New MCAT change is going to be harder?

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Evisju7

Evisju7

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I keep hearing that the new MCAT will be harder.

Obviously the length seems awful, but I think I like the changes. Think..

What does everyone think?

Will it help if you have a psychology background? My minor is psychology, but I don't know if my courses are actually relative.
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Yes, it's going to be written in Korean.

Honestly, go look up what are going to be the new subject areas and then you tell us if it will be harder.

Evisju7 said:
I keep hearing that the new MCAT will be harder.

Obviously the length seems awful, but I think I like the changes. Think..

What does everyone think?

Will it help if you have a psychology background? My minor is psychology, but I don't know if my courses are actually relative.
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Goro said:
Yes, it's going to be written in Korean.

Honestly, go look up what are going to be the new subject areas and then you tell us if it will be harder.
Click to expand...

I did. I'm asking for opinions
 
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Goro said:
People pissed and moaned when they added the essay portion. that rapidly became part of the exam, and now it's being eliminated. Change happens and if you've had a well rounded education, the new MCAT should give you no problems.
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You're right, Goro. It's not quite apocalyptic. But still, you know you're gonna hear the complaints for at least the next few years.
 
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It is longer and has more subject areas added. That makes it objectively harder. Considering that after Jan 2016 it will be the only MCAT administered, whether it is harder or not does not matter - it is the one that you will have to take.
 
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Goro said:
People pissed and moaned when they added the essay portion. that rapidly became part of the exam, and now it's being eliminated. Change happens and if you've had a well rounded education, the new MCAT should give you no problems.
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So maybe people who pissed and moaned actually did have a point?
 
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What they should do is remove Organic Chemistry and replace it with Biochemistry.
 
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Cyberdyne 101 said:
As much as I love organic, focusing on biochem is the more practical thing to do. Although, organic should still be a pre-req (at least one term).
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Why? Organic I and II isn't necessary for Biochem. Maybe a baby Organic course.
 
You are still compared to the same subset of test takers. Distribution of percentile will still be what we see now. So in terms of how many people get 90% percentile in the new test and old, it will be similarly difficult.
 
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TheBigB said:
You are still compared to the same subset of test takers. Distribution of percentile will still be what we see now. So in terms of how many people get 90% percentile in the new test and old, it will be similarly difficult.
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True but it will not be necessary the same people who were in the 90% for the old test who will be in the 90% for the new one. The obvious example being someone with strong science background but not much experience with social sciences. Obviously, that can be mitigated by studying but I suspect there will be some shifting between applicants.
 
Cyberdyne 101 said:
How about a Mickey Mouse gen chem course and a semester of organic and then biochem?
I think organic is actually more relevant than gen chem.
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If you can't handle Gen Chem I and II - you don't belong in med school. It's freakin' AP Chem for goodness sakes.
 
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DermViser said:
If you can't handle Gen Chem I and II - you don't belong in med school. It's freakin' AP Chem for goodness sakes.
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Lol-I don't think gen chem is unmanageable (if that's what you were implying). It's easier than orgo (although not nearly as fun). I just don't think it's as relevant for the health sciences. In the end, it doesn't really matter.
 
Agreed. And I suppose that's part of the point of the shift: to modernize what the MCAT tests for.

Suppose what sort of peeves me about all this complaining about how hard the tests is the fact that we were given a generous forewarning that it was going to change. With the mindset that the AAMC wanted to incorporate social sciences because it may be an indication of a successful med student (just as much as the hard sciences and verbal), it seems complaints are sort of unfounded.

milski said:
True but it will not be necessary the same people who were in the 90% for the old test who will be in the 90% for the new one. The obvious example being someone with strong science background but not much experience with social sciences. Obviously, that can be mitigated by studying but I suspect there will be some shifting between applicants.
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TheBigB said:
Agreed. And I suppose that's part of the point of the shift: to modernize what the MCAT tests for.

Suppose what sort of peeves me about all this complaining about how hard the tests is the fact that we were given a generous forewarning that it was going to change. With the mindset that the AAMC wanted to incorporate social sciences because it may be an indication of a successful med student (just as much as the hard sciences and verbal), it seems complaints are sort of unfounded.
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:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
 
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Cyberdyne 101 said:
Lol-I don't think gen chem is unmanageable (if that's what you were implying). It's easier than orgo (although not nearly as fun). I just don't think it's as relevant for the health sciences. In the end, it doesn't really matter.
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I don't agree with you. Chemistry is very important for understanding the big picture of biological processes. I think things make more sense when I can understand why they work, not just memorize that they do.
 
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Evisju7 said:
I don't agree with you. Chemistry is very important for understanding the big picture of biological processes. I think things make more sense when I can understand why they work, not just memorize that they do.
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Yeah, I agree as well. But bio molecules and drugs are composed of organic molecules. Also, I never said they should eliminate gen chem altogether. They should just cover what's relevant to biological processes. That could be done in 1 term.
 
Cyberdyne 101 said:
Yeah, I agree as well. But bio molecules and drugs are composed of organic molecules. Also, I never said they should eliminate gen chem altogether. They should just cover what's relevant to biological processes. That could be done in 1 term.
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So? You're studying to be a physician not a pharmacist.
 
or they should just take out both exams and let people in to medical school willy nilly :)
 
Adding the social sciences and Biochemistry is a step in the right direction. I agree with the sentiment that Organic Chemistry shouldn't be on the MCAT.

As for the difficulty, if you prepare well for it and practice tons of passages, it shouldn't be "harder" than the current MCAT, only longer and more mentally draining.
 
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Cyberdyne 101 said:
Yeah, I agree as well. But bio molecules and drugs are composed of organic molecules. Also, I never said they should eliminate gen chem altogether. They should just cover what's relevant to biological processes. That could be done in 1 term.
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That's great for pre-meds but Chemistry faculty do not only teach to pre-medical students in Gen Chem classes.
 
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DermViser said:
So? You're studying to be a physician not a pharmacist.
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I don't even know why pharmacists have to know anything at all... All their work can be done by machines including checking for drug interactions.
 
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For the first year or so it is going to be harder simply because of the unknown. So much of what is supposed to work in test prep is not available. almost no AAMC sample tests and questions, untested material. Even if I put out the money for a test prep class, none of the instructors have actual experience with the new exam.
 
allenlchs said:
That's great for pre-meds but Chemistry faculty do not only teach to pre-medical students in Gen Chem classes.
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You're right. But, currently there is a variety of pre-req classes and intro science courses offered at some schools i.e. micro for nursing students vs micro for bio majors, physics with calc vs physics with no calc, watered down orgo (some places condense it into 1 semester) vs real organic, intro courses in bio and chem for non-science majors (and non-pre-health students) etc.

But regardless, a lot of us just have to deal with what's coming.
 
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allenlchs said:
I don't even know why pharmacists have to know anything at all... All their work can be done by machines including checking for drug interactions.
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Maybe you should go on rounds where there is an actual clinical pharmacist and you can see what they contribute.
 
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