40+ MCAT Study Strategies ... luck? genius? both?

Hey Z, I'm right there with you. As much as I'd like a 40+ I think it's mostly riding on luck, more so with the VR section since the curve is generally wicked. Also it seems like most people here who got a 40+ on the real thing never got it on a practice test before, but rather in the same 35-39 range.

I found that the actual MCAT was significantly better written (aka fewer/no bs) than any other practice test I took, including AAMC 3-8. You have the skills. Luck is all you need. Uh... good luck.

Teerawit said:

Hey Z, I'm right there with you. As much as I'd like a 40+ I think it's mostly riding on luck, more so with the VR section since the curve is generally wicked. Also it seems like most people here who got a 40+ on the real thing never got it on a practice test before, but rather in the same 35-39 range.

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Yup. Never had higher than a 36 on a practice test...40 on the real thing.

I did have 2 weeks of full-time studying right before that really pushed me over the hump I think. Also, I think the rumored difficulty of Kaplan PS is right on -- I think my highest practice PS was an 11 or 12 on Kaplan, then I got a 14 on the real thing (though I did spend about the whole last week studying hardcore in chem)

Zephyrus,

I can't offer much insight but I do empathize, although my target score is 5 points lower than yours, trying that hard for a lower score seems pretty futile when people such as yourself and many here score it with ease but as has been stated in here before....just keep competing with yourself as hard as you can stand or want to and the rest will take care of itself. Hopefully, you will get that 40.

Best of luck and stay the course,


'Rambler

Zephyrus said:

Oh-- and, I recognize that the first thing many of you will want to reply with is "OMFG Upper-30s, what are you complaining about? Go outside and get some sunshine!" I recognize the futility of my endeavor. I recognize the marginal cost-benefit utility of poring over my notes for another month when I can **** out a 35+. I have a problem. Something about Eminem's "lose yourself" ringing in my ears and not capitalizing on my "one shot" keeps me psychically belted to my desk like an academic samurai. So those who have genuine feedback or advice are much appreciated; those who want to mock me for caring too much about a test or not being satisfied with high scores can sod off.

Love,
Z

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Honestly, if you're scoring that well on practice tests, maybe the best advice would be just to relax and have fun. Don't burn out trying to raise your score.

Zephyrus said:

How do I reach higher? QofQuimica, speak up, you rogue!
Z

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I'm not sure that I have any practical advice to give you, Zephyrus. You are obviously capable of achieving a 40 based on your practice test scores, and I think at your level the barriers to success are primarily psychological, not knowledge-based or due to inadequate preparation. I can't tell you how to make yourself achieve your personal best; that has to come from within you.

I took the five Kaplan full lengths, and my scores ranged from 37-41 on them. I scored highest on FL#3 and lowest on FL#5. Toward the end, I was starting to burn out, and I ended up taking a few weeks off altogether. (It actually ended up being longer, like five weeks, b/c we got hit w/ a hurricane and our MCAT date was postponed two weeks here in FL.) I think that time off was what made it possible for me. I had been really struggling during my last full lengths with staying motivated and focused, but the day of the test I was just in a very zen state of mind. I was relaxed and ready and felt no pressure any more. I had even decided that it was ok if I "only" scored a 37 on the real test like I did on FL#5. I remember seeing the PS section that morning and having to tell myself to settle down, because unlike my Kaplan PS tests (and I agree with whomever said the Kaplan ones are way harder than the real thing), I was thinking, "OMG, I know this one. OMG, I know this one, too! And this one!"

So I guess I would echo the person who advised you not to burn yourself out. If this is your spring break, take some time off and enjoy it. You are already in the top few % of test-takers, and you have already proven that you have the ability to achieve a 40. You just have to figure out how to tap that ability on test day. Good luck to you, man, and don't forget that I need you to help me with the subforum this summer.

it's probably impossible to study for a 40+ mcat. you need to be a super-genius or chuck norris to reach that score. i doubt the few people who made it were doing something differently from us mere mortals.

Kaplan PS + EK 101 Verbal Passages + a smattering of princeton review bio + all AAMC full lengths (including 1 and 2 just for fun!) + 4 weeks of studying (timed practice every day). Obviously your mileage may vary. Oh, and don't thoroughly read the entire PS passages, you'll run out of time. Your 13's during these practice passages is quite a portentous sign though.

