Is the MCAT really THAT hard?..

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I mean, getting a 30 is considered good right? But 30 out of 45 is 66%..which seems REALLY REALLY low. Or am I missing something here?

Numerical score on the MCAT != % of questions answered correctly.

Just take an MCAT. You will understand.

Nope. Everyone gets an A+.

Originally Posted by tantacles

Numerical score on the MCAT != % of questions answered correctly.

This is correct. The numerical score is based on your performance in each section compared with everyone else who took the test that day. It is not simply giving you the number right out of 45 possible.

Originally Posted by AestheticGod

I mean, getting a 30 is considered good right? But 30 out of 45 is 66%..which seems REALLY REALLY low. Or am I missing something here?

It depends on your innate intelligence and reading ability. But generally, yes of course the MCAT is difficult. It is meant to be, as it is the sole determinant of your future in medicine.

If you did poorly on previous verbal sections of standardized testing, the MCAT will haunt you as it is mostly a reading comprehension test with very basic science topics. But yes, remember the MCAT determines your future no matter how good or bad your GPA is.

The fact that nearly 8 out of 10 people who take the MCAT don't break that score should also tell you something...the test is meant to weed out and that it does.

Originally Posted by AestheticGod

I mean, getting a 30 is considered good right? But 30 out of 45 is 66%..which seems REALLY REALLY low. Or am I missing something here?

30 doesn't mean someone answered 66% of the questions correctly.

And no, it isn't that hard. I'm a dunce and I got a 30 with no prep whatsoever.

Originally Posted by AestheticGod

I mean, getting a 30 is considered good right? But 30 out of 45 is 66%..which seems REALLY REALLY low. Or am I missing something here?

Can't tell if serious...

If you want to think of it in percentages don't form them simply by 30/45. Here is the actual percentile score ranges:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medic...Test#section_1

A 30 is in the 74.6-79.8 percentile. Which means that scoring a 30 is better than 75-80 percent of people who take the test. You'll also notice that the last 5ish scores are only achieved by .1% of test takers.

Originally Posted by SLC

30 doesn't mean someone answered 66% of the questions correctly.

And no, it isn't that hard. I'm a dunce and I got a 30 with no prep whatsoever.

what percentage would a 30 be then? or is there no such thing?

Originally Posted by AestheticGod

what percentage would a 30 be then? or is there no such thing?

It varies from test to test. The score 30 is based more on what percentile you fall into compared to other test-takers than the percentage of answers that were correct.

Originally Posted by MDschoolorbust

Can't tell if serious...

If you want to think of it in percentages don't form them simply by 30/45. Here is the actual percentile score ranges:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medic...Test#section_1

A 30 is in the 74.6-79.8 percentile. Which means that scoring a 30 is better than 75-80 percent of people who take the test. You'll also notice that the last 5ish scores are only achieved by .1% of test takers.

Understood, thanks

the test is also curved. keep in mind that on any given date the people who take the MCAT have already been weeded out of their introductory courses, so the crowd taking the MCAT is much different from the crowd taking the SAT.

for reference you can get a handful wrong on verbal...say, 34/40 and only get a 10 in that section....

Originally Posted by AestheticGod

what percentage would a 30 be then? or is there no such thing?

You're score is more of a representation of how you do compared to others who took the same exam. It's directly related to the percentile you fall into.

When I got my 30 last year, it was somewhere above the 80th percentile (I think). I've forgotten where it fell exactly, but that tends to happen. Once you get a score that's good enough for admission, you stop caring how relatively high or low it was.

Moving to the MCAT discussions forum.

Originally Posted by RedSox10

the test is also curved. keep in mind that on any given date the people who take the MCAT have already been weeded out of their introductory courses, so the crowd taking the MCAT is much different from the crowd taking the SAT.

for reference you can get a handful wrong on verbal...say, 34/40 and only get a 10 in that section....

Normally it is closer to a 30 to achieve a 10. But yes the upper bounds are hard to get because the score range is like 1 question.

.

It's actually really easy, we are all just trying to psych you out.

OP- every test is scaled differently, and YES, it is a hard test. Here are 2 of my practice aamc's where I scored a 29 and 30. You'll notice that I actually scored higher with the 29 than the 30. (Got more questions right)
Guess it's kinda weird, but that's how they do it.




