Advice and Tips for MCAT Retake?

[DamanTHFC]

Hi everyone,

I just got my scores back. I did bad ... got a 21: V5, B9, P7

It was a real shock. But after being really bummed and sad, I think I am starting to pick up and get ready for a retake.

I mean, I have no doubt that I want to become a physician, and if it demands a good mcat score, so be it. I know I can do it because i do have the capability; we all do!

I have a good gpa 3.74 (pitt), and I think I have pretty good EC's and LOR..

For this test, I studied using kaplan on demand, but I think i kind of felt rushed because of school. However, I think I am going to make my own plan this time.

I plan to take the exam in Sept.
This is where my first question comes:
Will taking the exam that late be bad for this cycle? I still want to apply for this cycle. Any advice?

If I do take it in Sept, I have about 2.5 months:
I plan to study at least 7 hrs, 6 times a week.
My basic monthly schedule would be:
1rst month: do all review of material and 2nd month: do aamc self assessment and as many as possible practice mcats

My basic daily schedule would be:
Verbal everyday, then study a subject (bio,phys,chem,orgo), after that do any tests/hw that are available on kaplan, and finally finish the day with a review of the whole day.

So this is pretty much it. I would greatly appreciate and advice on test date, study plan, schedules, etc.

Thanks!!!

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[bpatient]

What do you think you did wrong the first time? What was your study schedule like? You seem to have a grasp on what you need to do, go work on it. Goodluck!

 

[deleted404486]

i am taking a retake. best thing i learned is to use AAMC official sources for official practice and anything else as content review.

 

[DamanTHFC]

I honestly don't really know what I did wrong ...
I think I spent more time stressing than actually studying lol
I think it's some of lack of content, overconfidence, and just understanding questions. (english is my second language)

 

[MedGrl@2022]

Hi everyone,

I just got my scores back. I did bad ... got a 21: V5, B9, P7

It was a real shock. But after being really bummed and sad, I think I am starting to pick up and get ready for a retake.

I mean, I have no doubt that I want to become a physician, and if it demands a good mcat score, so be it. I know I can do it because i do have the capability; we all do!

I have a good gpa 3.74 (pitt), and I think I have pretty good EC's and LOR..

For this test, I studied using kaplan on demand, but I think i kind of felt rushed because of school. However, I think I am going to make my own plan this time.

I plan to take the exam in Sept.
This is where my first question comes:
Will taking the exam that late be bad for this cycle? I still want to apply for this cycle. Any advice?

If I do take it in Sept, I have about 2.5 months:
I plan to study at least 7 hrs, 6 times a week.
My basic monthly schedule would be:
1rst month: do all review of material and 2nd month: do aamc self assessment and as many as possible practice mcats

My basic daily schedule would be:
Verbal everyday, then study a subject (bio,phys,chem,orgo), after that do any tests/hw that are available on kaplan, and finally finish the day with a review of the whole day.

So this is pretty much it. I would greatly appreciate and advice on test date, study plan, schedules, etc.

Thanks!!!

I would shoot for an August retake if possible. Use EK and Berkeley Review... know all your content then kill all the practice tests... especially the AAMC ones

 

[DamanTHFC]

I know it would be good to retake it aug for this cycle, but I am worried that I may not be fully prepared. I really dont want to mess up again and will aim for a 30+ score.
I think that since I did get a 21, there must be some big probelm somewhere in my prep, which means more time to study and more content review/practice tests.

The only thing bad with sept is that it might be too late for this cycle. would it be late? should i still try for this cycle if i get a good score?

Thanks

 

[Jepstein30]

I know it would be good to retake it aug for this cycle, but I am worried that I may not be fully prepared. I really dont want to mess up again and will aim for a 30+ score.
I think that since I did get a 21, there must be some big probelm somewhere in my prep, which means more time to study and more content review/practice tests.

The only thing bad with sept is that it might be too late for this cycle. would it be late? should i still try for this cycle if i get a good score?

Thanks

what were your scores on AAMC practice FLs??
how'd you do in your pre-reqs?

21 indicates some significant content gaps.. not sure if August/September will give you enough time to get that to 30+ if you don't know where those gaps are.

 

[DamanTHFC]

what were your scores on AAMC practice FLs??
how'd you do in your pre-reqs?

21 indicates some significant content gaps.. not sure if August/September will give you enough time to get that to 30+ if you don't know where those gaps are.

I didn't take any AAMC practice tests. I only attempted Kaplan's which I scored 25's.

