Do anyone have an acceptance w/ an MCAT score below 23?

[MaximusD]

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I won't edit the language of my original post, but I probably should have toned it down. Still, the message would ahve been the same.

You should retake. There is no excuse not to. Failure to do so will reflect negatively on your application. PS, you said <23 would that be 22 or even lower?

But it is definitely possible. I know a few people who have gotten at or lower than 23 and have gotten into PCOM... that said, they had great stats, recs, and gradepoint averages (>3.7) As I said, I got a 21 on my Kaplan diagnostic and upped it to a 32 by application time... it can be done. Best of luck!!

 

[Hexanol]

As I said, I got a 21 on my Kaplan diagnostic and upped it to a 32 by application time... it can be done. Best of luck!!

that's impressive! congrats! haha i hated my Kaplan days... 😡 haha.

 

[MossPoh]

Realistic... maybe. The truth of the matter is, no it's not your ideal score. I mean ideally, wouldn't we all want 45's? But that's not going to happen. To call someone "lazy" or "inept" for getting a score less than 23 I think is harsh. Moreover, I really don't think that your score on the MCAT reflects what kind of physician you have the potential of becoming.

That is just misinterpreting what was intended before......I think. 😉 He meant as to not considering retaking the MCAT and just trying with the current score. I think we both just got the vibe that if one could get in with a lower score, then why bother retaking it? Neither of us are saying this person is stupid or lazy in daily life....I'm probably more lazy than the OP. We're saying to man-up and just not accept a lower score unless it truly is the best you can do.

I think nearly every single person here agrees that the MCAT does not reflect on you as a person or a physician. It is the receiving lower marks and accepting it as your best that reflects on you. If that is the best you can do then fine...I'm not harassing you for it...some people just suck at tests, but if you KNOW you can do better and you refuse to because it is inconvenient....then that is pretty weak.

 

[Hexanol]

That is just misinterpreting what was intended before......I think. 😉 He meant as to not considering retaking the MCAT and just trying with the current score. I think we both just got the vibe that if one could get in with a lower score, then why bother retaking it? Neither of us are saying this person is stupid or lazy in daily life....I'm probably more lazy than the OP. We're saying to man-up and just not accept a lower score unless it truly is the best you can do.

I think nearly every single person here agrees that the MCAT does not reflect on you as a person or a physician. It is the receiving lower marks and accepting it as your best that reflects on you. If that is the best you can do then fine...I'm not harassing you for it...some people just suck at tests, but if you KNOW you can do better and you refuse to because it is inconvenient....then that is pretty weak.

haha all i meant to say is that the term "lazy" can't be applied to everyone. I mean what if genuinely you just aren't a great test-taker and a 23 is all you can get? By no means are you lazy if you worked hard at trying to achieve a better score and by no means do any of us have any right to tell you that you're not going to be a great physician. It just means your road to becoming one will be tougher and that you may need to do other things to help you achieve your goal.

 

[Bleurberry]

I'll share a chapter from my own book:

The smarter I try to APPEAR on here, the stupider I actually LOOK.

 

[dr.kicia]

don't know if i am going to get in this cycle (i truly hope so ) but i have to drop in my 2 cents here...

from my own perspective...i am an ESL...
obviously it is hard for me to take exam like MCAT in the language that i did not much use until i was 19.
while i am very slow reader i had never encountered any problems in my college education.
My major requires a lot of reading and while my reading comprehension is 100% (i took a test for it) my reading speed is what killed me on MCAT.
I did very bad in VR and not so great in BS and PS...i run out of time on every section...and yes i was scoring much higher on all AAMC tests i took (26-29 range). On the real deal i even scored lower then my diagnostic which was 23...
I did not sign up for the retake because i know that improving my VR is not an easy fix and it would take months...i applied anyways despite my low 20's score because i believe i have a lot more to offer then just a number and i hope that adcoms can see my potential in other parts of my application.

so where am I going with this....
While i do believe we should try our best to get the highest score possible i would really take it personally to hear that my score is low due to my laziness...
I worked my a$$ off the whole semester...i took 23 credit hrs on top of work, MCAT prep, volunteering and shadowing...I did very good that one semester although i had no time to sleep...but saying that i got a below 23 score is due to my laziness? 🙄

I had the same problem on ACT...i scored 22 i believe with 16 in reading😱...and what? did it really predict how i will do in college?
no😀...my first semester i nailed bio with 96% and psychology with 98% for the whole class...i also managed to get a B in english composition class (which was very hard and challenging for me).
And while you can see on my MDapplicants that my GPA is not too high, it didn't drop because of my reading speed, low inteligence, inability to process information or whatever ACT score should have predicted...(i had hard time due to long-divorce/loosing money/having-to-work-story for some other post and some of you know it from reading my PS and the fact that some techers grade attendance didn't help me either as i was forced to choose between paying my rent/eating and going to class).

