28 O on mcat, but 5 on verbal?!?!? need help

[doctorapple]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hi im kind of in a dilemma, I took the mcat my first time and freaked out and got a 24 but i took a second time in september i just got my score released and got a 28 12P 11Bs and 5V???!?!?!?!? if anything i spent the most time on verbal the second time around and shocked to see that 5 on verbal and not sure what to do anymore because i think most of my other credentials are pretty good as far as GPA, extracurricular, research, etc. I would truly appreciate any advice on what to do with that. and i no the score might be acceptable but a 5 on verbal!!?!?!?! i dunno wat to do anymore cause i was averaging like 7/8 on the practice tests before hand. anything would help thanks

 

[Catalystik]

What was your VS on the first test? Some schools take the best subscore when there are multiple tests. If you scored an 8 or greater before, you might be fine depending on where you applied.

 

[doctorapple]

It was a 4 the first time, verbal has been just horrible for me since its not my first language at home

thanks though, so should i just take it again? is it bad if i take it again and hope i do better

 

[Catalystik]

Yes, you need to take it again. Why not Search through the MCAT Discussions Forum for some threads on how to improve verbal score. Don't take it again until you're consistently scoring 8 or better.

 

[doctorapple]

Truly how bad would it look like if i took this test again? i truly wanna go to a decent school, i was hoping for a miracle and try to stay here in california, but i really dont mind going to any other place in the US, i feel like i have all the good credentials and well balanced background to prove it. Just this mcat is killing me!!! thanks again

 

[Catalystik]

How bad will it look if you don't retake? Look at this as a great subject for an essay about a challenge you overcame, where you can also mention when you came to the US and how few years you've been speaking English (provided you didn't move here at age 5 or so, in which case you have less excuse).

 

[morning]

I honestly don't know how the MCAT verbal section looks to an ESL speaker, and I'm probably underestimating the difficulty, but if possible, try not to think of at as an english test. It's not testing your ability to read this language, it's testing your ability to think critically.

 

[ThaliaNox]

A 5 is not going to fly at any school in the country. You need to retake after significant work towards verbal. A score of 8 or better is what you want to be working with, although there are a few schools that might take a 7, provided that the rest of your application is stellar.

It is understood that folks who have english as a second language will have some difficulty with verbal, but even so, the bottom ten percent scores for all the schools in the country is at least a 7, with most 8 or higher.

 

[PingPongPro]

I honestly don't know how the MCAT verbal section looks to an ESL speaker, and I'm probably underestimating the difficulty, but if possible, try not to think of at as an english test. It's not testing your ability to read this language, it's testing your ability to think critically.

For the most part this is pretty true, but a lot of ESL speakers have difficulty just because they don't have the natural fundamentals of the English. This makes it pretty difficult to think critically within the time restraints. To these students, the sentences just don't flow like they do for a natural speaker and finishing passages become an obstacle.

To OP, Verbal is probably the hardest to improve in my opinion out of the three subsections. I think you should definitely retake and perhaps change your study routine for this section. Try always reading difficult articles during the day and read a wide variety of genres. It may seem like it would help very little, but this has really helped me improve my reading speed, comprehension, as well as vocabulary.

 

[isuckatverbal]

I feel your pain doctorapple.

 

[csheng89]

Don't give up hope yet! Not sure when you moved to the states, but you can still improve your verbal score. When I was practicing, I did a lot of TPR and ExamKracker tests. Also, for me, it made a huge difference whether I was doing them on paper or on the computer. I scored substantially lower on the computer than on paper. When I asked my TPR instructor about it, she mentioned that the two are very different, and for some, it could definitely screw up how you go about the verbal passages, i.e. the passage may not fit in one screen and scrolling down could make you lose sight of what you read earlier and make it harder to find again.

ALSO, while you're studying, don't forget to continue keeping up with your extracurriculars. Find some volunteering opportunities that you're interested in, doesn't have to be medicine-related.

 

[heyyouyouyou]

I got a 7 on the VS for the first time (34 total), and I only got 1 interview.

The 2nd time, I got a 10 (still a 34 total), and I got 4 interviews.

You can increase your score by going through numerous Verbal practice tests & reading weekly magazines, such as the New Yorker or the Economist.

Try to read it as fast as you can & remember as much as you can.

After doing practice tests, you'll start to see patterns in questions.

Your score will take ~5-6 months to drastically improve.


Nonetheless, be sure that your application has other good points, such as volunteer work in the healthcare field. That is what probably kept me from getting 10 interviews (instead of just 4).

 

[doctorapple]

Thanks to everyone i truly appreciate it, ill work at it again and take as much time as needed to improve! really gave me some hope so ill hope to continue trying!

 

[Potatoman1800]

Concur with the retake.

I initially had a poor verbal score. I raised it by practicing from the EK 101 book with timed passages and supplementing my focus and comprehension skills by reading REALLY boring news/opinion articles online. Dont make studying verbal just an addendum to your day of studying. It has to be a major part, just as important as every other section. You seem to be solid on the sciences, but dont neglect those either or risk losing that info over time.

 

[hiyaman]

What was your VS on the first test? Some schools take the best subscore when there are multiple tests. If you scored an 8 or greater before, you might be fine depending on where you applied.

Are there a lot of US schools that screen out VR: 8's?

 

[MossPoh]

Retake.

Not speaking English at home isn't a great excuse, unless you moved here within the last few years. If it has been since you were very young, not so much. Those children start off slower but nearly always catch up. We had a girl who moved to the states when she was 16 or 17 and she had some difficulty. She actually took a year off to get her English better, but she still had a 7 on the MCAT verbal.

 

[ThaliaNox]

Are there a lot of US schools that screen out VR: 8's?

If you read what Cat said, she indicated that an 8 was necessary to avoid most screening. This means most schools would screen 7s, not 8s. Course, avoiding a flat screen doesn't mean you don't get rejected anyway...

 

[apumic]

Hi im kind of in a dilemma, I took the mcat my first time and freaked out and got a 24 but i took a second time in september i just got my score released and got a 28 12P 11Bs and 5V???!?!?!?!? if anything i spent the most time on verbal the second time around and shocked to see that 5 on verbal and not sure what to do anymore because i think most of my other credentials are pretty good as far as GPA, extracurricular, research, etc. I would truly appreciate any advice on what to do with that. and i no the score might be acceptable but a 5 on verbal!!?!?!?! i dunno wat to do anymore cause i was averaging like 7/8 on the practice tests before hand. anything would help thanks

WAAAAAIT a second! So you're telling me you were getting 7-8 VR scores on practice tests? What were you thinking taking the actual MCAT when your practice scores were below average and more than an SD below the national average for an acceptance? You've gotta be more careful than that. This is your 2nd try right? So now you're faced w/ doing it again b/c a 5 on VR would ruin even the best BS/PS scores (i.e., even a 35 with a VR 5 is going to make people wonder...and probably get you an interview only to see what kind of person might pull perfect science scores with such a weak VR).

Next time, seriously wait to take the MCAT until you're consistently scoring above a 10. You can't afford another mistake at this point.

 

[littlealex]

Below 8 on any section is really not acceptable. I recommend reading a lot of research papers, NY times op ed sections, etc. Challenge yourself and read copious amounts.

If you truly understand what you read on the Verbal exam, you should get at least an 8. It is possible. The first time I took a practice test I got a 7 on verbal. I spent the next year reading quite a bit of philosophy and primary research papers and after 1 year I was consistently getting 10's on verbal.