Can a high MCAT really make up for a low GPA?

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(GPA x 10) + MCAT = greater than or equal to 70.
 
The problem with a low GPA and a high MCAT is that it suggests that you're very bright and very lazy. It looks like you've got the brains and talent to do well in a short burst of effort, but that when it comes to an extended slog, you can't or won't put in what it takes. Med schools don't want lazy students and hospitals don't want lazy doctors. So adcoms won't view that favorably. If there's more to the story it helps a lot. Maybe you are a nontrad student with bad grades from years back, but since then you've pulled t together and started kicking butt and taking names. Maybe you write powerfully about how difficult it was to balance college classes with tending to your dying mother while working 40 hours a week to make ends meet.

And depending on what you mean by "low", the school you went to may play a role. I think a lot of adcom members will recognize that a 3.2 in, say, physics at Caltech signifies a tremendous deal of talent and effort, while a 3.2 in sociology at even a selective but lenient grading school like Brown is actually a pretty poor showing.
 
phltz said:
And depending on what you mean by "low", the school you went to may play a role. I think a lot of adcom members will recognize that a 3.2 in, say, physics at Caltech signifies a tremendous deal of talent and effort, while a 3.2 in sociology at even a selective but lenient grading school like Brown is actually a pretty poor showing.
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It really depends how bad of a GPA you are talking about. For example a 3.5 is on the lower end, but scoring a 35 or higher on the MCAT puts you in a good place in my opinion. The importance of GPA should not go understated though, it truly is a reflection of your effort during the undergrad, the one semester I put in a little less effort than usual, I saw it reflected in my GPA. It was nothing substantial GPA is still 3.9+, but you get my point, GPA is a function of effort (as well as intelligence), and I think that's what admissions committees are looking for when they examine an applicant's GPA/Academic Record.
 
Without at all being specific and speaking entirely in generalities I would say no (We will assume average undergraduate institution and a major of average difficulty). If you look at some of the threads on here about low GPAs some of those people get pretty ballin MCAT scores but only manage one or two interviews. If they had a GPA of an average applicant you would expect to see them getting more many more interviews. If by make up for a low GPA you mean put you on par with other applicants then no, a high MCAT will not suffice.

If you meant possibly maybe get you in somewhere, then yes it is a possibly but not a likely one.

Again without numbers and other information this question will only get a pretty abstract answer.
 
:beat: Been discussed a lot. Just search and you will find info. Good luck
 
I think the best and simplest answer is "to an extent." Depends how good the MCAT is, how bad the GPA is, and what the rest of your app looks like.
 
Thanks for the input guys, I guess I'm only wondering if I have a chance at top medical schools since I did really well on the MCAT (41S), but this semester of grades brought me down to a 3.65 (i know, not a bad gpa either. i just feel that it is on the low side)
 
Classof2013PreM said:
Thanks for the input guys, I guess I'm only wondering if I have a chance at top medical schools since I did really well on the MCAT (41S), but this semester of grades brought me down to a 3.65 (i know, not a bad gpa either. i just feel that it is on the low side)
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I think the best resource for you would be http://www.mdapplicants.com . Search for people with your GPA and MCAT score and see where they were accepted.

I think you'll be pleased with your prospects. 3.65 is not considered a low GPA, and people with your stats have been accepted to just about every school out there.
 
Yeah, I have to second that. I think you'll be just fine in the admissions process. Obviously you would be better served by a 3.9, but your still a very good to even great applicant!
Good luck
 
Your GPA is not even worth being concerned about because it is around the average for matriculants. Your MCAT score is well in the 99th percentile and assuming your EC's are there you should be a good match for a top 20 school.
 
the question you should ask yourself is...why would they want you if the top schools can get those with both high gpas and mcats...
 
royalmarquis said:
the question you should ask yourself is...why would they want you if the top schools can get those with both high gpas and mcats...
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Well, I guess it depends on what you consider to be a "high" GPA and MCAT. Top schools do generally get students with relatively high GPAs and MCATs, but obviously some MCAT scores are higher than others and can hopefully make up for a slightly less stellar GPA (I was thinking 40+ MCAT making up for a 3.5-3.6 GPA when aiming for top 20 schools)
 
Classof2013PreM said:
Well, I guess it depends on what you consider to be a "high" GPA and MCAT. Top schools do generally get students with relatively high GPAs and MCATs, but obviously some MCAT scores are higher than others and can hopefully make up for a slightly less stellar GPA (I was thinking 40+ MCAT making up for a 3.5-3.6 GPA when aiming for top 20 schools)
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Honestly I think you'll need stellar ECs as well as the 40+ MCAT to really have a good chance at top 20 schools with that GPA unless it's from a school like princeton.
 