And what do you mean by pre-reqs?

 

[Jepstein30]

I didn't take any AAMC practice tests. I only attempted Kaplan's which I scored 25's.

And what do you mean by pre-reqs?

as in, classes you should take pre-MCAT

Gen Chem, Orgo, Bio, Physics

(shoutout to Genetics, Biochem, Cell/Dev Bio as well)

 

[DamanTHFC]

as in, classes you should take pre-MCAT

Gen Chem, Orgo, Bio, Physics

(shoutout to Genetics, Biochem, Cell/Dev Bio as well)

Oh sorry, lol

my gpa in college was a 3.74

Gen chem: B+, A
Orgo: A- , B+
Gen Bio: B, A
Physics: A-, A
Biochem: B
Genetics, Cell, Immuno, Physiology, Anatomy, Infectious Diseases, Microbio. : all A's

 

[Jepstein30]

Oh sorry, lol

my gpa in college was a 3.74

Gen chem: B+, A
Orgo: A- , B+
Gen Bio: B, A
Physics: A-, A
Biochem: B
Genetics, Cell, Immuno, Physiology, Anatomy, Infectious Diseases, Microbio. : all A's

so what happened content wise on the real thing/practices? Did you feel like you knew what every passage was talking about?

 

[DamanTHFC]

I mean I thought I knew a good bit on test day, which is why i am so surprised for the low score.
however, i did feel i rushed through content review and it was still blurry ...
also i felt that some questions/passages were just hard to understand (mainly during practice kaplan tests), whether it was becuase of content or familiarity, IDK.

 

[Jepstein30]

I mean I thought I knew a good bit on test day, which is why i am so surprised for the low score.
however, i did feel i rushed through content review and it was still blurry ...
also i felt that some questions/passages were just hard to understand (mainly during practice kaplan tests), whether it was becuase of content or familiarity, IDK.

sounds like you need a few months of dedicated content review before you start doing things like practice tests/exams

are you doing nothing but MCAT this summer?

 

[DamanTHFC]

Yea...

I just graduated in May and I had decided to take a gap year for to personal development and do some volunteer work in US or abroad ....

however, everything is on pause becuase i have to only focus on mcats first.
I really would like to apply for this current cycle and I want to take my retake in sept. Is this possible to still get accepted for this cycle?

Quite frankly, i would not like to have a 2 year gap year ... i know med school is commitment but it's my parents. I am from india so i have very cultural parents. They would really like me to get in med school this cycle. I mean i dont know if its marriage or that my dad is pretty old.
I mean i am only 21 and i kind of understand ... but i hope you understand.

I really will try my best for this retake, whether it is in sept or later on and i will definitely put in about 10 hrs a day, but again it's just probelm when to apply and how to better prepare so i dont mess up again.

Thanks for your help, I honestly appreciate it!
Cheers

 

[Jepstein30]

Yea...

I just graduated in May and I had decided to take a gap year for to personal development and do some volunteer work in US or abroad ....

however, everything is on pause becuase i have to only focus on mcats first.
I really would like to apply for this current cycle and I want to take my retake in sept. Is this possible to still get accepted for this cycle?

Quite frankly, i would not like to have a 2 year gap year ... i know med school is commitment but it's my parents. I am from india so i have very cultural parents. They would really like me to get in med school this cycle. I mean i dont know if its marriage or that my dad is pretty old.
I mean i am only 21 and i kind of understand ... but i hope you understand.

I really will try my best for this retake, whether it is in sept or later on and i will definitely put in about 10 hrs a day, but again it's just probelm when to apply and how to better prepare so i dont mess up again.

Thanks for your help, I honestly appreciate it!
Cheers

I understand your desire to start ASAP - we all do! It's just you want to give yourself the best chance of getting in.. which requires a better MCAT score.

Can you do it in 3 months (September)? Yea.. that will also make your application pretty late but it is what it is.

You really have to focus on your content review though. My typical rule is below a 26-28 (<8 per section) indicates content deficiencies.

Are you ESL? Cause a verbal in 5 is deadly.. gonna have to get that up to at least an 8. Problem is, getting better in verbal takes a lot of time. It's not like PS or BS where you can just review more.

 

[DamanTHFC]

yeah, English is my second language though i will practice verbal everyday, probably the first thing everyday for at least 1 hr.

I also think it is content deficiencies ... so for the first month I am gonna study content 6 days a week and in the evening attempt homework/quiz/section tests

Then the following month I will only focus on AAMC self assesment and practice tests.

