A "19" on the MCAT--WHAT SHOULD I DO???

[Dentalski37]

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Hello everyone,

I am writing on behalf of my pre-med friend who just received his MCAT scores. He got a total score of "19"...YES...19!! The breakdown is Verbal 4, Physical Sciences 7, and Biological Sciences 8. He has already submitted his medical school application to about 10 different schools but he is wondering what he should do now. The flipside of this horrible story is that he has a 4.0 out of a top 10 rated university, tons of research, extracurricular activities, volunteer experience, and a publication. Also, he has come from quite a disadvataged backround. He is wondering if he should just go through with the medical school application since he has already submitted it. But do you even think he has ANY chance what-so-ever ANYWHERE in the U.S....ANY medical school on this planet for that matter?? Please give me your honest opinion. He is really confused right now and doesn't know what to do, hence I told him I'd ask for advice on this forum on his behalf. He really believes that medicine is what he really and ONLY wants to do in life, but how realistic are his chances this year for acceptance. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Thanks
Dentalski37

 

[audeo]

I don't understand. 19 and 4.0 at top 10 undergrad is outside the scope of my understanding. I am wondering if the score is what he thinks he deserves or he thinks he can do far better. I recommend retaking MCAT and apply next year.

 

[rxfudd]

Honestly? No. I don't think that your friend can get into any allopathic school in the united states with a 19. Most of the time, having attended a top university, publishing, etc can do wonders for a low MCAT score. In the case of a 19, however, I don't think that there's much that one can hope for. My best advice is to retake it. If your friend truly went to a top university and has a 4.0, his MCAT score should reflect that, even a little. A 7 in PS and 8 in BS does not reflect 4.0 work, and he should therefore retake.

I would even hesitate to say that he is competitive for DO schools, although the chances are somewhat better. DO schools only differ by about 3 points or so from MD schools - not enough to really help in this situation.

If your friend knows that medicine is what he really wants, retaking should seem like a viable solution. In my opinion, assuming that one's GPA is very high, an applicant should give it a shot if he/she has at least a 25 MCAT (for allopathic schools) or a 22 MCAT (for DO schools). Clearly, this is not the case. I would imagine that most would agree with me on this.

 

[Dentalski37]

Audeo

The reason why he scored so low I think is because he has been out of school for a couple of years and didn't study that much for the MCAT. I think he just figured that since he did so well in his undergrad. education, he didn't have to study that much for the MCAT. Hence, he didn't.

So do you think he might have ANY chance what-so-ever at any medical schools in the U.S. Any advice or options that you could give is appreciaed...Thanks!

Dentalski37

 

[none]

No, your friend almost definitely can't get in with a 19. Retake and try to figure out what in the world went so horribly wrong!

 

[csgirl]

I've never heard of anyone ever getting in with a 19. Especially not with a 4 in verbal. In fact, even if this friend had a 34, with a 4 in verbal.. he couldn't get in. A 4 in verbal is a death sentence. It's just not possible. Tell your friend to take a review course and then retake. I got an 18 on the first practice test I took. If I had not taken a review course I probably would have gotten an 19 on the MCAT!

 

[EMDrMoe]

Having been out of undergrad for 5 years and grad school for 4, I understand what it was like to take the MCAT. I hadn't studied some of those subjects in almost 10 years (and some, NEVER, if you look at my grades!). However, the people I spoke with urged me to take Kaplan, and I did, regardless of expense. I did well in Aug 2000, but my husband didn't (he's also been out as long). We just applied as planned, and he got his scores yesterday. He has a 25 now, which will be good enough. I agree with the posters, that a 19 will not get him in, and I would honestly withdraw all of my applications with a 4 on verbal. As I told my husband, shoot for 8 minimum (and he got it 🙂 ) with verbal. This isn't something to be taken lightly, 4.0 or not, and I would say to take a review course and study! Although it was a bit long, I studied with varying intensity for 9 months, including Kaplan, and now teach for them. He obviously has the intelligence, but needs to learn to take the test and beat it.

 

[audeo]

If misfortune in MCAT is due to lack of preparation, it is even more encouraged to retake MCAT after optimal practice. Even if he could get into the lowest tire med school with the number he got, why not retake which may, and quite likely to improve his score drastically. Then he may even get into a top ten. It seems waste of time to pondering on what to do. He should go ahead studying for MCAT right away. VR is the kind of section that requires at least a year to see some tangible improvement.

 

[Dentalski37]

Thanks everyone for the helpful advice... 🙂

I think what my friend wanted to hear though is that YES, there still is a glimmer of hope this year to get into medical school. But, I'm with you guys. I don't think he has any chance for acceptance this year at any medical school in the galaxy with that MCAT score. I think as you all have stated above, he just needs to kick-@ss on the next MCAT and re-apply.

Dentalski37

 

[jimjones]

I think this goes to show how subjective GPA really is and how you can be screwed with a tough school or carried along by schools wanting a good med school placement record.

4.0 is impossible at my school. In many of my premed classes not 1 A was given out.

 

[racergirl]

Yeah, 19 is just too low, especially with a 4 on verbal. Your friend really has no chance (gee-I've never said that before)! He should withdraw his applications, this time STUDY for the MCAT, and retake in April. I'm sure he will do much better. The down-side is that when he does apply, the schools WILL be aware that he took the test twice.