help! retake!?

[uniquerabbit]

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Hey guys! So here is my quandry. I am not a superior candidate for medical school acedemically, however, I have a bunch of EC's that I believe make up for my faults. I just took the MCAT on January 30th 2010 and didn't do so well, I got a 27R (PS=8 VR=9 BS=10, Writing=R). My overall GPA is in the 3.45-3.5 range and I am a double major in health sciences and exercise physiology with a minor in biology, but I am not graduated yet and have another term to go. I have been working in the ER as a scribe (on wikipedia) for about 3 years now. I have 100+ pediatric ER volunteer work and a summer research internship at a medical university with an individual project dedicated to ovarian cancer research in rhesus monkeys. I also have great letters of recommendation under my belt. My GPA is on the low end, and this was a mistake of my own during my first year of undergrad when I got a few C's as a business major and was completely lost and unsure of where I was headed at that time. I have since retaken science courses and achieved A's, and have also taken a challenging course load since (ochem, physics, a&P, psychology, and lab work in 1 year) while working part time.
Sorry for the novel, but I really need to know if I should attempt to apply with a 27R and that GPA for this cycle, or if I should buckle down and retake in the spring to apply for the same cycle. I hesitate because two friends I know got into the same med school (OHSU) I want to get into with a 24 and 26 MCAT and similar EC's.

Any advice would be appreciated!

 

[Legacy87]

You're numbers are below average so I recommend retaking it to increase your chances for admission. Although you're friends may have similar EC, their personal statements and lor are variables, which may have push them through. This may not hold the same for you.

 

[Catalystik]

What were your friends' GPAs? My state schools will take lower MCAT scores like theirs too, with high GPAs and strong ECs.

Unless you know your state med school gives less weight to the freshman GPA, I'd encourage you to spend another year raising your GPA or to retake your MCAT (a much quicker, cheaper fix, perhaps after taking a formal classroom prep course), or both, to have a better shot. You could apply this year, but your odds are not good for getting an acceptance, unless you include DO schools on your list.

You do have great ECs though.

 

[FrazzleSnazzle]

I also recommend retaking. You still have plenty of time right now to prepare for the May or July dates so why not seize the opportunity?

Keep in mind that med school acceptance is a very subjective process. Your friends may have gotten in due to something in the non-academic side of their applications that just happened to wow a committee member of that school by chance. It's certainly possible for you to get accepted to your state school with your stats but you're taking a risk. Improving your MCAT up to a 30 or so would greatly increase your chances.

 

[searun]

OP, OHSU is a school that is pretty forgiving of low numbers if your background and personal qualities fit the profile of the kind of applicant that OHSU is looking for. The emphasis at OHSU is primary care, and if the Ad COM believes that you can pass Step One and are interested in primary care, then it is irrelevant whether or not you are an academic superstar.

However, you should not put all of your eggs in one basket. Most schools care alot more about numbers than OHSU. If I were in your shoes, I would take the MCAT again and try to get that score to 30.

Also, your numbers are competitive for DO schools. I definitely would apply to some DO schools if I were you.

 

[uniquerabbit]

Thanks guys,

Well, I just registered for the May 1st date. I will study my a** off again to bump it up to 30. I was consistently getting above 30 on the practice tests, so I don't know what happened. Thanks for the replies, they helped me make my decision!

 

[uniquerabbit]

So does it matter if I am a wiche student from montana and am interested in primary care?

 

[uniquerabbit]

Sorry for the post again guys...what would be the harm (other than money) in applying this year to about 10 schools, seeing what happens...if I don't get in for 2011 admission, then retake the mcat and boost my EC's? I'm only 22 by the way...do you guys think this would be okay, or am I making a serious mistake?

 

[alibai3ah]

Sorry for the post again guys...what would be the harm (other than money) in applying this year to about 10 schools, seeing what happens...if I don't get in for 2011 admission, then retake the mcat and boost my EC's? I'm only 22 by the way...do you guys think this would be okay, or am I making a serious mistake?

No one can really gauge your chances as no one is involved with admissions. But I will tell you that a 27 might be a bit on the low side for MD programs. If you can get that to a 30+, you have a really good shot with your extracurriculars.

You have time (march-september) to retake. Don't rush it and study hard.

 

[Catalystik]

Sorry for the post again guys...what would be the harm (other than money) in applying this year to about 10 schools, seeing what happens...if I don't get in for 2011 admission, then retake the mcat and boost my EC's? I'm only 22 by the way...do you guys think this would be okay, or am I making a serious mistake?

The harm could be that the school discourages reapplicants, or won't consider you again without significant improvements. Or you might get a lower score when you retake the MCAT, which happens to about half who repeat it.

