507 ---> 521 Mcat retake chances

[anader14]

I retook the MCAT and received a 521. I took the exam once before and got a 507. I was wondering what types of schools I should apply to since I took the MCAT twice. My gpa is a 3.84.

Research: 2 summers in REU programs at Vanderbilt and Rutgers. 2 years of research in an immunology lab at my university through which I attended a couple conferences, had multiple poster presentations, and wrote a thesis.
Clinical volunteering/experience: 50 hours at local hospital. Traveled to Nicaragua with my schools chapter of Global Medical Brigades. Currently working as a scribe during my gap year. 60 hours physician shadowing.
Leadership: TA for microbiology course for a year. Chemistry tutor for a year. Cofounder and Vice President of a club on campus that raises awareness about the decline in vaccination rates and presents to parents at local schools about the importance of vaccination.
ECs: THON (student run org that raises money for the Four Diamonds Fund for kids with cancer) organization member at Penn State. Member of club field hockey team for 4 years. Member of science outreach club where I led tours for prospective students and organized outreach events at local elementary schools.

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[el_duderino]

Need a lot more info about your app.

 

[anader14]

Need a lot more info about your app.

I updated my post.

 

[Goro]

I retook the MCAT and received a 521. I took the exam once before and got a 507. I was wondering what types of schools I should apply to since I took the MCAT twice. My gpa is a 3.84.

Research: 2 summers in REU programs at Vanderbilt and Rutgers. 2 years of research in an immunology lab at my university through which I attended a couple conferences, had multiple poster presentations, and wrote a thesis.
Clinical volunteering/experience: 50 hours at local hospital. Traveled to Nicaragua with my schools chapter of Global Medical Brigades. Currently working as a scribe during my gap year. 60 hours physician shadowing.
Leadership: TA for microbiology course for a year. Chemistry tutor for a year. Cofounder and Vice President of a club on campus that raises awareness about the decline in vaccination rates and presents to parents at local schools about the importance of vaccination.
ECs: THON (student run org that raises money for the Four Diamonds Fund for kids with cancer) organization member at Penn State. Member of club field hockey team for 4 years. Member of science outreach club where I led tours for prospective students and organized outreach events at local elementary schools.

Even as a 2x MCAT taker, a 521 is nothing to sneeze at.

I suggest aiming high:
Yale
WashU
Vanderbilt
NYU
U Chicago
U Penn
Northwestern
JHU
Harvard
Stanford
Sinai
Cornell
Columbia
Duke
BU
Case
USC/Keck
Mayo
U Cincy
Pitt
USF Morsani
Ohio State
Hofstra
U IA
UCSF
Albert Einstein
Emory
Rochester
Dartmouth
Miami
Western MI
Jefferson
U VM
Your state school(s)

 

[man221]

I retook the MCAT and received a 521. I took the exam once before and got a 507. I was wondering what types of schools I should apply to since I took the MCAT twice. My gpa is a 3.84.

Research: 2 summers in REU programs at Vanderbilt and Rutgers. 2 years of research in an immunology lab at my university through which I attended a couple conferences, had multiple poster presentations, and wrote a thesis.
Clinical volunteering/experience: 50 hours at local hospital. Traveled to Nicaragua with my schools chapter of Global Medical Brigades. Currently working as a scribe during my gap year. 60 hours physician shadowing.
Leadership: TA for microbiology course for a year. Chemistry tutor for a year. Cofounder and Vice President of a club on campus that raises awareness about the decline in vaccination rates and presents to parents at local schools about the importance of vaccination.
ECs: THON (student run org that raises money for the Four Diamonds Fund for kids with cancer) organization member at Penn State. Member of club field hockey team for 4 years. Member of science outreach club where I led tours for prospective students and organized outreach events at local elementary schools.

Hey,

I was wondering how you studied the second time you took the MCAT and how long did you study for it? If its possible to maybe post all your resources

Thanks!

 

[anader14]

Hey,

I was wondering how you studied the second time you took the MCAT and how long did you study for it? If its possible to maybe post all your resources

Thanks!

I began studying again for the MCAT about 6 months after I took it the first time, which helped me a lot because I wasn't burnt out. The second time around I studied for about 3 months with the help of a private NextStep tutor. Since I self studied the first time, I decided that trying the tutoring route might be a better option. I really loved my tutor and he helped me stay on track during the months spent studying. I was able to focus on my weak areas and ask my tutor questions when I couldn't figure out a concept on my own. I only used NextStep and AAMC materials. I took one practice exam every week. Each week I read book chapters while making flashcards and doing practice questions. During the last few weeks I did the AAMC question banks and practice tests to gauge how well I was doing. I think what helped me the second time around was changing my study focus. The first time I spent too much time reading chapters and taking notes instead of practicing. The second time I did a lot more practice questions and used them as a source of studying. I feel like a major obstacle to the MCAT is learning how to approach each question. Although I knew a lot of knowledge the first time, I didn't know how to correctly apply it to a test environment.