504 MCAT, 3.89 GPA

[WILLIV]

I just graduated from The University of Texas at Austin. I am reapplying and I was looking to get some opinions on what to do.

White male, TX resident. MCAT 504: 125/127/124/127 (sad face) AAMC FL 511: 127/128/129/127

Non-TMDSAS Rounding Overall GPA: 3.89 SGPA: 3.8

TMDSAS Rounding Overall: 3.94 SGPA: 3.87 (4 hours of B's, the rest were A's)

ECs: (I can elaborate where needed)

Research: 100 Hrs No bench work, but related to medicine.
Volunteering: Clinical and non-clinic: 500+ hrs Plenty of leadership here.
Shadowing: 120+ Hrs with multiple specialties
Employment: TA for two semesters and Intern at a non-profit
Leadership: 4 Official positions in college. Plenty of experience.

LORs: Strong, but 1 Sci, 1 Humanities, 1 from work. OK letters: 2 Science, 2 humanities, 1 from work.

I have no D.O. shadowing so I am not sure if a DO school would take me. Thoughts? I see the AAMC chart puts me at a 59% chance of getting in (27-29 and 3.8-4.0 GPA). Where would you all apply and would you retake the MCAT?

Chart: Table A-24: MCAT and GPA Grid for Applicants and Acceptees by Selected Race and Ethnicity, 2013-2014 through 2015-2016 (Aggregated) - Applicants and Matriculants Data - FACTS: Applicants, Matriculants, Enrollment, Graduates, MD/PhD, and Residency Applicants Data - Data and Analysis - AAMC

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[DoubleTrouble3428]

I just graduated from The University of Texas at Austin. I am reapplying and I was looking to get some opinions on what to do.

White male, TX resident. MCAT 504: 125/127/124/127 (sad face) AAMC FL 511: 127/128/129/127

Non-TMDSAS Rounding Overall GPA: 3.89 SGPA: 3.8

TMDSAS Rounding Overall: 3.94 SGPA: 3.87 (4 hours of B's, the rest were A's)

ECs: (I can elaborate where needed)

Research: 100 Hrs No bench work, but related to medicine.
Volunteering: Clinical and non-clinic: 500+ hrs Plenty of leadership here.
Shadowing: 120+ Hrs with multiple specialties
Employment: TA for two semesters and Intern at a non-profit
Leadership: 4 Official positions in college. Plenty of experience.

LORs: Strong, but 1 Sci, 1 Humanities, 1 from work. OK letters: 2 Science, 2 humanities, 1 from work.

I have no D.O. shadowing so I am not sure if a DO school would take me. Thoughts? I see the AAMC chart puts me at a 59% chance of getting in (27-29 and 3.8-4.0 GPA). Where would you all apply and would you retake the MCAT?

Chart: Table A-24: MCAT and GPA Grid for Applicants and Acceptees by Selected Race and Ethnicity, 2013-2014 through 2015-2016 (Aggregated) - Applicants and Matriculants Data - FACTS: Applicants, Matriculants, Enrollment, Graduates, MD/PhD, and Residency Applicants Data - Data and Analysis - AAMC

I feel your pain on the FL AAMC vs. the real MCAT. Incredibly frustrating. There are IS schools at which you'd be a competitive applicant, based on the MSAR. These include both TTUs in El Paso and Lubbock and UT Rio Grand Valley. That's just looking at their MCAT and GPA averages, though. You'd have to look into it further. Retaking wouldn't be a bad move at all.

 

[Danny L]

I'd try for a retake if you're not applying this cycle (and if your scores are well below the median of the schools you want to go to). Also some schools superscore so it could definitely help you

 

[WILLIV]

I'd try for a retake if you're not applying this cycle (and if your scores are well below the median of the schools you want to go to). Also some schools superscore so it could definitely help you

would retaking in August and applying this cycle be a bad idea?

 

[WILLIV]

I feel your pain on the FL AAMC vs. the real MCAT. Incredibly frustrating. There are IS schools at which you'd be a competitive applicant, based on the MSAR. These include both TTUs in El Paso and Lubbock and UT Rio Grand Valley. That's just looking at their MCAT and GPA averages, though. You'd have to look into it further, though. Retaking wouldn't be a bad move at all, though.

The first time I took the MCAT I had a super bad day and made a 497. Would retaking in August and applying this cycle be a bad idea or a good one?

 

[DoubleTrouble3428]

The first time I took the MCAT I had a super bad day and made a 497. Would retaking in August and applying this cycle be a bad idea or a good one?

Hmmm I didn't realize the 504 was your second score. Opinions vary about taking it again, but most would say you shouldn't take it a third time until you're feeling great. I would take as much time to study as possible. If you feel you'd be good by August, that's fine. But that's still not an optimal time to apply. Mid-July is about as late as you'd want to take the MCAT if you don't have outstanding stats. If you took it in August, that'd mean some schools wouldn't be looking at your application until September, and that's assuming you already have your primary submitted and processed. Might be better to take more time to study and take it in September or October. Don't let the rush to apply impact when you take the exam.