You should generally be able to figure things out, so in that sense, I think there is an element "natural ability"... especially in something like bio. figuring out what's going on in an experiment is really important.

I'm not a PhD in organic chemistry (why, qofquimica, why), but mcat orgo problems are usually sheep in wolves' clothing -- involving really complex-looking structures and weirdo reactions, but the questions they ask are fairly basic.

mcat physics is mainly stuff from AP, so if you worked hard then, and know how to plug, chug, and visualize, you're set.

to get an S+ on the writing sample, think of poignant examples ahead of time. also think of transition words and other words you can incorporate into your essay (like "poignant"). i spent a good 5-7 minutes planning my essay before i wrote it.

verbal... well, if you can read, great. if you can't, you can work assiduously to improve your score in the section.

Zephyrus said:

I have a problem. Something about Eminem's "lose yourself" ringing in my ears and not capitalizing on my "one shot" keeps me psychically belted to my desk like an academic samurai.

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Ha ha ha! I know exactly what you mean. I get this all the time. I have the same sort of problem with that Eminem intro, Muzzle by Smashing Pumpkins, More by the Sisters of Mercy, the trailer for Motorcycle Diaries, etc. I get thrown into this mindset of needing to make the most of my life and to have these extraordinary feats of boldness, innovation, or whatever. But really, it's a case of the problem in Gangsta's Paradise: too much television watching got me chasing dreams.

The thing is that its all bull****--especially Eminem. Take a looka t the intro:

Look
If you had
One shot
Or one opportunity
To sieze everything you ever wanted
In one moment
Would you capture it
Or just let it slip?

That's a bull**** proposition, and life isn't like that. You don't only have one opportunity, and you never capture everything you ever wanted in a single moment unless what you want is amazingly asinine. If your goal is to take the MCAT and then call a good score a success, that's a really stupid goal, though it is something you can get in a single moment. If your goal is to be a doctor and to get into the program you want, that's going to take many, many moments. It's a long course of hard work. And then when you're done, you've still got the boards, residency placement, finding the position you want, paying off your debt, and so forth. This one moment isn't going to give you "everything you ever wanted;" it's just going to give you a test score.

I think it's also important to note the nature of the film 8 Mile--he doesn't "accomplish" a damned thing. He starts off as a loser and a nobody, makes an ass of himself by choking on stage, and then goes on to redeem himself in a battle. BMFD. He's still a nobody with a crap job living with his mom. The plot ends with him telling Future that he "wants to make it on his own," but in reality, that never happens for Eminem. He ends up getting pimped by someone bigger and badder than Future, but without Dr Dre, it still remains that no one would know who Eminem is, and he'd have gotten blown off as a poseur whiteboy with an annoying voice and an ego problem if Dre hadn't vouched for him.

I just think it's important to keep the right kinds of goals. If you want to be a loser who's posting on SDN at 3:41 AM while waiting for someone from engineering to come in and fix the automated cleaning sequence that keeps buggering up while digesting a stomach full of Taco Bell because that's all that's open in the middle of the night when you're required to work your crappy job but who happens to have a 40T, then by all means, go ahead and aim for the score. If what you really want is to get a great, meaningful, and rewarding career in medicine, then don't define your goals so narrowly, and try to remain focused on the big picture.

Good luck.

Studying can probably get you to a 35, you're probably better off polishing the other parts of your application like research and volunteering, since a 40MCAT is probably not going to get you in anywhere a 35 won't. I doubt any one is going to care that you're in the 99th percentile vs. the 95th percentile, while it will look bad if you don't have lots of volunteering and other extracurriculars.

Lets go heels . . .

gujuDoc said:

P.S. that post from Nutmeg is coming from someone who's achieved that 40 MCAT score.

Nutmeg,

Right on!!!!!! I think you stated it beautifully. And somewhat off topic, but I agree with your assessment with Eminem. I've never understood others fascination with him. Of course, I'm not big into rap either.