And no, a 30 isn't 66% for the MCAT (how we all wish it were!)-- more like close to 80%!

Originally Posted by AestheticGod

I mean, getting a 30 is considered good right? But 30 out of 45 is 66%..which seems REALLY REALLY low. Or am I missing something here?

Go onto AAMC and take Practice Test 3, its free.

GL Have Fun

Why do think it's hard to get into med school? It's not GPA because any average student can get a 3.6+ GPA from some stupid university. It's hard to get into med school because of the mcat. Not anyone can get a 30+ mcat. You got to be somewhat above average to get 30+ IMHO.

Originally Posted by Temperature101

Why do think it's hard to get into med school? It's not GPA because any average student can get a 3.6+ GPA from some stupid university. It's hard to get into med school because of the mcat. Not anyone can get a 30+ mcat. You got to be somewhat above average to get 30+ IMHO.

Little background on myself. Graduated from a uc school and had to take the Mcat multiple times and ended up with a 33. I am not the smartest student. I spent 2 summers in a row studying for this damn test. Did over 1000 pages. Used ek, tpr and BR and I still get chills just by thinking about it. Struggled getting into a medical school even though I applied to 28 schools. Applied twice, did a postbac program and then finally got in. Currently I am studying for my boards ( step 1). I should be studying but taking a break and decided to post here and there.

Getting into medical school is NOT entirely based on stellar or great MCAT score; it is based on way too many entities. It is based on your science gpa, Mcat, personal statement, your reasons for becoming a doctor and what have you done to see whether medicine is for you. These days everyone wants to go to medical school. I attended a health fair at UCI when I was applying and it was highlighted that they received around 6000 applications for ~150 spots. This shows that it is very competitive. It's hard to get into a medical school because there are so so so many qualified applicants that the schools can cherry pick. I have friends who had a 3.5 science gpa with a 29 Mcat did not get in and had to attend a Caribbean school and there is nothing wrong with that.

MCAT and your grades are the TWO MOST IMPORTANT factors that will decide your fate.

The MCAT is the bump-in-the-road. It's a pain, but then once you're in, you will graduate. You'll have to work hard, but the schools work hard to make sure students don't drop out. Looks better for them.

Originally Posted by RedSoxSuck

Little background on myself. Graduated from a uc school and had to take the Mcat multiple times and ended up with a 33. I am not the smartest student. I spent 2 summers in a row studying for this damn test. Did over 1000 pages. Used ek, tpr and BR and I still get chills just by thinking about it. Struggled getting into a medical school even though I applied to 28 schools. Applied twice, did a postbac program and then finally got in. Currently I am studying for my boards ( step 1). I should be studying but taking a break and decided to post here and there.

Getting into medical school is NOT entirely based on stellar or great MCAT score; it is based on way too many entities. It is based on your science gpa, Mcat, personal statement, your reasons for becoming a doctor and what have you done to see whether medicine is for you. These days everyone wants to go to medical school. I attended a health fair at UCI when I was applying and it was highlighted that they received around 6000 applications for ~150 spots. This shows that it is very competitive. It's hard to get into a medical school because there are so so so many qualified applicants that the schools can cherry pick. I have friends who had a 3.5 science gpa with a 29 Mcat did not get in and had to attend a Caribbean school and there is nothing wrong with that.

MCAT and your grades are the TWO MOST IMPORTANT factors that will decide your fate.

These don't seem to go together haha. It's definitely not all MCAT but there's no denying that its a HUGE factor. I have multiple people I know who had 3.7+ GPA's in undergrad, and took the MCAT 3-4 times each and never made above a 25.

Studying and learning how to take the test can greatly improve your score. You say you're 'not the smartest student', but there's a massive group of applicants that couldn't get a 33 no matter how many times they took it.

Originally Posted by MedBound1

These don't seem to go together haha. It's definitely not all MCAT but there's no denying that its a HUGE factor. I have multiple people I know who had 3.7+ GPA's in undergrad, and took the MCAT 3-4 times each and never made above a 25.

Studying and learning how to take the test can greatly improve your score. You say you're 'not the smartest student', but there's a massive group of applicants that couldn't get a 33 no matter how many times they took it.

This is very true. It took me a few times before I understood how to beat the MCAT while others (with higher GPA and/or attended more prestigious universities) never figured it out.

For me, I approached it differently with my last try and jumped several points.