Best resource would probably be Sector9's extremely thorough thread in the What Are My Chances forum. It's stickied.
 
phltz said:
The problem with a low GPA and a high MCAT is that it suggests that you're very bright and very lazy. It looks like you've got the brains and talent to do well in a short burst of effort, but that when it comes to an extended slog, you can't or won't put in what it takes. Med schools don't want lazy students and hospitals don't want lazy doctors. So adcoms won't view that favorably.
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Are you suggesting that it would be better to intentionally get a mediocre score on the mcat if you were an extremely smart individual that had a bad GPA? Like if you make a 26 on the mcat and have a 3.2, medical schools might think you're a less than intelligent person who works his butt off, and that's better than a 3.2 with a 38?
 
royalmarquis said:
the question you should ask yourself is...why would they want you if the top schools can get those with both high gpas and mcats...
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This. The notion of a sliding scale between GPA and MCAT is largely premed myth. Schools want folks who are high in both. It does a med school no good to be able to brag about having high MCAT scores if the average GPA is low or vice versa. So will a school be more interested in your 3.3 if your MCAT is a 35? Perhaps, to a point. How about if your GPA is a 2.5 but you break 40 on the MCAT? Not so much -- you won't be getting in. In this era when you can retake MCAT multiple times per year and where lots of people use informal postbacs to improve low GPAs, schools expect high stats in both categories. They would rather have a class full of 3.5/31 folks than a smattering of 2.8/40s every day of the week.
 
Donald Juan said:
Are you suggesting that it would be better to intentionally get a mediocre score on the mcat if you were an extremely smart individual that had a bad GPA? Like if you make a 26 on the mcat and have a 3.2, medical schools might think you're a less than intelligent person who works his butt off, and that's better than a 3.2 with a 38?
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Smart and lazy's undesirability doesn't mean that dumb and hardworking is great.

What I'm suggesting, anyway, is that you need to use other parts of your application and/or personal statement to make clear that you've got the sticktoitiveness to succeed in med school. If you had an excellent GPA, this would be an easier sell. That's all.

The OP sounds like he's fine, anyway. When he said "low GPA", he apparently meant "good but not mind-blowingly excellent GPA".

I applied with a ~3.2 and 42 last cycle, and it ended up working out well for me. But I put a lot of thought and effort into making it clear that the grades I earned when I was young and flaky were not indicative of the efforts that can be expected of me now.
 
Dear phltz,

Wow! I commend you for your high MCAT score. I'm actually in the same boat with a cGPA of 3.2 and I would like to know how you prepared for the MCAT? I'm sure you took a prep course but did you do anything additional to prepare, especially for the verbal reasoning? I'm doing a self-study course in speed reading and increasing my reading each day but I'm not sure I can get such a high score on the MCAT overall.

Best wishes and thank you for any advice you may have.
 
CHLApremed said:
Dear phltz,

Wow! I commend you for your high MCAT score. I'm actually in the same boat with a cGPA of 3.2 and I would like to know how you prepared for the MCAT? I'm sure you took a prep course but did you do anything additional to prepare, especially for the verbal reasoning? I'm doing a self-study course in speed reading and increasing my reading each day but I'm not sure I can get such a high score on the MCAT overall.

Best wishes and thank you for any advice you may have.
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Strong bump

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile
 
Does science GPA simply refer to Bio, Ochem, GChem and Physics?
 
Thanks, but not sure what "strong bump" refers to.
 
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I definitely wouldn't have been accepted if I didn't have an OK MCAT to make up for my low GPA. Also did an MS tho
 
Thanks. Also, does science GPA simply refer to Bio, Ochem, GChem and Physics? I finished undergrad 8 years ago and grad school 4 years ago and have since been working full-time in research. I got A's in my Ochem, Bio, and English, B's in Physics but C's in Calculus and GChem. I'm currently repeating the 2nd semesters of both Calc and GChem at a JC where I also repeated the first semesters and got B and A, respectively. Will ADCOMs average the grades, even if they are that many years apart and taken at different institutions?

--Thanks so much for any advice.
 
That is an obscene MCAT score. Congrats.

I think you will be more than competitive, especially if you have strong EC's that were competing for your time.
 
More details would need to be provided. It depends on how low the GPA is and how high the MCAT is. Also it depends on shadowing, volunteer, etc.
 
