry, and physics for the MCAT was previously difficult on spaced repetition platforms. You can’t learn addition by seeing “12+18” repeatedly - probably by the second time you saw the card you would just remember that the answer is 30 rather than actually reinforcing your ability to perform the math problem.

As described above, Dynamic Cards allow Etch’s spaced repetition algorithm to work on concepts rather than specific cards. This means that you can take advantage of the efficiency of Spaced Repetition to get a 132 on C/P and not just P/S.

Re-learn forgotten content instantly

As magical as spaced repetition is, you won’t always remember everything you study. Previously, this meant looking up the right video or Googling a solution. This takes time and, if you weren’t already aware, time is a limited resource during premed and MCAT prep.

Etch gets you time back by a focus on high quality Additional Context. Now when you forget the content, you won’t waste time learning. Etch for MCAT cards include:

• Embedded video explanations from Khan Academy. These videos can be long, so we make sure that they’re already queued up to the correct time stamp. Relearning using video content is now a matter of seconds and not minutes.
• Text, images, and diagrams sourced from peer-reviewed, open source textbooks.
• Helpful mental models or memorization mnemonics. Have one that you love that we missed? Add a note to the card so that you can always practice the mnemonic when it comes up.

An on-demand tutor that meets you right where you’re at

Maybe you read the additional context section, but there is some prerequisite knowledge that you aren’t familiar with. Filling those gaps is as easy as opening Etch Assist and asking it for help. Etch Assist understands the question, your answer, and all “source of truth” documents related to the material, meaning that you receive instant help tailored to your needs within the scope of your study goals.

Additionally, every review will offer user-specific feedback explaining why you’re right, why you’re wrong, or how you might be able to improve your answer.

Etch Assist and Feedback involve ongoing costs on our end and are only available with Etch Pro.

High quality content ready-to-go 

Etch for MCAT currently has the best of what brought our team success on the P/S section of the MCAT. We believe that high quality content on an easy-to-use platform will lead to saving over 60 hours on MCAT prep, compared to making your own cards on another platform. 

We’re working on constantly improving the P/S content, with Biology, Physics, and Chemistry content coming this summer (free for Etch Pro subscribers).

Coming Soon: The fastest card creation process you’ve ever experienced

Whether by yourself or in groups, we believe that the card creation process can be improved.

Creating high quality review material is time consuming. AI-generated card creation tools that are out there don’t understand how to create content reflective of what you really need to know for your class or exam.

Etch card creation will allow for generation of new decks, as well as instant generation of new cards within decks published on the marketplace.

We’re currently developing a lightning fast card creation and distribution process for Etch Pro members. More information coming soon.

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Happy studying!

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