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I hate Eminem. I get called Eminem/Slim Shady all the time because that bitch stole my hairstyle (I went short/bleach blond back in 1997, when no one knew who the hell he was), and because I'm white and I rap (I guess it's a step up from Vanilla Ice, but it still irks me because he's such a whiny "my life was so hard" loser). He even stole my middle name (Marshall).

I had someone tell me they thought I couldn't do "Lose Yourself," so I learned it. I did it a few weekends ago at Karaoke, drunk as hell, and I brought the house down. It pisses me off even more that the best response I've ever gotten at karaoke wasn't a song I liked (like Sublime, 311, Snoop, or Pink Floyd), but instead that damend Slim Shady.

Nutmeg said:

I hate Eminem. I get called Eminem/Slim Shady all the time because that bitch stole my hairstyle (I went short/bleach blond back in 1997, when no one knew who the hell he was), and because I'm white and I rap (I guess it's a step up from Vanilla Ice, but it still irks me because he's such a whiny "my life was so hard" loser). He even stole my middle name (Marshall).

I had someone tell me they thought I couldn't do "Lose Yourself," so I learned it. I did it a few weekends ago at Karaoke, drunk as hell, and I brought the house down. It pisses me off even more that the best response I've ever gotten at karaoke wasn't a song I liked (like Sublime, 311, Snoop, or Pink Floyd), but instead that damend Slim Shady.

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The image of you as Eminem is seriously disturbing. I do country for karaoke; I've got that twang down just right.

BTW, your other post was great, Nutmeg. What are you doing up this early? Or have you just not gone to bed yet?

CTtarheel said:

Studying can probably get you to a 35, you're probably better off polishing the other parts of your application like research and volunteering, since a 40MCAT is probably not going to get you in anywhere a 35 won't. I doubt any one is going to care that you're in the 99th percentile vs. the 95th percentile, while it will look bad if you don't have lots of volunteering and other extracurriculars.

Lets go heels . . .

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says who?? thats like saying 1400sat is the same as 1600sat.

bolnoi said:

says who?? thats like saying 1400sat is the same as 1600sat.

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S/he's making the point that once you reach a 35 level of MCAT score, getting higher isn't going to significantly help your app any more compared to other factors not related to MCAT. And s/he's right. Once you reach the mid-30s, scoring higher is mainly for ego purposes, not to make your app more competitive.

Says me and several other people who know from personal experience that you can still get rejected from medical school with a 40+ MCAT if that's all you have to offer, and sometimes even when it's not.

QofQuimica said:

S/he's making the point that once you reach a 35 level of MCAT score, getting higher isn't going to significantly help your app any more compared to other factors not related to MCAT. And s/he's right. Once you reach the mid-30s, scoring higher is mainly for ego purposes, not to make your app more competitive.

Says me and several other people who know from personal experience that you can still get rejected from medical school with a 40+ MCAT if that's all you have to offer, and sometimes even when it's not.

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what's your point? you're not a medschool adcom. yes, you can get rejected with a 40+, but it doesnt mean that 40=35. as a matter of fact, 42>>>40.

above a 35 does help... a lot. 40 is fantastic. a 40 with a great GPA will take you much farther than a 35 with the same. As always, GPA and MCAT are never the only factors; however, but they are big ones.

Best of luck to you all.

bolnoi said:

what's your point? you're not a medschool adcom. yes, you can get rejected with a 40+, but it doesnt mean that 40=35. as a matter of fact, 42>>>40.

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My point is, the MCAT isn't the do-all, be-all of getting into med school. It's one piece of a very large puzzle.

Edit: And if my opinion isn't "valid" because I'm not on an adcom, then neither is yours. However, one thing that I have going for me is that I *have* had the experience of applying to medical school with an MCAT over 40, so I would say that I know something about the subject. Considering that you have yet to even take the MCAT, let alone apply, I don't understand what your beef with me is.

QofQuimica said:

And if my opinion isn't "valid" because I'm not on an adcom, then neither is yours.

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Nice, I like that

It would be interesting to see how far someone with a 45 MCAT could go, though (just because it hasn't been done before), with the rest of the app being just okay.

QofQuimica said:

My point is, the MCAT isn't the do-all, be-all of getting into med school. It's one piece of a very large puzzle.

