MCAT OpenReview Brain and Behavior: A Free Resource
- Mark Lee
- Apr 3
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 4
By: Mark Lee, MD
April 3, 2026
As I reflect on how Brain Brew AI and the MCAT OpenReview series came to be, I think about what drove me to start this project in the first place. It wasn't just the cost of my own MCAT prep, though the hundreds of dollars spent for books and question banks was certainly motivating. It was also the recognition that so much of medical education still relies on the same expensive, transactional model: you pay, you get access, you move on.
The MCAT covers foundational concepts required for medical education. Yet for many students, the anxiety of affording prep materials competes with the anxiety of actually learning the content.
To this end, we are excited to release the final e-book in the MCAT OpenReview series: MCAT OpenReview: Brain and Behavior.
What is MCAT OpenReview: Brain and Behavior?
Brain and Behavior is a free, open-access review resource covering the Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior section of the MCAT, one of the most conceptually broad and sometimes underestimated sections of the exam.
Like its predecessors in the OpenReview series, this book was built by synthesizing high-quality open-access materials (specifically OpenStax's Biology, Psychology, and Sociology textbooks) and organizing them directly against the AAMC's Foundational Concepts.
Who made it?
MCAT OpenReview: Brain and Behavior was created by Mark Lee, MD and Rahul Grover, MD, as part of our broader effort at Brain Brew AI to make high-quality MCAT prep materials more accessible, more longitudinal, and less dependent on expensive ecosystems. We are both graduates of rigorous (and expensive) medical schools, and we built the resources we wish we had had.
Why Brain and Behavior?
The Psych/Soc section is unique. Unlike the physical or biological sciences, it spans multiple disciplines (neuroscience, psychology, sociology) and rewards breadth of conceptual understanding over deep technical calculation. For many students, it's the section they feel least certain about how to study for.
We believe a well-organized, freely accessible resource that maps directly to the AAMC's content expectations helps demystify this section.
How to access it
Brain and Behavior is available for free inside the Brain Brew AI app.
Go to www.brainbrewai.com or download the app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store
Create a free account
Go to Discover an Expert Resource
Find MCAT OpenReview: Brain and Behavior in the community library
Add it to your personal library and start reading
A free account gives you full access to the textbook, along with baseline AI tools: flashcard generation, practice questions, Socratic tutoring, etc. Higher levels of utilization are available for a low-cost subscription ($2/month) to support our technical infrastructure.
How to use it
We designed OpenReview to be a backbone resource—something you can return to repeatedly across the arc of your pre-medical education, not a one-time cram session.
During coursework, work through sections alongside your psychology or sociology classes to reinforce how the material connects to the MCAT. During dedicated studying, revisit the resource as many times as needed, and use it alongside other prep materials to ensure comprehensive coverage. And as we continue building Brain Brew's features, we envision tools that will help you identify and focus on your personal weak spots before exam day.
What's next
With Brain and Behavior, the MCAT OpenReview series is now complete, covering Biology & Biochemical Systems, Physical Sciences, Chemical Sciences, and Brain & Behavior. But this is far from the end.
Our next major efforts are focused on:
A CARS question bank, with expert-vetted passages designed to build the reasoning skills this section demands
Free MCAT practice tests, with options to personalize ongoing learning based on prior performance
We truly believe that the most valuable thing we can build next is the ability to practice, and to practice in a way that learns from you over time.
How you can help
We are a small team building something we believe in. If you find concepts that are not covered sufficiently, please reach out at support@brainbrewai.com.
And if you know a pre-med student who could benefit from free, high-quality MCAT resources—please pass this along. Every share genuinely matters to us.
Thank you for being part of this.
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