If I score a 528 on the MCAT but my GPA is 3.1...

[medicalschoolislife]

This is a serious question. I suffered from bipolar disorder (it was diagnosed about a year after I finished college) during college and could not get the GPA I wanted. I took the proper medication and now my psychiatrist has said I no longer need any medication.

With the ability to think straight, I think I might be able to score a 528 (or close to it) on the MCAT.

My concern is that an admissions committee might question why there is such a disparity between my GPA and MCAT score, and bipolar disorder may not be enough to justify my situation.

Can anyone offer any insight on this?

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[gyngyn]

A very high MCAT and very low gpa comprise a tiny proportion of the applicant pool.
The qualities that distinguish this sub-set include serious medical, social and emotional problems.
Such applicants would do well to establish that the situation is under control by showing a sustained period of academic excellence.

 

[lexswift]

You really can't bank on getting a perfect MCAT score... it is very, very unlikely.

 

[lexswift]

A very high MCAT and very low gpa comprise a very small proportion of the applicant pool.
The qualities that distinguish this pool tend to include serious medical, social and emotional problems.
Such applicants would do well to establish that the situation is under control by showing a sustained period of academic excellence.

What do you consider a low GPA?

 

[Lawpy]

With the ability to think straight, I think I might be able to score a 528 (or close to it) on the MCAT.

 

[efle]

With the ability to think straight, I think I might be able to score a 528 (or close to it) on the MCAT.

I'm gonna guess you haven't started on any practice materials yet...

How low is the sGPA?

 

[lexswift]

I'm gonna guess you haven't started on any practice materials yet...

How low is the low GPA?

It's in the thread title. OP has a 3.1

 

[efle]

It's in the thread title. OP has a 3.1

Typo, meant sGPA. Thanks though!

 

[Goro]

You'd still get rejected by every MD school and tons of DO schools.

This is a serious question. I suffered from bipolar disorder (it was diagnosed about a year after I finished college) during college and could not get the GPA I wanted. I took the proper medication and now my psychiatrist has said I no longer need any medication.

With the ability to think straight, I think I might be able to score a 528 (or close to it) on the MCAT.

My concern is that an admissions committee might question why there is such a disparity between my GPA and MCAT score, and bipolar disorder may not be enough to justify my situation.

Can anyone offer any insight on this?

 

[efle]

You'd still get rejected by every MD school

The 3.1/39+ bin has a 45% admit rate!

Though, only 0.05% of applicants had such an imbalanced score/GPA pairing...

 

[Goro]

Good point....Rising GPA trends, etc.

The 3.1/39+ bin has a 45% admit rate!

Though, only 0.05% of applicants had such an imbalanced score/GPA pairing...

 

[gyngyn]

What do you consider a low GPA?

3.1 would definitely qualify.

 

[rolliespring]

Go study and take the MCAT first. Ask again once you get your scores and you will receive better advice from this forum.

 

[medicalschoolislife]

A very high MCAT and very low gpa comprise a tiny proportion of the applicant pool.
The qualities that distinguish this sub-set include serious medical, social and emotional problems.
Such applicants would do well to establish that the situation is under control by showing a sustained period of academic excellence.

I don't want to have to do more undergraduate schooling. Is showing a sustained period of academic excellence necessary?

 

[piii]

The people that usually say they can score near 528 are usually the people that score like a 500. Those people are also the ones that have a 3.0

 

[JustAPhD]

Better get studying. There's a reason why anything above 523 is the 100 percentile.

 

[banthapug]

One might even say it's a symptom of mania...

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

I don't want to have to do more undergraduate schooling. Is showing a sustained period of academic excellence necessary?

Yes, it's absolutely necessary.

 

[mw18]

If you're on an admissions committee and you see an applicant with a 3.1 and a super high mcat then you think there is someone who is naturally brilliant but can't or hasn't parlayed that into academic success. They say they were treated for something that could have caused them not to do well previously. But none of that shows that the applicant will do well going forward. Medical school is a grind of academic consistency.

Also, you're likely not going to score a 528 or even within a few points of it. Unless you've taken practice tests which put you in that range, it is kind of ridiculous to say you think you could do it. Feel free to prove me wrong and I hope you do, but I think your best shot would be re-taking the classes you've performed poorly in to learn that material and then applying DO with a decent mcat score.

 

[sharpstickie]

In a few months a post will appear:
WAMC 3.1 GPA 500 MCAT

 

[baratheonfire]

A very high MCAT and very low gpa comprise a tiny proportion of the applicant pool.
The qualities that distinguish this sub-set include serious medical, social and emotional problems.
Such applicants would do well to establish that the situation is under control by showing a sustained period of academic excellence.