Edit: And if my opinion isn't "valid" because I'm not on an adcom, then neither is yours. However, one thing that I have going for me is that I *have* had the experience of applying to medical school with an MCAT over 40, so I would say that I know something about the subject. Considering that you have yet to even take the MCAT, let alone apply, I don't understand what your beef with me is.

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blablablabla

bolnoi said:

says who?? thats like saying 1400sat is the same as 1600sat.

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A 1600 SAT doesn't get everyone into harvard, just like a 40 MCAT won't either.

I made a 39, straight 13s, so I guess I have room to talk about making a 40. Its really all about luck, I could tell you a few questions last august that I just ****ed up since I was being stupid (maybe I wouldve gotten a 14 on the BS section if I wasn't being cocky and just put that actin attaches directly to myosin, the simpler and correct answer, than tropomyosin, which is about the most absurd question to miss when I think about it now). So really, you have to get that magic test booklet that tests just the right things that you know, since a 40+ score means no room for error whatsoever (esp on the Verbal).

So here's what you absolutely have to do:

Do all of EK study guide material, and I mean memorize every last bit of info in the exam krackers study guides, they put Kaplan et al to shame in terms of info and organization of material. Memorize even the minutia in EK that they say isn't too important. The highest scores come from people who know their **** (yeah, I knew my ****, I studied all summer for that beast).

Do EK Verbal 101 Passages. By far the best verbal prep available, a bit harder than the real thing but not too hard that it throws you off. You need to do these timed so you get in the test taking mode, do all passages in order, answer all questions, read for the main idea, the rest is up to your verbal reasoning skills to be truthful.

Do every practice test available, be it from AAMC or not. Half of the prep is learning the test. You are totally right, you only got one shot. I was so confident going in to the test since I truly had done every single practice test I could buy, as such, I couldn't take the MCAT again, since I would have no practice tests to study with. You have a month till the MCAT, if you are aiming for 40+, you should be completed with learning material, and you need to be doing only practice tests and brushing up on weak material if needed. By the last week before the test, I was taking 2 practice tests a day (yes, omg it sucked, but the day before I only took one) and I scored a 40 on the last one.

Really that is it, I think the MCAT is all inherent ability mixed with a bit of studying and practice. It truly is a thinking test. Good luck, and see you at interviews next year!

omg. ppl need to get laid in these forums.

gottalovemilk said:

omg. ppl need to get laid in these forums.

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tell me about it dude

quantummechanic said:

tell me about it dude

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Self-deprecating humor kills me.

But two full-lenghts a day?? Damn. You're hardcore.

NapeSpikes said:

Self-deprecating humor kills me.

But two full-lenghts a day?? Damn. You're hardcore.

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Well at least after it was all said and done, I partied and drank enough to make up for the months of studying.

2 full-lenghts a day didnt take me as long as you'd think simply becuase I could finish the bio and phys parts with a good amount of time to spare. I never practiced the writing sample either...

if you guys believe a 35 is the same as a 40 you are seriously mistaken. QofQuimica you have the luxury to believe your 40+ was worth as much as a 35 because you got that 40+...the reality is someone with a 35 is considered average at a top tier school whereas someone with a 40+ always stands out at whatever school to which he/she applies.

Also, a 45 has been done several times i dont know where you guys get the idea that it doesnt happen. About 4 45s are scored every proctored exam according to one of the guys that teaches TPR Bio in the La jolla/san diego area who got a 45 last year or the year before. My TPR ochem teacher also told us of her girl-friend that went to UCSD who scored a 45 last year I believe.

IooI said:

if you guys believe a 35 is the same as a 40 you are seriously mistaken. QofQuimica you have the luxury to believe your 40+ was worth as much as a 35 because you got that 40+...the reality is someone with a 35 is considered average at a top tier school whereas someone with a 40+ always stands out at whatever school to which he/she applies.

Also, a 45 has been done several times i dont know where you guys get the idea that it doesnt happen. About 4 45s are scored every proctored exam according to one of the guys that teaches TPR Bio in the La jolla/san diego area who got a 45 last year or the year before. My TPR ochem teacher also told us of her girl-friend that went to UCSD who scored a 45 last year I believe.

