About The MCAT

[Cass]

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How many times can you take the MCAT?

 

[tennisball80]

As many times as you can.

 

[URHere]

As FEW times as you can. Although you can register for, and take the MCAT more than once, it looks much better to schools if you can land a good score the first time around.

The MCAT is commonly thought of as the factor that shows how equivalent students from different universities really are, and if you take it too many times, not only will most schools still take your initial sub-par scores into account, but they will also place less emphasis on a good score if you've tried too many times previously (think about it, it's really not much of an accomplishment if you just keep trying over and over again). When I applied, you were even required to ask for a waiver to take the test more than 3 times, simply because that many repeats is a very bad idea for all but very rare situations.

In general, most people take it only once or twice.

 

[seelee]

As FEW times as you can. Although you can register for, and take the MCAT more than once, it looks much better to schools if you can land a good score the first time around.

The MCAT is commonly thought of as the factor that shows how equivalent students from different universities really are, and if you take it too many times, not only will most schools still take your initial sub-par scores into account, but they will also place less emphasis on a good score if you've tried too many times previously (think about it, it's really not much of an accomplishment if you just keep trying over and over again). When I applied, you were even required to ask for a waiver to take the test more than 3 times, simply because that many repeats is a very bad idea for all but very rare situations.

In general, most people take it only once or twice.

Ditto to this. The key to getting a good score on the mcat is preparation. 50% of your time should be devoted to review of the material, the other 50% should be devoted to practicing taking the test. Being familar with the types of questions that are asked will help you just as much as being able to answer the questions.

Most prep courses have you take 3 practice tests. I would recommend taking 10-12. www.e-mcat.com has the official practice tests in the exact computer format that you take them in the testing center. You have to pay to take them, but it is definitely worth it.

 

[Maygyver]

First off, if you are in high school, you have plenty of time to wait before the MCAT. Second, don't worry about how many times to take it. Most people take it once or twice, but if it takes you more than three times, medicine might not be the right career for you.

 

[Cass]

Ah I see. I figured that medical schools would take into account how many times you take the test. I just wasn't sure if you could take it more than once. Anyways, thanks for all your help!