MCAT vs. PCAT

I have a friend who took both and currently goes to Ferris State for pharm school.

She said most students should spend 6+ months studying to sit for the MCAT and only <1 wk to sit for the PCAT. She did well on both but chose pharm for the $$$.

laura_mideon said:

I was just wondering if any of you have taken both the PCAT and the MCAT and if so, was the MCAT much more difficult?

I am doing pre-pharmacy right now but considering medicine and I have already taken the PCAT, I haven't received my scores yet but I studied for about 10 hours total and found it very easy, I've heard the DAT is killer but I don't know much about the MCAT.

Thanx

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Usually people study for months for the MCAT. I don't imagine 10 hours of studying being nearly enough for the MCAT.

In my humble opinion, the MCAT is tough and requires a lot of preparation -- both studying and practicing. And from what I've heard and seen, the DAT is much, much easier and more straight-forward than the MCAT.

AStudent said:

I have a friend who took both and currently goes to Ferris State for pharm school.

She said most students should spend 6+ months studying to sit for the MCAT and only <1 wk to sit for the PCAT. She did well on both but chose pharm for the $$$.

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hmmm... did she go to FSU for undergrad... -curious bc this is my undergrad school.

yes, the mcat is harder. But don't let it discourage you from switching. I switched from pre-pharm to pre-med and i am glad I did. As was pointed out above, you just have to study more for the MCAT.

laura_mideon said:

I was just wondering if any of you have taken both the PCAT and the MCAT and if so, was the MCAT much more difficult?

I am doing pre-pharmacy right now but considering medicine and I have already taken the PCAT, I haven't received my scores yet but I studied for about 10 hours total and found it very easy, I've heard the DAT is killer but I don't know much about the MCAT.

Thanx

Click to expand...

I started out as pre-pharm and am now pre-med, so I did take both the PCAT and MCAT. The PCAT is fairly easy. I didn't study for it either (other than taking one practice test) and scored very well. In such a test, the pressure is really time (especially in the chemistry section).

The MCAT, on the other hand, seems to be more about thinking clearly under sustained pressure. Afterall, it is a much longer test. Because so much of the MCAT revolves around being able to work with information given to you in the form of a passage, I feel like these tests test very different things, and so it won't be enough to just run through some intro bio notes to do well ont the MCAT. Also, this is a bad generalization, but many pre-med students are a lot more dilligent and competetive than pre-pharm students and so the curves are less generous.

I also think that there's a big difference in how these tests are handled by the schools. I didn't get the feeling that the PCAT was as important for pharmacy school as the MCAT was. Most pharm schools just check to make sure you make over a certain score, whereas med schools are more stringent about what your actual score is.

If you do decide to not pursue medicine, please don't let the MCAT be your only deterrent. Good luck!

Try telling my dad there is even a difference in the PCAT and MCAT...

He is a pharmacist, has an MBA, has a very very profitable home infusion company...

He didnt study for the PCAT. He couldnt understand me taking 3-4 days a week for 1.5 months to study for the MCAT. Why would I study for something so easy, as he thought the PCAT was... oh and the verbal is a joke (according to him)


I was ridiculed the entire time for even retaking the MCAT, as its not a test you can study for, when the entire time I should have just taken the PCAT and gone to pharmacy school, of course according to him.

Then after I went from a 27 (10V 7P 10B) without studying to a 35 (12V 13P 10B) with, he of course never admitted he was wrong that he literally yelled at me for wasting my time studying for it



So I have not taken both, but I do know some who believe the PCAT is a joke and have taken both. One of my friends dropped out of pharmacy b/c he hated it; thought it was incredibly easy to get into though.

I started at the University of Houston in pre-pharm and then switched over to biology. I took the PCAT right before my fourth semester (spring 2003) and the MCAT during my sixth semester (spring 2004). I got an overall 99% on the PCAT without studying for it (although I had just finished Orgo1). As for the MCAT, I studied independently more hours than I bother to count from summer 2003 to April 2004 and I got a 33 (12 V, 11 B, 10 P, Q).

So yeah, I'd say the PCAT is A LOT easier: mostly because it's a lot more straightforward than the MCAT. As long as you really know your basic chemistry, very basic organic, and algebra; the PCAT won't give you much trouble. As for the MCAT, well... just get an AAMC practice test and you'll know exactly what it's like.

Strange physics problems, random, esoteric verbal passages... thank goodness that's over with. Anyway, I wish you the best of luck!