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I highly doubt your assertion about the mythical 45. This years MSAR (06-07) states that the range of scores for accepted applicants goes from a low of something like 16 or 17 to a high of (I'm 100% positive on this) 43. So no one this past year that got accepted made a 45 and same goes with a 44. A 45 calls for missing no more than about 5 questions total, considering the difficulty of this exam, its no wonder that a 45 is probably not scored except once in a blue moon.

I know it's hard to believe, but the fact is I know this guy that got the 45..hes not lying. He got accepted to UCSF and will be attending this year. And I dont know where you're getting your data, but obviously they are wrong.

Just as some background...the guy took the MCAT first time w/o a class and got a 40...decided to take it again to get that elusive 45 and did it. He is quite literally a genius. He graduated with a quadruple major from UCSD in 4 years...knows 8 languages...and some other insanely crazy ish.

Just because the probability of getting a 45 is so low, doesn't mean that some crazy kid isn't achieving it.

There have only been a handful of administrations where you could get a 45. Previously, the top VR score was reported as "13-15." So the current MSAR doesn't have any data for a possible 45, only 43. It's possible that someone scored 45, though I've not heard of it.

I really think a 35 and a 40+ is equivalent for admissions purposes for the most part. This is all speculation of course, but do you really believe an applicant with a 35 who was rejected by say, Harvard, would have gotten in if he/she had managed to break 40?

He got the 45 recently, as in within a year or two during which the verbal score was reported as 15.

And regarding your question about the MCAT score...of course a 35 Harvard rejectee would've had better chances of getting in had he or she scored a 40+! It would be ridiculous to think otherwise...its like asking by the same token "do you think an applicant with a 3.7 who was rejected by Harvard would have gotten in had he/she had managed to have a 4.0" Yes, the 4.0 helps significantly. 3.7 is say the average incoming GPA at Harvard, whereas 4.0 is presumably only achieved by say the top 10% of the class. Similarly, a 35 on the mcat is about average for the harvard student whereas a 40+ would have only been achieved by the top 5% or so of the class. Stastically, it makes a huge difference.

Look at it this way...say Harvard's avg. gpa/mcat is 3.7/35

If an applicant has a 3.7/35 he is considered average
if an applicant has a 4.0/35 he is above average
if an applicant has a 3.7/40 he is above average
and if an applicant has a 4.0/40 he is way above average.

obviously the 40 helps...and probably quite a bit since it is such a rare score *much rarer than a 4.0 since the mcat is a normalized test whereas GPA isn't*

If a 40 and a 35 were "equivalent" and a 35 was considered "maxed out" intelligence/knowledge...what the hell is the point of having each section be scored from 1-15...may as well have them be scored 1-12/15

Point of this lengthy post being...
a 40+ is GOLDEN

IooI said:

I know it's hard to believe, but the fact is I know this guy that got the 45..hes not lying.
...
And I dont know where you're getting your data, but obviously they are wrong.
...
He got the 45 recently, as in within a year or two during which the verbal score was reported as 15.

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AAMC themselves said that the highest score in the recent years (when it was possible to get a 14 or a 15 on the VR section) was a 43.

I will say that I think the 40 has helped me, a lot more than a 35 would have.

I've had the test score specifically brought up in 3 of my interviews (all of my open-file interviews, now that I think about it). One interviewer said, "I've been interviewing people for years, and I've never interviewed someone with a score this high".

The 40 gets you an almost automatic foot in the door (i.e. an interview), and I'm confident (from the reactions I've gotten in interviews) it has given me chances in the admissions process that I would not otherwise have had.

bolnoi said:

blablablabla

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I smell troll.


O'DOYLE RULES!

sup to everybody,

am planning to take an MCAT prep course this summer, but am having trouble choosing between TPR, Kaplan, or DR.Putzer's review..

could any one who had experience with any of these courses, tell me what you thought of the class, was is it really helpful in improving your MCAT score or was it a waste of time and money.
your reply would be very helpful,

thank you

peace...

aalwassia5 said:

sup to everybody,

am planning to take an MCAT prep course this summer, but am having trouble choosing between TPR, Kaplan, or DR.Putzer's review..

could any one who had experience with any of these courses, tell me what you thought of the class, was is it really helpful in improving your MCAT score or was it a waste of time and money.
your reply would be very helpful,

thank you

peace...

