Generally, April MCAT = better chance of acceptance

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moto_za

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Is this true, generally?
thanks

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they say scores are typically better in April.

I'm sure it has 100% to do with the people taking the test, not the time of year it's taken.
 
I think the reason is more in the line of with an April MCAT allowing for earlier applicaiton process to begin which will give a leg up on the competition
 
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take it in April! I took it in August and haven't gotten a great response.
 
No doubt, the sooner you get in your completed apps the better.
 
Now that there are more opportunities to take the test throughout the year, this will change things quite a bit.
 
To the OP: if somebody told you April is good and August is bad, that's last year's story. January and May are fine too now, maybe others as well. All bets are off in the new CBT world: other than general scheduling convenience we don't have data about which of the ~20 test dates is statistically anything.
 
exactly. Any date is good as long as you get the results before you apply. You will have your app in before others. But since there are 22 times a year i imagine most will have theris done before the apply. JUst remember to apply as soon as possible.
 
Thats kind of what I'm worried about....Should I take it in April, so I can everything ready to go in early June, or take the extra month to study and take it in May...I guess either will be okay, but not sure which one will weight out to a greater advantage...
 
How long is the grading time and what is the date of the May test? Most schools don't start to download primaries until late June/Early July anyway. Your biggest slowdown will probably be LORs anyway. besides getting your primary verified. (Primary won't be a problem since you can submit that as soon as your grades are in and your personal statement is complete.
 
They say grading will take about a month, so if you take the exam May 31 should be graded by end of June, but I'd give 6 weeks, anyhow.

I think it will be really interesting to see how all the testing dates affect the admissions process this year. Will more people retake? Will more people take an earlier exam (in April, we were mostly still in class, by end of May, a lot of people are done w/ finals)? Will people who are totally unprepared take the exam because they can just go take it again in a month?
 
Before deciding when to apply - first see which dates are open!! I have a friend who has to drive to Houston to take the April MCAT. Even though it's being offered more times each year, I don't think there are enough facilities (yet) to accomodate everyone - hence having to drive to Houston for the April MCAT. When I took the MCAT last August, I only signed up at the end of May or beginning of June and had my first choice. So before deciding between April/May/June see if testing centers near you are still available.

Just my $0.02
 
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I definitely agree with Falco2525 and Anastasis. The main advantages of taking the MCAT earlier verusus later are 1) you can get your results and get your applications in sooner, which is an advantage for rolling admissions and 2) If your scores are not what you want/need, you will still have time to re-take it.

I really gambled by not re-taking my April MCAT because I had one pretty low sub section score (7 in PS). But I knew that I realistically would not have the time to put in enough study between July and August to improve it much, so I let it roll to take advantage of the earlier submission instead. It paid off (thankfully). But I have no doubt that my score still got me screened out of a number of interviews (VCU *cough* Jefferson *Cough*) ;)
 
A few years ago I remember being confronted by the idea that you have better chances if you take the April exam due to the fact that many students take it to test the water, thinking that they can bomb it and retake in August if neccessary. While I never bought into the idea, it's certainly not a factor now that AAMC is offering so many CBT MCATs throughout the year. The only advantage I see is getting your scores to complete your folder early, as the rest of you fine people. :thumbup:
 
the sooner you get your score...the sooner your application will be complete..the sooner the adcom will review it and the sooner you'll hear from them.
 
Dropping the old April/August paradigm of the paper test, timing might be better as your file might be more complete "earlier," but a 35 in August/September should be as good as a 35 in April/May. Take the test when you are ready, not when you think you're supposed to.

Of course, everything else that has been mentioned is true too.
 
If I could do it over, I'd have taken it in April, and if I could advise future applicants, I'd tell them to take the latest test that would get their scores in by August. I took it in August and despite having a superlative score, I have heard nothing from the majority of schools I applied to. Meanwhile, April (or previous year) takers have been getting acceptances since November.
 
Now that the test can be taken throughout the year, I think that taking the MCAT in August, then applying for the same years cycle will be a HUGE disadvantage. With January testing, many of the students applying for next year's cycle have the ability to work on an primary applications for 3-4 months before it is even possible to submit it. This puts even more pressure on getting primaries in by June/July.

That said, do not take it in April if you could use more time to study. A 36 in August is still better than a 33 in April.
 
Unless one applies in the August before their Junior year. I think the earlier the better, as others have said, because it allows earlier application. Also note that the majority of schools in their own recruitment literature recommend one takes the MCAT before August of the application year.

However, we'll really have to see next year's application results before we know what to do with all of the extra dates.
 
Is it better to take the test in April/May then an MCAT class over the summer and take it again in August? Or just take it April/May with no course but it will be early, or just August with a course but it will be late? How helpful are the classes anyway in your opinions?
 
Is this true, generally?
thanks

i took mine in august and railed the crap out of it. i didnt take it in the spring bc i was taking physics 2 and some upperlevel bios and didnt want to be bogged down by school work during preparation. this way i had a whole free summer.

i heard all those theories of april being better as well... but i stuck with my gut and picked the date that would give me more free time to prepare.
 
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