I know i can handle med school academically...even with my reading speed...because i know that i am very hardworking individual...and i am systematic too.

p.s
sorry for the long post...please don't attack me...i just wanted to show SDNers things from a different perspective 😀

 

[spicedmanna]

don't know if i am going to get in this cycle (i truly hope so ) but i have to drop in my 2 cents here...

from my own perspective...i am an ESL...
obviously it is hard for me to take exam like MCAT in the language that i did not much use until i was 19.
while i am very slow reader i had never encountered any problems in my college education.
My major requires a lot of reading and while my reading comprehension is 100% (i took a test for it) my reading speed is what killed me on MCAT.
I did very bad in VR and not so great in BS and PS...i run out of time on every section...and yes i was scoring much higher on all AAMC tests i took (26-29 range). On the real deal i even scored lower then my diagnostic which was 23...
I did not sign up for the retake because i know that improving my VR is not an easy fix and it would take months...i applied anyways despite my low 20's score because i believe i have a lot more to offer then just a number and i hope that adcoms can see my potential in other parts of my application.

so where am I going with this....
While i do believe we should try our best to get the highest score possible i would really take it personally to hear that my score is low due to my laziness...
I worked my a$$ off the whole semester...i took 23 credit hrs on top of work, MCAT prep, volunteering and shadowing...I did very good that one semester although i had no time to sleep...but saying that i got a below 23 score is due to my laziness? 🙄

I had the same problem on ACT...i scored 22 i believe with 16 in reading😱...and what? did it really predict how i will do in college?
no😀...my first semester i nailed bio with 96% and psychology with 98% for the whole class...i also managed to get a B in english composition class (which was very hard and challenging for me).
And while you can see on my MDapplicants that my GPA is not too high, it didn't drop because of my reading speed, low inteligence, inability to process information or whatever ACT score should have predicted...(i had hard time due to long-divorce/loosing money/having-to-work-story for some other post and some of you know it from reading my PS and the fact that some techers grade attendance didn't help me either as i was forced to choose between paying my rent/eating and going to class).

I know i can handle med school academically...even with my reading speed...because i know that i am very hardworking individual...and i am systematic too.

No, dr.kicia, I don't think you are lazy at all. On the contrary, in fact. 🙂

I like you. You call me "Spicey." 👍 Thus, I don't want you to take what I am going to say the wrong way, because I am acting as an ally here. I think it's wonderful that you know what your issues with standardized tests are, and I think you'll do well in medical school, too. However, a legitimate question struck my mind: how can you address your reading/test taking speed when it comes time to take the COMLEX/USMLE? I don't want you to worry about it, because worry is seldom productive; my intention is to plant a thought seed, to provide a good wonder question.

Good luck, dr.kicia. I hope you are a proud member of the Class of 2012. 👍

 

[sosarah]

This is Riker, William T.

My good friend, the ranges are usually not that wide. By this reasoning, D.O. schools with an average M.C.A.T. acceptance score of 21 may have taken a person with a 35 M.C.A.T. and also a 7 M.C.A.T.

Computer, scan sector ZC-45 for class-5 nebulae. Authorization Riker, William T. Gamma Six.

what about standard deviations and normal curves? Are the averages really this black and white? I don't think so.

 

[dr.kicia]

No, dr.kicia, I don't think you are lazy at all. On the contrary, in fact. 🙂

I like you. You call me "Spicey." 👍 Thus, I don't want you to take what I am going to say the wrong way, because I am acting as an ally here. I think it's wonderful that you know what your issues with standardized tests are, and I think you'll do well in medical school, too. However, a legitimate question struck my mind: how can you address your reading/test taking speed when it comes time to take the COMLEX/USMLE? I don't want you to worry about it, because worry is seldom productive; my intention is to plant a thought seed, to provide a good wonder question.