Do you have any suggestions on how to study?
And do you honestly believe 2.5 months is enough (if sincerely worked hard) to bring up a score from 21 to a much much better score ...

OR is it not worth it because not enough time or just that I have very very low chance to get accepted this late.

I mean, i dont wont to rush 2.5 months and get a decent score and then find out that I can't get accepted for this cycle.

Or would it be better if I just wait until next year, and thus for next cycle, and take the test in Jan so that i have a better chance of even doing better on the test and could apply very early?

Thanks!

 

[kmp0410]

A score of 21 is very low. That makes me feel like you have serious gaps in knowledge or serious reading comprehension issues considering you have done well in pre reqs. These need to be addressed and substantially.

If you are serious about MD then you should absolutely wait and apply next cycle. Even if you pull your score to a 30 in September you would be very late for this cycle. But that's probably a stretch anyways.

I question your prep process if you took the test without taking a single AAMC test and were only scoring mid 25's on your practice Kaplans. The MCAT is a big serious test that deserves your full effort and attention. You should know it very well. SDN should help alot with that. Read these forums and adopt a Sn2 style study schedule and you should be in much better shape. Wait and take it in January. Do alot of reading of complex topics to improve your reading comprehension until 4 months before and then start studying.

 

[DamanTHFC]

thanks for your input!
should i ditch kaplan, or can i still use it? ... it kind of feels i wasted a lot of money, but then again .. the problem may have just been me and my studying

edit: I honestly only see myself and want to be a physician ... there is no doubt.
I really feel i let a lot of people down, but it is time to forget about everything else except mcat.
I am expecting calls from some of my friends and my adviser to also help me out ...

 

[Jepstein30]

yeah, English is my second language though i will practice verbal everyday, probably the first thing everyday for at least 1 hr.

I also think it is content deficiencies ... so for the first month I am gonna study content 6 days a week and in the evening attempt homework/quiz/section tests

Then the following month I will only focus on AAMC self assesment and practice tests.

Do you have any suggestions on how to study?
And do you honestly believe 2.5 months is enough (if sincerely worked hard) to bring up a score from 21 to a much much better score ...

OR is it not worth it because not enough time or just that I have very very low chance to get accepted this late.

I mean, i dont wont to rush 2.5 months and get a decent score and then find out that I can't get accepted for this cycle.

Or would it be better if I just wait until next year, and thus for next cycle, and take the test in Jan so that i have a better chance of even doing better on the test and could apply very early?

Thanks!

As ESL, you'll get some forgiveness for a low VR score. Not really sure how much though. You'd have to ask others about that.

Your questions are probably better suited for the WAMC forum.

It's possible to get a good score but you have a lot of work ahead of you.. far from the ideal situation.

 

[kmp0410]

Kaplan is generally considered to be the worst on here. That's not to say you can't get a good score using it though.

I would consider another source since Kaplan didn't work too well for you. I personally liked TBR alot. I loved chad's videos as well.

 

[MedOldAge]

thanks for your input!
should i ditch kaplan, or can i still use it? ... it kind of feels i wasted a lot of money, but then again .. the problem may have just been me and my studying

edit: I honestly only see myself and want to be a physician ... there is no doubt.
I really feel i let a lot of people down, but it is time to forget about everything else except mcat.
I am expecting calls from some of my friends and my adviser to also help me out ...

Please don't feel like you owe everybody surrounding you a legit response about MCAT. Not many people outside know how challenging it is to beat this MCAT beast. Inspire and pull yourself together. You are stress out and not thinking straight. Calm down and look at the situation logically. At this point, you are driven by concerning how others feel about you, your father's age etc.

DON'T take MCAT until you are ready PERIOD!

I may be the minority by saying the following as I am not going sugar coating the comment.

If English is not your primary language and you got 5 in VB. It shows lots of work in front of you. In my 2 cents opinion, VB TAKES TIME to improve even with determined mind and focus, good strategy, and great material. NOT with 2 months.

If I am in your shoes, I will postpone the MCAT to at least Jan 2014 or possibly March 2014. I know, I know, you have other issues as stated in previous posts above.

You can do it. Don't get discourage. Keep coming back at SDN for information. There are many very knowlegeable folks here who can give you support.

 

[DamanTHFC]

Thanks guys!
You all are awesome and SDN is really a great place!
I love all of the incoming advises!

I respect everyone's info and I should make my decision by the end of this week.

CHEERS