Since you're eager to apply, here's what I'd do in your shoes. Call and make an phone appointment to talk with a dean at OHSU, then call back at the specified time. Discuss in detail your application and ask if she'd encourage you to make improvements before applying, or if you have a reasonable chance now. If you get a green light, I would not apply elsewhere, unless it's a DO school. There's a new one opening up in Oregon that might be a reasonable distance for you: Western University Northwest, which will be a branch campus of Western in California.

I'm curious to know the GPAs of your friends who got in. Do you know?

 

[searun]

Sorry for the post again guys...what would be the harm (other than money) in applying this year to about 10 schools, seeing what happens...if I don't get in for 2011 admission, then retake the mcat and boost my EC's? I'm only 22 by the way...do you guys think this would be okay, or am I making a serious mistake?

You want to apply when your application is strongest. You want to avoid being a reapplicant because that status hinders rather than helps your chances of being admitted. The reapplicant just has a tougher road to med school admission.

So get all of your ducks lined up, improve that MCAT score and then apply.

 

[Catalystik]

From on-line AMCAS data: http://www.aamc.org/data/facts/applicantmatriculant/table21-mcatgpastatemat09.pdf

Last year 2009 Montana residents matriculating to an AMCAS school=42.
Average: VS 9.9, PS 9.7, BS 10.6 Total 30.1 +/- 3.2
sGPA 3.71 +/- .22 cGPA 3.75 +/- .17

So, you're within a standard deviation for the MCAT score, but below a standard deviation for cGPA for those admitted from your state.

 

[GoSpursGo]

Moving to What are my Chances.

 

[uniquerabbit]

The harm could be that the school discourages reapplicants, or won't consider you again without significant improvements. Or you might get a lower score when you retake the MCAT, which happens to about half who repeat it.

Since you're eager to apply, here's what I'd do in your shoes. Call and make an phone appointment to talk with a dean at OHSU, then call back at the specified time. Discuss in detail your application and ask if she'd encourage you to make improvements before applying, or if you have a reasonable chance now. If you get a green light, I would not apply elsewhere, unless it's a DO school. There's a new one opening up in Oregon that might be a reasonable distance for you: Western University Northwest, which will be a branch campus of Western in California.

I'm curious to know the GPAs of your friends who got in. Do you know?

One friend was asian, got a 24 and was accepted (not sure about GPA, should have been high I expect). My other friend was white, got a 26 and a 3.8 GPA and was accepted. Who knows. I think since my GPA is not competative enough, I will have to try to up my MCAT..


BUT what about my writing?? An R is pretty decent right? Would this boost my verbal score a bit more?

 

[teenmachinery1]

One friend was asian, got a 24 and was accepted (not sure about GPA, should have been high I expect). My other friend was white, got a 26 and a 3.8 GPA and was accepted. Who knows. I think since my GPA is not competative enough, I will have to try to up my MCAT..


BUT what about my writing?? An R is pretty decent right? Would this boost my verbal score a bit more?

Writing score doesnt tend to get much attention. How the f did ur buddies get in w those mcat scores?

Sheesh. Anyways...

Retake. Dont apply this year, study, strengthen application, slut around (optional), retake amd apply. Ur still young!

 

[Zona Pellucida]

I had the exact same first MCAT.. even the same breakdown.. retook and improved 5 pts. I would suggest your try to do the same. Not saying the same thing will happen for you but it's definitely possible and you have a good chunk of time to do it in. Good luck!

 

[uniquerabbit]

Writing score doesnt tend to get much attention. How the f did ur buddies get in w those mcat scores?

Sheesh. Anyways...

Retake. Dont apply this year, study, strengthen application, slut around (optional), retake amd apply. Ur still young!

I think my buddys had pretty good connections through our job. We work with great doctors who provide excellent letters. Plus the job itself is the best exposure you can get to medicine as an undergrad. The girl with the 26 had a great PS as well which was edited by many doctors and worked on for a looooong time.

I think I will take the majority of advice here and retake it this spring. I took it in January for the first time on purpose just to give myself room to retake it if I needed to in the spring.


Anyone recommend Exam crackers? I took a Kaplan course and reviewed all of their material about 2 months prior to the exam, but I would like to take another approach. Any suggestions?

 

[Catalystik]

One friend was asian, got a 24 and was accepted (not sure about GPA, should have been high I expect). My other friend was white, got a 26 and a 3.8 GPA and was accepted. Who knows. I think since my GPA is not competative enough, I will have to try to up my MCAT..


BUT what about my writing?? An R is pretty decent right? Would this boost my verbal score a bit more?

An R is excellent, but unfortunately doesn't budge your VS.

 

[uniquerabbit]

I had the exact same first MCAT.. even the same breakdown.. retook and improved 5 pts. I would suggest your try to do the same. Not saying the same thing will happen for you but it's definitely possible and you have a good chunk of time to do it in. Good luck!

Do you mind me asking how you studied for it the second time and what materials you used?