Does a 7 in verbal mean goodbye to MD schools altogether?

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KobeshouldbeaMD

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Hey guys, as the day to submit the AMCAS is nearing I am feeling more and more anxious about my scores.

Long story short:
3.8/29 (11, 7, 11)
Challenging semesters
Good letters
Good ECs
Some leadership
Some research here and there

Cookie-cutter pre-med and overall nice guy blah blah you know the deal.

Looking at the MSAR, more specifically MCAT scores section, it seems that a 7 in verbal is less than the 10th percentile at most MDs where I'm applying (NY, NJ, Penn)

While I am applying to DO schools and I consider it an absolute privilege to even be in this position in my life or to be an Osteopathic physician one day, I am wondering if that 7 will really really bar me from my local MDs?

Thank you in advance for the responses and have a great day.

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A 7 can cut you off from some. I've heard of schools that screen for <8 and schools that screen for <7. Not sure whether either is true, but maybe others can comment specifically about the schools you are interested in.

In general, your MCAT score is not awful and you shouldn't think all is lost - just be aware that some schools may take that 7 worse than others. Is the 7 very much lower than what you scored on practices?
 
I would call schools you are interested in and talk to them about your application and if they auto screen based on your mcat verbal
 
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In general, your MCAT score is not awful and you shouldn't think all is lost - just be aware that some schools may take that 7 worse than others. Is the 7 very much lower than what you scored on practices?

What's surprising is that I only scored 7s in the beginning of my MCAT training. Then I never went that low again.

I really, really don't like making excuses or anything but I am an immigrant to this country.

Also, I am a humanities major that reads a lot of challenging material with abstract concepts with a 4.0 in that major. Will the admissions committee's consider this and perhaps have a more charitable view of my 7?
 
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The 7 is not a killer, it will you screen you out from the top tiers. I wouldn't say all hope for MD is lost though. You'll hafta make up that 7 somewhere else in your application.
 
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What's surprising is that I only scored 7s in the beginning of my MCAT training. Then I never went that low again.

I really, really don't like making excuses or anything but I am an immigrant to this country.

Also, I am a humanities major that reads a lot of challenging material with abstract concepts with a 4.0 in that major. Will the admissions committee's consider this and perhaps have a more charitable view of my 7?

I dunno, plenty of immigrants score upwards on 12 on the MCAT verbal - are you a very very recent immigrant? Congrats on your major GPA! The short answer to your question is no, a 7 won't kill your application at most schools. That said, if you are not applying until next cycle, I would retake. If you are applying now, I would take @lmn 's advice and give the schools a call.
 
I dunno, plenty of immigrants score upwards on 12 on the MCAT verbal - are you a very very recent immigrant? Congrats on your major GPA! The short answer to your question is no, a 7 won't kill your application at most schools. That said, if you are not applying until next cycle, I would retake. If you are applying now, I would take @lmn 's advice and give the schools a call.

No not a recent immigrant. Thank you, I worked very hard in undergrad to try to keep it up there. And yes I think that's the best thing to do--get in contact with the med schools I am interested in. Hopefully the admissions committee's will see past my 7 and into my passion to be a true healer.

Thank you for your time.
 
To be safe I would retake (i did) but I do know ppl who have gotten interview invites to low & mid-tier schools with a 7 in VR or even a 6 (very rare case but I personally know 2 ppl, one of whom is now a pgy-1 in rads).
 
Consider retaking? I had a 7 on my first take and ended up with a 9 the second time around - not a groundbreaking improvement but a 7 won't close any doors - it might make them harder to open, though. Unfortunately I can't speak as to how schools viewed my retake, so take it as you will.
 
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If you think that the 7 is not a true indicator of your ability, retake the MCAT and shoot for 30+.

P.s. Hell yea Kobe should be an MD :p
 
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a 29, regardless of verbal score, makes it tough to get into MD. The 7 only makes it worse. However, if you apply broadly and have a good story you could get in.
 
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