ADVICE PLEASE: Re-taking MCAT in September but Applying in June

[ValentineLissar]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hi guys,

So I'm in a tricky situation where I am hoping to send out my primaries in June but want to retake my MCAT in September because I'm not happy with my scores. My GPA is about a 3.7 and my MCAT is a 29O and am graduating from a prestigious unversity and have some clinical and leadership experiences. I'm hoping to apply to lower tier schools and hopefully when I get my score back in October, I'm hoping to forward my primaries to some "reach" schools then.

Can you guys give me some advice? If a school rejects me outright based on my scores, if I send them an updated version of my MCAT can I still continue through the process? Will this hurt my chances of getting into my reach schools since I've applied so late in the cycle or should I apply to my "reach" schools in June and risk their outright rejection if they like my MCAT score?

Any feedback will be greatly appreciated!

 

[Tapepsi]

If you plan on retaking the MCAT it needs to be indicated on your AMCAS applicaton. Unfortunately, regardless of which school you apply to, all decisions will be put on hold until they receive your new set of scores. Taking the MCAT in September is extremely late (especially for reach schools which are extremely competitive) and will definitely put you at a big disadvantage even if your new MCAT score is good.

Despite what many people on SDN say, it is possible to get into many med schools with an MCAT < 30. I had an MCAT score < 30 and received 4 interviews (didn't attend one) and 2 acceptances (the school I'm going to has an average MCAT <30). I didn't listen to what others said and applied to schools that I wanted to go to. They do look at other aspects of your application, if you would be a good fit for their school, and if you have really good EC's.

So it's up to you, but I wouldn't risk applying late. A 29 is still fine for many schools.

 

[ValentineLissar]

So I can't take the MCAT again and not indicate it on my AMCAS application?

 

[charju]

I am in a similar situation. though i have a solid score 32R. i am confident i can do better. So can't I just add the score later?

I mean, im sure people can make spontaneous decisions and decide to take it after they submit their secondaries..

 

[Tapepsi]

So I can't take the MCAT again and not indicate it on my AMCAS application?

You must indicate it on your app and schools will be very upset if you don't. They want all of your finalized info before making a decision, and this includes your MCAT. Let's put it this way, for schools who only accept your latest MCAT, say you retook it and got a lower score. If they had sent you an invitation and saw that your newest MCAT score was lower than what it was before, they would be upset with you and it would definitely hurt any chance you had there.

Edit: I answered a question similar to this --> http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=11017612#post11017612