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hello noob!

this is off topic for this thread. go back to the MCAT forum and search for prep courses and read. it has been discussed a billion times!

IooI said:

if you guys believe a 35 is the same as a 40 you are seriously mistaken. QofQuimica you have the luxury to believe your 40+ was worth as much as a 35 because you got that 40+...the reality is someone with a 35 is considered average at a top tier school whereas someone with a 40+ always stands out at whatever school to which he/she applies.

Also, a 45 has been done several times i dont know where you guys get the idea that it doesnt happen. About 4 45s are scored every proctored exam according to one of the guys that teaches TPR Bio in the La jolla/san diego area who got a 45 last year or the year before. My TPR ochem teacher also told us of her girl-friend that went to UCSD who scored a 45 last year I believe.

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My case is unique because I also don't have undergrad grades. So it is possible that that 43 made a difference for me at a few schools that are, shall we say, more impressed by high stats. But I do not think that it made a huge difference at most schools. Again, you are not being judged by just this one factor, or even mainly on this one factor, but rather on a whole panoply of factors, all of which factor into the decision-making process to varying degrees, and some of which are not readily under your control (ex. diversity factors, your state of residency). I don't understand why some of you are so fixated about this; why pick the MCAT in particular as being so impressive to adcoms? You could, for example, make the exact same argument about the fact that I am applying with a PhD instead of just a BS or MS like most people do. Someone made that very same argument in pre-allo just a day or two ago, as a matter of fact.

You guys read SDN, and so to you, it seems like 35s are a dime a dozen. They aren't. 35 is a very high score--the 95th percentile--and most people do not come anywhere close to achieving a score that high, let alone higher. Out of approximately 67,000 test-takers per year, you are talking about fewer than 3500 people who score 35+. You may be surprised to learn that the mean score on the MCAT isn't in the 30s at all. It's a 24-25. That means half of all test-takers score BELOW a 24. You just don't see too many of them posting here on SDN, and so your perception of what a "good" score is will be majorly biased if SDN is your main source of information.

Your MCAT teacher is definitely mistaken. There wouldn't be that many 45s in ANY year, and as far as we know, there aren't any of them at all from the past two years. I didn't specifically ask about any other test administration, but when I took the test in August 2004, there were no 45s or even 44s earned during that administration. As guju said, I wrote to the AAMC to ask them how many people scored at each level above a 41, and they replied that there were 8 42s, 2 43s, and no 44s or 45s. It is possible that someone scored a 45 last year, but to my knowledge, no one has. If you're really interested, you could write to the AAMC and ask them. Come back and let us all know what they say. But I agree with whomever guessed that your instructor with the 45 probably took the test before 2003.

P.S. Sorry, Zeph, for contributing to the hijacking of your thread.

gottalovemilk said:

hello noob!

this is off topic for this thread. go back to the MCAT forum and search for prep courses and read. it has been discussed a billion times!

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thanks man

Zephyrus said:

:: no problem, any input I can receive is probably going to end up being helpful, given my unrealistic aims. it's useful. i did notice that the "competitive" percentile for a test-taker (30+) is actually the 75th, not the 50th as I would imagine. 3/4 of test-takers score below a 30, that's a sobering statistic. what the hell happens to the 24 and unders? osteopathy?

Z

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That's right. 30 is well above the mean; it's the top quartile. The percentiles rise very fast above that point; a 33 is the top decile, and a 35 is the top five percent as I already mentioned. The top 1% is approximately a 38. To put it into perspective, now you're talking about fewer than 700 people per YEAR who get a 38+. You're already up there, my friend.

Some of them do. Here in FL, all of our allopathic schools have an MCAT floor (minimum required score) of 24, so people who score lower will not usually get secondaries, let alone be invited to interview or be accepted. Our two osteopathic schools do not have this requirement, and several students with otherwise good apps but MCAT scores in the low 20s have been able to get admitted to them. Some people decide that they really do want allopathic medicine, and I see them again in class for the following test administration. And then some decide not to go into medicine at all. I've had quite a few former pre-meds show up in my DAT, OAT, and PCAT classes.