Pretty harsh m8, I don't think I suffer from any of those but I am in that category

 

[baratheonfire]

The people that usually say they can score near 528 are usually the people that score like a 500. Those people are also the ones that have a 3.0

*cough*

But yeah OP, you're not going to get a 528. You probably won't even get a 520. Your post shows a gross misunderstanding of how the entire process actually works.

 

[ZPakEffect]

Pretty harsh m8, I don't think I suffer from any of those but I am in that category

gyngyn said "include;" he didn't say "limited to."

 

[medicalschoolislife]

*cough*

But yeah OP, you're not going to get a 528. You probably won't even get a 520. Your post shows a gross misunderstanding of how the entire process actually works.

Scoring close to a perfect score is just based on my reading level right now, to be honest. I haven't really started studying or taken any practice exams.

 

[piii]

Scoring close to a perfect score is just based on my reading level right now, to be honest. I haven't really started studying or taken any practice exams.

Then you actually have no basis for your high expectations. We aren't trying to be rude, being realistic will actually benefit you in the long run.

 

[narla_hotep]

@medicalschoolislife:

You need more than a good reading level to score perfect on the MCAT... you have to have a really solid knowledge of all the science concepts in biology, chemistry, physics, and psychology, not to mention the ability to read and understand papers in the scientific literature (when I took the test, my whole bio section was basically extracts from papers.) Even if you're amazing at all of that, I'd still take a practice test before saying you'll get a 528 lol.

 

[Seattle Mariners Fan]

1. 528 is really, really hard and probably luck plays a significant factor.

2. Admitting to an adcom that you are bipolar will hurt you just as much as admitting you are lazy. Work ethic is volitional, mental illness is much less malleable. Mitigated by the fact that mental illness is partly beyond your control, but this cuts both ways. The results are the same.

 

[medicalschoolislife]

@medicalschoolislife:

You need more than a good reading level to score perfect on the MCAT... you have to have a really solid knowledge of all the science concepts in biology, chemistry, physics, and psychology, not to mention the ability to read and understand papers in the scientific literature (when I took the test, my whole bio section was basically extracts from papers.) Even if you're amazing at all of that, I'd still take a practice test before saying you'll get a 528 lol.

Yes, well with studying, I should gain the solid knowledge you speak of.

1. 528 is really, really hard and probably luck plays a significant factor.

2. Admitting to an adcom that you are bipolar will hurt you just as much as admitting you are lazy. Work ethic is volitional, mental illness is much less malleable. Mitigated by the fact that mental illness is partly beyond your control, but this cuts both ways. The results are the same.

You have a good point.

 

[baratheonfire]

Yes, well with studying, I should gain the solid knowledge you speak of.


You have a good point.

At this point in time you have absolutely no knowledge of the test. The MCAT is not like college tests where you can just learn material and get a 100%. There is no basis for any of the statements you have made.

 

[GinnyWeasley]

Yes, well with studying, I should gain the solid knowledge you speak of.


You have a good point.

Lol if everyone could study and gain the knowledge that you're going to, why aren't there a much higher amount of 528s? The mcat is more than reading level- it's about reading something and not only comprehending what you wrote (which is hard, because these are like scientific journal entries), but also extrapolating from that. On my exam there were a lot of questions that asked if X happened and Y did this what would Z do. Things that no amount of studying or reading level can help. Studying can help a certain point, but for me, I got a 515 on my exam and no amounts of studying would have helped me get more than 1 or 2 points higher, bc the people that get the highest scores tend to just be super good test takers, and that's what separates the 510+ and the 520+..

 

[ATPsynthase123]

In a few months a post will appear:
WAMC 3.1 GPA 490 MCAT

FTFY


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[narla_hotep]

@GinnyWeasley that's a good point. I mentioned knowledge, but knowledge isn't gonna help you when the MCAT gives you a trick question that requires lots of reasoning to figure out or asks you to design/interpret an experiment. I know people who were much more solid on content than I was who scored lower because it was that aspect they weren't good at.

 

[lexswift]

@GinnyWeasley that's a good point. I mentioned knowledge, but knowledge isn't gonna help you when the MCAT gives you a trick question that requires lots of reasoning to figure out or asks you to design/interpret an experiment. I know people who were much more solid on content than I was who scored lower because it was that aspect they weren't good at.

I agree that the MCAT certainly tests more critical thinking and reasoning than regular college tests. How would you suggest one get better at this? Wouldn't more practice tests and more practice problems be the best way to go about this?

 

[sharpstickie]

FTFY


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

Hahahaha

 

[narla_hotep]

More practice problems are always helpful. In the months leading up to the exam it's good to do a practice test every week and random practice problems whenever you have time

 

[Sardinia]

@medicalschoolislife Don't listen to them. People on SDN are just overly skeptic. I also haven't taken any practice problems nor do I know the subjects on the exam. However, I'm positive I can score within the 530-540 range ever since I took Sardinia Vitamin Supplements™ which has reduced all my migraine headaches, increased my manliness or womanliness (whichever binary gender enhancing qualities you prefer), and made me a happier person.

