515 MCAT w/ 124 c/p retake?

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

Darrel1997

Full Member
2+ Year Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2018
Messages
14
Reaction score
9
Hi everyone,

So I just got my MCAT score back today and got a 515 (124, 130, 129, 132). I'm very satisfied with the overall grade but I hate that 124 on chem. I was wondering if anyone can provide some insight if I should retake the exam or not. Im leaning on the side of no, but if you would recommend otherwise, I am open to suggestions. Some other info is I have a 3.6 gpa and your basic extracurriculars you would expect a pre-med to have. (Community serve, volunteering, research, shadowing, etc.) Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

Members don't see this ad.
 
Hi everyone,

So I just got my MCAT score back today and got a 515 (124, 130, 129, 132). I'm very satisfied with the overall grade but I hate that 124 on chem. I was wondering if anyone can provide some insight if I should retake the exam or not. Im leaning on the side of no, but if you would recommend otherwise, I am open to suggestions. Some other info is I have a 3.6 gpa and your basic extracurriculars you would expect a pre-med to have. (Community serve, volunteering, research, shadowing, etc.) Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
Very frustrating, I could easily see your score being a 518-520 since C/P and B/B scores are often very close to each other. But, I would not retake a 92nd percentile MCAT. Too much risk, not enough reward. Maybe speak to your advisor and see their perspective. I feel your pain about 1 section bringing the score down (I got 130, 126, 130, 129)... it's annoying but I say to stay with the score.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Hi, I'm not sure if you have any connection with a medical school (if you're at an undergrad with a medical school associated with it, have parents who are friends with people at the medical school, etc.) but I would reach out to the deans and ask them directly for their advice. What I found was that my pre-med advisors would tell me one thing, but the dean of medical schools would tell me something else and you have to go with what the dean at the med school says because they are the ones making the decision (along with the committee). I reached out to a bunch of schools when I wasn't getting any interviews when I applied and some of them (maybe like 6 out of 20+ schools I reached out to) replied back and we set up a 10 minute phone call to chat about my application and where to improve (def make sure its the dean or someone with actual influence and not an admin who doesn't have any insight in the process). You could try doing this and see if they have any advice regarding retaking (I don't think you should for the reasons posted above), but it wouldn't hurt to ask. Hope it works out!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
Honestly, I would retake that score because less than 125 is considered non-competitive at many schools. If that was in CARS, then it might be a different story but since it is in C/P...I'm not sure, but it could limit you at some good places
 
Members don't see this ad :)
So the advice I've seen from real adcoms on retakes is that you should only retake if you are absolutely sure that you can do significantly better. In your case, if you are absolutely sure this was a fluke, and you can get a 128+ on c/p and maintain your scores on everything else, then it would be worth it to retake.

Keep in mind, a 515 is a very good score, but with your 124 in c/p you will probably have to explain that. What were your c/p scores in your AAMC FLs?
 
I am in a similar predicament, although my low score is P/S at 125. I'm not sure how valuable schools consider P/S but it is so much lower than my other scores and I'm hopeful if I dedicate enough studying between now and next year I can pull up P/S while maintaining proficiency in the other sections. But I've heard admissions committees do not look favorably upon retakes of high scores and so just trying to figure out what to do....
 
Very frustrating, I could easily see your score being a 518-520 since C/P and B/B scores are often very close to each other. But, I would not retake a 92nd percentile MCAT. Too much risk, not enough reward. Maybe speak to your advisor and see their perspective. I feel your pain about 1 section bringing the score down (I got 130, 126, 130, 129)... it's annoying but I say to stay with the score.

Thanks for your input. I agree with you that the risk is too high and that I likely won't do as good on those other sections again. Seems like I will likely take your recommendation and stay with it if that's the trend of most people responding.
 
So the advice I've seen from real adcoms on retakes is that you should only retake if you are absolutely sure that you can do significantly better. In your case, if you are absolutely sure this was a fluke, and you can get a 128+ on c/p and maintain your scores on everything else, then it would be worth it to retake.

Keep in mind, a 515 is a very good score, but with your 124 in c/p you will probably have to explain that. What were your c/p scores in your AAMC FLs?

Yeah I can definitely agree with the 124 needing some explanation if I get accepted for interviews. When I took practice full lengths, I usually got between 126-128 across 6 different practice exams. So that was definitely my worst attempt at c/p. The thing is, I don't think I will score as high on those other sections again so I am thinking it's too risky to try again when I'm already sitting with a 515. Anyways, thanks for your input. Will likely need several more responses before I can make an informed decision on retaking it or not.
 
I agree 100% with nsharma that you should reach out to people with more expertise in this area. We all have opinions here, but the reality is that our opinions are not profeessional. My personal advice to students in that situation is to keep a 515 or higher unless your low score is B/B.

If you decide to repeat, then it should go well because C/P is the easiest score to improve. The curve is generally the most generous and there are more 'tricks' you can learn about how to approach questions and the information than the other sections. Turning a 124 for someone with your test-taking skills (as evident by great subscores in the other sections) into a 128 can be done rather quickly if you approach it the right way.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
I am in a similar predicament, although my low score is P/S at 125. I'm not sure how valuable schools consider P/S but it is so much lower than my other scores and I'm hopeful if I dedicate enough studying between now and next year I can pull up P/S while maintaining proficiency in the other sections. But I've heard admissions committees do not look favorably upon retakes of high scores and so just trying to figure out what to do....

