Chances of getting accepted if your MCAT score is below the mean

[grindtime1]

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I read somewhere on this forum that the mean MCAT scores at top 20 schools are inflated because of the number of MD/PhD students who score higher than most people who also get accepted. Is this true?

For example:

You have average ECs and a slightly below average GPA (let’s say a 3.8 and you’re applying to a school that has a mean GPA of 3.9). Let’s say your MCAT is a 34 (for a school whose average is a 36).

Once again, you aren’t making up for your lower MCAT with mind blowing ECs or a perfect 4 GPA.

Would you say the chances of getting in are good or bad? Most importantly, is it true that many people get accepted with an MCAT score below the mean? Thanks for any help.

 

[Stratego]

The median stats for those accepted are inflated because all the people that a school accepts don't go there (a lot of those high-stat people are accepted at many different med schools. Better stats to look at would be the matriculant stats for those students that actually attend the med school, which are usually, but not always, lower. I haven't read anything about the impact of MD/PhD applicants and their impact on stats, but the impact you suggest is likely.

If your stats are slightly below those of a school you apply to, you probably have a decent chance anyway, but if the school is in the 'Top Twenty" you'd probably better have mind-blowing ECs, since the rest of your competition is likely to have them.

 

[grindtime1]

The median stats for those accepted are inflated because all the people that a school accepts don't go there (a lot of those high-stat people are accepted at many different med schools. Better stats to look at would be the matriculant stats for those students that actually attend the med school, which are usually, but not always, lower.

That makes sense. I was actually using the excel spreadsheet stickied at the top of this forum when I looked at the median for each school.

I know there's another place you can go to if you want to check out the average GPA and MCAT score (it's called medical school finder), but I'm not sure how accurate that one is.

Do you know where I could find the stats for people who attend the school? Are there any stats that specific?

 

[Stratego]

It's on the 0910.xls school selection spreadsheet (further down on the page), rather than the more recent version linked to at the top of the page.

 

[grindtime1]

Cool. So you just change the last purple box from 0 to 1. Thanks a lot.

 

[camaras2480]

I read somewhere on this forum that the mean MCAT scores at top 20 schools are inflated because of the number of MD/PhD students who score higher than most people who also get accepted. Is this true?

For example:

You have average ECs and a slightly below average GPA (let’s say a 3.8 and you’re applying to a school that has a mean GPA of 3.9). Let’s say your MCAT is a 34 (for a school whose average is a 36).

Once again, you aren’t making up for your lower MCAT with mind blowing ECs or a perfect 4 GPA.

Would you say the chances of getting in are good or bad? Most importantly, is it true that many people get accepted with an MCAT score below the mean? Thanks for any help.

Note that the data available is median-based, not mean-based.