 

[baratheonfire]

@medicalschoolislife Don't listen to them. People on SDN are just overly skeptic. I also haven't taken any practice problems nor do I know the subjects on the exam. However, I'm positive I can score within the 530-540 range.

kek

 

[sammiesings]

Good point....Rising GPA trends, etc.

Well considering a lot of those students are non trads who did post bacs, I'd say lower returns for a traditional student in that situation

 

[sharpstickie]

@medicalschoolislife Don't listen to them. People on SDN are just overly skeptic. I also haven't taken any practice problems nor do I know the subjects on the exam. However, I'm positive I can score within the 530-540 range ever since I took Sardinia Vitamin Supplements™ which has reduced all my migraine headaches, increased my manliness or womanliness (whichever binary gender enhancing qualities you prefer), and made me a happier person.

Horny Goat Weed works much better in my opinion.

 

[lexswift]

Well considering a lot of those students are non trads who did post bacs, I'd say lower returns for a traditional student in that situation

One can still have a rising trend during their 4 years of undergrad? What are you talking about?

 

[efle]

I don't want to have to do more undergraduate schooling. Is showing a sustained period of academic excellence necessary?

Is your sGPA also a 3.1? Often sGPA is a bit below cGPA, and if you're at 2.xx in the sciences, you'd get screened before anyone could even see your MCAT.

Scoring close to a perfect score is just based on my reading level right now, to be honest.

What does this mean? Like you read dense phil treatises for fun so you'll ace the MCAT?

 

[sammiesings]

One can still have a rising trend during their 4 years of undergrad? What are you talking about?

Uh what? I'm talking about the statistic quoted to Goro. 45% success to those with that low of a gpa and that high of an MCAT generally has post bac work calculated in there. Ps relax. "What are you talking about" is a really unnecessarily aggressive way to speak to someone.

 

[lexswift]

Uh what? I'm talking about the statistic quoted to Goro. What are you talking about?

Some people might have just had a really bad freshman year followed by two or three years of strong grades, one doesn't necessarily need a post-bacc.

 

[sammiesings]

Some people might have just had a really bad freshman year followed by two or three years of strong grades, one doesn't necessarily need a post-bacc.

Edited my prior post. Relax, I'm sure you'll get into the top 20 of your choice

 

[Sardinia]

Horny Goat Weed works much better in my opinion.

The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia in 2013 actually requested supplement companies to provide certificates of analysis from a third party to confirm that vitamin/herbal supplements (Horny Goat Weed) by supplemental manufacturers (Horny Manufacturing Incorporated) were actually the substance in question. 90% never responded and the 10% that did often sent certificates of analysis that weren't even close to the name of the supplement on the bottle according to PharmD Erush and MD Offit.

That's why Sardinia's Farm Grown Horny Goat Weed™ is the only goat weed you can trust. It has been approved by a sticker of approval from the Sardinia Sticker Approval Service™. PM me now and you receive an extra free bottle, that's right your own free bottle for a combined cost of only $19.99.

 

[baratheonfire]

Edited my prior post. Relax, I'm sure you'll get into the top 20 of your choice

What has this thread even become

 

[sharpstickie]

The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia in 2013 actually requested supplement companies to provide certificates of analysis from a third party to confirm that vitamin/herbal supplements (Horny Goat Weed) by supplemental manufacturers (Horny Manufacturing Incorporated) were actually the substance in question. 90% never responded and the 10% that did often sent certificates of analysis that weren't even close to the name of the supplement on the bottle according to PharmD Erush and MD Offit.

That's why Sardinia's Farm Grown Horny Goat Weed™ is the only goat weed you can trust. It has been approved by a sticker of approval from the Sardinia Sticker Approval Service™. PM me now and you receive an extra free bottle, that's right your own free bottle for a combined cost of only $19.99.

Can't tell if joking or very good at trolling...

 

[DokterMom]

I don't want to have to do more undergraduate schooling. Is showing a sustained period of academic excellence necessary?

Pretty harsh m8, I don't think I suffer from any of those but I am in that category

An imbalance of the type you describe -- super-high MCAT and low GPA -- says "Brilliant but..." And it's the 'but' part that's the trouble. But lazy? But can't get his act together? But unfocused? But mental or emotional issues? If it's anything other than "had to work full time to pay my bills" then you're in trouble and an AdCom is going to want to see that the 'but part' is behind you. (Couldn't help that one...)

 

[Sardinia]

@DokterMom Would referencing an anatomy textbook be sufficient to validate that my butt is indeed behind me?

 

[sharpstickie]

@DokterMom Would referencing an anatomy textbook be sufficient to validate that my butt is indeed behind me?

I believe posterior would be more correct.