Classof2013PreM said:
Thanks for the input guys, I guess I'm only wondering if I have a chance at top medical schools since I did really well on the MCAT (41S), but this semester of grades brought me down to a 3.65 (i know, not a bad gpa either. i just feel that it is on the low side)
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If you went to a top undergrad school you will get more slack for the lower GPA.

In my model you would have about a 15% chance at places like Harvard and Stanford, but that means you have around a 30-40% chance at the top 5 places combined.

But it really depends on things you didn't mention like URM status, gender, college, ECs, etc.

If you are a URM that 15% at Harvard jumps to 66%, if you're male it falls to 11%, if you didn't go to a top school that low GPA drags you down a 4% chance. But the single biggest factor is the non-quantifiable: ECs, quality of interviews, essays, etc.
 
People with high stats are rejected all the time from top 20. You need some stand out EC's and a solid research background. Top 20 means top 20 research programs..the ranks are primariliy determined by amount of money they receive from the NIH. So if you don't have a bunch of research then your chances definitely take a dip. If you aren't into research, going to a "top 20" isn't as significant.
 
mimelim said:
I had a 3.4 and interviewed wherever I wanted thanks in large part to my MCAT.
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Does science GPA simply refer to Bio, Ochem, GChem and Physics? Or do they tabulate all sciences you've ever taken, including those at graduate schools?
 
CHLApremed said:
Thanks, but not sure what "strong bump" refers to.
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You bumped a thread at hadn't been posted it for over a year.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using SDN Mobile
 
CHLApremed said:
Dear phltz,

Wow! I commend you for your high MCAT score. I'm actually in the same boat with a cGPA of 3.2 and I would like to know how you prepared for the MCAT? I'm sure you took a prep course but did you do anything additional to prepare, especially for the verbal reasoning? I'm doing a self-study course in speed reading and increasing my reading each day but I'm not sure I can get such a high score on the MCAT overall.

Best wishes and thank you for any advice you may have.
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Nice 1-year necrobump dude.

CHLApremed said:
Thanks, but not sure what "strong bump" refers to.
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I don't buy this. You have been an SDN member since 2010.

Also, I want to know others' opinions on this. The MCAT will destroy a student's 4.0 GPA to an extent that the student will be rejected from every medical school. Similarly, the MCAT will help a student's 3.3 GPA get into a top 20 medical school.
 
Agent B said:
Nice 1-year necrobump dude.



I don't buy this. You have been an SDN member since 2010.

Also, I want to know others' opinions on this. The MCAT will destroy a student's 4.0 GPA to an extent that the student will be rejected from every medical school. Similarly, the MCAT will help a student's 3.3 GPA get into a top 20 medical school.
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I've been in the workforce for 4 years starting in 2009 and graduate school took me longer than expected before that, and I joined SDN in 2009. Anyway, what is it that you do not buy? And it's dudette.
 
gmcguitar4 said:
People with high stats are rejected all the time from top 20. You need some stand out EC's and a solid research background. Top 20 means top 20 research programs..the ranks are primariliy determined by amount of money they receive from the NIH. So if you don't have a bunch of research then your chances definitely take a dip. If you aren't into research, going to a "top 20" isn't as significant.
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Thanks so much. But do ADCOM's first just look at GPA and MCAT for the first cut, or do they also read the personal statement for making that decision?
 
CHLApremed said:
Thanks so much. But do ADCOM's first just look at GPA and MCAT for the first cut, or do they also read the personal statement for making that decision?
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I think it probably depends on the school. My uGPA is 3.34, sGPA 2.99, grad GPA: 3.75 and MCAT: 34Q. So I pretty much meet the low uGPA, high MCAT model. Where I was able to distinguish myself was 5 years of military service in the medical field including a combat deployment.

My cycle so far is 20 schools applied, 5 interview invites (but only was able to go to 4 of them), 1WL, and 1 acceptance.

I'm sure my GPA got me automatically screened "no" or "defer for another day" for some schools, but some looked beyond that due to either my EC's or my MCAT. I landed an interview at a two places only a week or so after being complete. Funnily enough, though my acceptance was my most recent and probably last II in which I was complete in August, but didn't get the II until January.

So I would say a high MCAT can definitely make up for a low GPA (I also went to a top 20 UG school, which maybe gave me some leeway), but you gotta have more than just a high MCAT to really be successful.
 
Thank you very much for sharing, I really appreciate your advice. Congratulations on your acceptance! I'm sure you'll be a great doctor 🙂
 
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