Would you be able to say what scores you got in the other sections of the MCAT? Seems like we are in a similar boat on figuring what to do. Let me know what you end up deciding about retaking.
 
Hi, I'm not sure if you have any connection with a medical school (if you're at an undergrad with a medical school associated with it, have parents who are friends with people at the medical school, etc.) but I would reach out to the deans and ask them directly for their advice. What I found was that my pre-med advisors would tell me one thing, but the dean of medical schools would tell me something else and you have to go with what the dean at the med school says because they are the ones making the decision (along with the committee). I reached out to a bunch of schools when I wasn't getting any interviews when I applied and some of them (maybe like 6 out of 20+ schools I reached out to) replied back and we set up a 10 minute phone call to chat about my application and where to improve (def make sure its the dean or someone with actual influence and not an admin who doesn't have any insight in the process). You could try doing this and see if they have any advice regarding retaking (I don't think you should for the reasons posted above), but it wouldn't hurt to ask. Hope it works out!

Thanks for your input on this. Seems like I will definitely have to take a look and reach out to deans of schools and hear what they have to say. Did you have any similar conversations with any of the deans you spoke to regarding the MCAT? Like have you asked at all how med schools look at one bad subsection score but good other scores? Anyways, currently trying to reach out to many different people to hear what they have to say. Your advice should definitely help.
 
Would you be able to say what scores you got in the other sections of the MCAT? Seems like we are in a similar boat on figuring what to do. Let me know what you end up deciding about retaking.
Sure, 129/131/130/125. Thankfully my CARS and B/B have been consistent across FLs, and my CP was in the range of my FLs. So I want to be confident that I can maintain the my other subsections while pulling up my PS before next year. But I dont know and it's scary/risky.
 
Thanks for your input on this. Seems like I will definitely have to take a look and reach out to deans of schools and hear what they have to say. Did you have any similar conversations with any of the deans you spoke to regarding the MCAT? Like have you asked at all how med schools look at one bad subsection score but good other scores? Anyways, currently trying to reach out to many different people to hear what they have to say. Your advice should definitely help.

Hi, I did have a conversation about a subsection of the MCAT. It honestly varies between schools. Just talk to them about your specific situation. If you want to see how I approached it regarding my email to them, feel free to PM me.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
Sure, 129/131/130/125. Thankfully my CARS and B/B have been consistent across FLs, and my CP was in the range of my FLs. So I want to be confident that I can maintain the my other subsections while pulling up my PS before next year. But I dont know and it's scary/risky.

I wouldn’t worry about it. Most schools screen out applicatants only if it’s below 125. Some schools don’t screen out at all. If it was B/B then that would be another story.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Members don't see this ad :)
I wouldn’t worry about it. Most schools screen out applicatants only if it’s below 125. Some schools don’t screen out at all. If it was B/B then that would be another story.

Well, part of my worry is I have a very low GPA. I have done postbac work to bring it up but it is still low. And going off of previous raw acceptance data for people with my GPA profile it needs to be much higher, so I worry :( thank you though
 
It is too late to take it again this year.
You just have to apply, going forward, and see where you end up. You should get into medical school somewhere.
But subsection <125 might get you screened out by computer auto cut off.

Apply hard everywhere, retake in Spring, if you want to, for worst case scenario of applying next year again.
 
Would you be able to say what scores you got in the other sections of the MCAT? Seems like we are in a similar boat on figuring what to do. Let me know what you end up deciding about retaking.

I think I am going to retake. I called up a couple admissions offices, one did not want to comment and the other said it's not uncommon for them to see kids retake even with decent scores.

I feel confident I can maintain my previous performance while pulling up PS. I want to take the risk because to me its worth it to put out the best app I can and show how I really want to be competitive for these schools, especially since my PS is in the 10th percentile or lower for many. I hope my reasoning helps you in your decision making too.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
I think I am going to retake. I called up a couple admissions offices, one did not want to comment and the other said it's not uncommon for them to see kids retake even with decent scores.

I feel confident I can maintain my previous performance while pulling up PS. I want to take the risk because to me its worth it to put out the best app I can and show how I really want to be competitive for these schools, especially since my PS is in the 10th percentile or lower for many. I hope my reasoning helps you in your decision making too.

Hey There,

This post is quite old, but wanted to look back into it. Turns out I actually decided to retake as well. The 124 would screen me out from a decent amount of schools and falls below 10% percentile for many. Not necessarily looking for a huge overall score improvement, but a more balanced subsection distribution. Taking my MCAT tmrw actually so hopefully it goes well. Good luck to you too and med school apps later.
 
Hi everyone I stressed over this thread after ending up in a similar situation to OP (513 MCAT, 124 C/P) and ended up not retaking, applying broadly, and just was accepted MD at one of my state schools!! For anyone else stress reading these threads bc of a 124 subsection, if you have a well-rounded app you can be okay!!!
 
  • Love
Reactions: 1 user
Hi everyone I stressed over this thread after ending up in a similar situation to OP (513 MCAT, 124 C/P) and ended up not retaking, applying broadly, and just was accepted MD at one of my state schools!! For anyone else stress reading these threads bc of a 124 subsection, if you have a well-rounded app you can be okay!!!
You are amazing, thank you for writing this
 
Top