Any late mcat & primary app. acceptances

[soby10]

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Has anyone taken the August mcat and have been accepted? Looks like I'm prob. going to take the mcat in August and will start my primaries in Sept. once I get my scores. I not sure if that is too late in the cycle? Any suggestions. Is it possible to send in your primaries before the mcat? If it is possible does that negatively influence your app. b/c the app is incomplete?

 

[saylorsdad]

if you are sure you will apply this next cycle go ahead and fill out aacomas application and for the mcat just put the expected date. your app will just sit there but once the mcat is submitted you will be finished. much better than waiting six weeks for everything to be verified.

 

[Dissected]

if you are sure you will apply this next cycle go ahead and fill out aacomas application and for the mcat just put the expected date. your app will just sit there but once the mcat is submitted you will be finished. much better than waiting six weeks for everything to be verified.

yes. do this. you will be in good shape timing-wise if you do it this way 👍

 

[catchburns]

Has anyone taken the August mcat and have been accepted? Looks like I'm prob. going to take the mcat in August and will start my primaries in Sept. once I get my scores. I not sure if that is too late in the cycle? Any suggestions. Is it possible to send in your primaries before the mcat? If it is possible does that negatively influence your app. b/c the app is incomplete?

Just like the other said, you'll be fine if you have your aacomas complete. I took mine in Aug and got accepted within a month and a half of getting my score back.

 

[nevinleiby]

Yes!

I had my entire app filled out (including about 10 reviews of my generic allo and osteo PS) before I started studying in May and mailed in my transcripts for acomas and amcas. I had my Kaplan Vr instructor review my PS, but didn't do anything except studying. I took 8/15 mcats and submitted my primaries on 8/27 and added every school that I was even remotely considering (18 schools or something). While my app was being processed, I researched all of the schools on SDN's Pro's and Con's thread, CIB, and pre-wrote the secondary questions. Check out the outstanding Pre-DO FAQ, Chocolate Bear's posts and signature links, and the other sticky threads on the main DO page.

BTW, make sure that you submit your schools to aacomas when you get the official amcas result...it is not automatic like the amcas application!

That being said, I submitted about 8 secondaries (AZCOM, CCOM, DMU, PCOM-GA, LECOM-Erie, LECOM-Brad, Nova/NSUCOM, PCOM). I asked my DO's for LORs (all of which were PCOM DO's because I'm in the Philly area) on 10/5 (WAY TOO LATE, imo! Get them NOW! It takes much longer than you think to get them back!) and I shadowed an OMM session (which I would highly recommend trying to do!).

I got interviews for all of them except CCOM and PCOM-Ga (no response for either), plus 2 interviews for KCUMB, WVCOM, and Touro-NV (none of which I submitted secondaries to). So far I've gotten acceptances at all of my interviews....(pending PCOM and AZCOM ).

That being said, I would have been much more comfortable applying earlier. My interviews are stretching out into 2/10 for PCOM...it's a little nerve-wracking.

So...it works!

However, if I were to do it again, I would have just gotten my score and applied opening day in May/June for allo and osteo. At the very least, perhaps I would have been able to get into pcom much earlier in the season 🙂xf🙂. I feel that each month your application is stretched beyond May/June, it's worth about .7-1 point on your mcat's. I would have also stood a much better chance at my state allo school (which is much closer and cheaper). It would have also given me time to take stock of the process and decide if I wanted to re-test in January (and/or) March to improve my 26p. By sitting it out (and/or re-testing), I would have been well on my way to an oustanding app for the following cycle. As far as I'm concerned, anything after the first day is a late app in one way or another.

It's a personal decision and depends on your individual situation. I wanted to get into med school to get moving on with my life. My wife and I are approaching 30 by the time I would start, and I'd like to have kids at some point w/o the concern of down's, etc. The looming pressure of making sure that I got in this cycle was needless. If I sat it out for '2013, I would have probably been able to relax about my mcat's and get a better night's sleep before my test.

Just my $0.0000002 of my experience in the cycle.

How is the rest of your app? gpa, Extra Curr's, volunteering, shadowing, life situation/experience, etc?

 

[soby10]

Thanks for the info. I was planning on applying in 2010 but I want to avoid a lag year so I'm going for 2009. The prob is that I won't have all my ochem done untill the end of the summer so taking the august mcat is really my only chance in getting into the 2009 cycle. I know the process starts in may or june so i'll be about 3mos late but it sounds like it is doable. As far as ec's I have shadowed a MD and will start shadowing a DO in the spring. I've also volunteered at a hosp. and I'm a member of a honor society. I had a rough start but pulled up my gpa to about a 3.4 so I need to make sure my mcat helps my app. I know that if I apply for the 2010 cycle my gpa will most likely to go up to about a 3.6 but I think the 2009 cycle is worth a try pending the mcat goes well. Nevinleiby thanks for the links, will check them out & good luck on the interviews.

 

[vargant]

I just submitted my secondary a few weeks ago, and received a interview invite last week for LECOM-B. I read on SDN of people receiving their MCAT scores in Jan of 08, and matriculating in Aug. 2008. But I do not think all schools will accept Jan. MCAT scores to matriculate in August. In other words, your Aug. 2009 MCAT test should be fine for matriculation for 2010.

 

[midwesterner]

I took the MCAT in September, sent my primary around then, and didn't finish my secondaries until November. I still got interview invites everywhere I applied and got into my (I think) top choice. So, applying late isn't totally a kiss of death.

 

[JayhawkDoc]

I sent my primary AACOMAS in late October and finished my secondaries around Christmas. I got interviews at six schools and so far have been accepted to three. It is possible to wait but I would get everything in as soon as you can. Get those letters early because as someone mentioned they do take a while to get done. Good Luck!