My theory is that the high MCAT score doesn't help for many schools that screen pre-secondary, notably UCSF and Mayo.

gujuDoc said:

Probably because those two schools have some in state residency factors playing into them a little. Mayo gives Fl. Az and Mn residents some preference over out of staters. Likewise, UCSF gives Ca. residents some preference over others.

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I'm not so sure, even with the 40+ CA residents getting rejected pre-secondary from UCSF. Besides UCSF seems to accept more people OOS with <40 than 40+.
My hypothesis is that they're looking for certain character traits/experiences in their successful applicants, from what they can glean from the AMCAS. This goes back to the point made earlier about mega MCAT scores not helping as much as people think they do...

Zephyrus said:

That's pretty depressing for all those folks who worked so hard. It seems as if the MCAT serves a more insidious role of artificially blowing a good chunk of the pre-med population out of the water so that the ridiculous restrictions coordinated by the AMA/AAMC cartel can keep supply of physicians down, and salaries up. I know human calculators who are excellent test-takers but horrible, soulless, pathetic excuses for compassionate individuals. Conversely, I have friends who would be summarily eviscerated by the MCAT, but who would make wonderful physicians. What a f*cked up system.

On that note, I'm off to go learn about Young's Modulus, which will undoubtedly prove to be essential information in my future medical career.

Z

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I dunno, man, there are lots of other moduli out there. I don't think you should give preferential treatment to just one of them.

In all seriousness, that is what I have been trying to explain to you guys: getting into med school is not all about the MCAT. People with high scores get rejected all of the time, some of them from EVERY school where they apply. If your MCAT score is above some certain minimum, then it ceases to be a major consideration, and many other things come into play and start to matter more. No school will compare me with someone else having a 35+ score and decide, "You know, Q has the higher MCAT, so we'll take her and reject this other guy who "only" got a 35, even though the other guy is a better candidate in most other areas." Sometimes people will argue, "ok, but what if all else were equal except your MCAT scores?" But things never ARE equal. We all have strengths and weaknesses in various areas, and you just have to make yourself the best all-around candidate you can be in ALL areas. Take your MCAT and score as well as you can. Try to earn the best grades that you can. Pick ECs that matter to you and be involved in them. Volunteer for causes you care about. Write the best essays you can and get others to proofread them for you. Practice interviewing and explaining orally why you want to go to med school. You need to be competent or better in ALL of these areas, not just one or two of them, if you want to be successful at getting into med school.

Finally, keep in mind that there is a large degree of subjectivity to medical school admissions. Sometimes, schools just plain don't like you, just like some people just never hit it off. It doesn't mean you can't be a successful student elsewhere; that's why most people don't apply to only one school.

IooI said:

I know it's hard to believe, but the fact is I know this guy that got the 45..hes not lying. He got accepted to UCSF and will be attending this year. And I dont know where you're getting your data, but obviously they are wrong.
Just as some background...the guy took the MCAT first time w/o a class and got a 40...decided to take it again to get that elusive 45 and did it. He is quite literally a genius. He graduated with a quadruple major from UCSD in 4 years...knows 8 languages...and some other insanely crazy ish.

Just because the probability of getting a 45 is so low, doesn't mean that some crazy kid isn't achieving it.

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So obviously, the MSAR, the official publication released by the AAMC, is wrong on page 27 of this years edition (2006-2007) that no accepted applicant this past year (i.e. someone in class of 2009) scored above a 43 on the MCAT. I always hear stories about ppl's friends that scored a 45, its all bull****.

quantummechanic said:

So obviously, the MSAR, the official publication released by the AAMC, is wrong on page 27 of this years edition (2006-2007) that no accepted applicant this past year (i.e. someone in class of 2009) scored above a 43 on the MCAT. I always hear stories about ppl's friends that scored a 45, its all bull****.

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I think the 45 scorer is a bs story, too.

BUT...remember, the current msar has data only for 2004 matriculants, which means all of them took the mcat 2003 at the latest. Forty-three was the highest score then.

You guys are such skeptics

The guy got a 45, and I'm sure he was accepted to UCSF...last year or the year before that... and took a year or two off to teach/do research.