Good luck, dr.kicia. I hope you are a proud member of the Class of 2012. 👍

spicey😀,
I really appreciate your comments...you seem like a person who has some good head on his shoulders😍

as an immigrant i am still in the process of learning english language...i know that my reading speed, writing and comprehension and even talking have improved dramatically over the course of my undergrad study so i know that with hard work during med school i will be better and better with english and timing on my boards...

besides i always tell myself...if my mom's frind who is a doctor from Poland (came here with little english and a big dream) could pass his boards and is a licenced, board certified physician today i can do it too!😀

and on top of that i am and wanted for few years now to only apply to DO schools... and i am not one of those people who are scared of primary care...i acctually am very much interested in it (and manipulation especially) and as of today i know that i do not need to ace boards to be a family doctor...so i think i would be totally fine comes the boards time.

 

[Lamont]

i dont understand the hostility. well i kinda do. people need to quit being so competitive about this - this isnt about who is smarter or more talented or more driven or any of that. the OP asked a question, it was answered. can this thing die please?

 

[prionsRbad]

don't know if i am going to get in this cycle (i truly hope so ) but i have to drop in my 2 cents here...

from my own perspective...i am an ESL...
obviously it is hard for me to take exam like MCAT in the language that i did not much use until i was 19.
while i am very slow reader i had never encountered any problems in my college education.
My major requires a lot of reading and while my reading comprehension is 100% (i took a test for it) my reading speed is what killed me on MCAT.
I did very bad in VR and not so great in BS and PS...i run out of time on every section...and yes i was scoring much higher on all AAMC tests i took (26-29 range). On the real deal i even scored lower then my diagnostic which was 23...
I did not sign up for the retake because i know that improving my VR is not an easy fix and it would take months...i applied anyways despite my low 20's score because i believe i have a lot more to offer then just a number and i hope that adcoms can see my potential in other parts of my application.

so where am I going with this....
While i do believe we should try our best to get the highest score possible i would really take it personally to hear that my score is low due to my laziness...
I worked my a$$ off the whole semester...i took 23 credit hrs on top of work, MCAT prep, volunteering and shadowing...I did very good that one semester although i had no time to sleep...but saying that i got a below 23 score is due to my laziness? 🙄

I had the same problem on ACT...i scored 22 i believe with 16 in reading😱...and what? did it really predict how i will do in college?
no😀...my first semester i nailed bio with 96% and psychology with 98% for the whole class...i also managed to get a B in english composition class (which was very hard and challenging for me).
And while you can see on my MDapplicants that my GPA is not too high, it didn't drop because of my reading speed, low inteligence, inability to process information or whatever ACT score should have predicted...(i had hard time due to long-divorce/loosing money/having-to-work-story for some other post and some of you know it from reading my PS and the fact that some techers grade attendance didn't help me either as i was forced to choose between paying my rent/eating and going to class).

I know i can handle med school academically...even with my reading speed...because i know that i am very hardworking individual...and i am systematic too.

p.s
sorry for the long post...please don't attack me...i just wanted to show SDNers things from a different perspective 😀

I totally feel you Kicia! 😍

 

[CommanderRiker]

what about standard deviations and normal curves? Are the averages really this black and white? I don't think so.

L.O.L., I hope this was a try to be funny. Not bad for a girl though, I suppose. 😀

 

[MaximusD]

Keep working on that tact, Riker.

 

[MaximusD]

This is Riker, William T.

My good friend, the ranges are usually not that wide. By this reasoning, D.O. schools with an average M.C.A.T. acceptance score of 21 may have taken a person with a 35 M.C.A.T. and also a 7 M.C.A.T.

Computer, scan sector ZC-45 for class-5 nebulae. Authorization Riker, William T. Gamma Six.

lol what school has has a mean MCAT avg of 21??

 

[Hexanol]

lol what school has has a mean MCAT avg of 21??

http://www.kcom.edu/faculty/chamberlain/ranmcat.htm

West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (Lewisburg, WV) MCAT: 21.9
Pikesville College School of Osteopathic Medicine (Kentucky) MCAT: 21.70

 

[prionsRbad]

Riker's account is "on hold"? Does that mean he's going to be on probation or banned?

 

[Hexanol]

lol what school has has a mean MCAT avg of 21??

hahaha i thought this was a serious question and i looked it up for you. that's what i get for not reading the posts above yours.

 

[Founder]

If so, what other qualities do you think may have helped you get your acceptance(s)? By the way, CONGRATULATIONS!

I know some who did get accepted with below a 23. But they had strong extracurriculars, LORs, essays, and a good GPA.

 

[Kappy1]

MD and DO ADCOM's can accept who ever they want. If somone has a 9 MCAT score and a 1.5 GPA and no hospital experiance but the committee feels that the person will be a good physician they can accept him or her.🙄
The simple answer to the OP's question is yes. If they were accepted other parts of the application outweighed the MCAT.