How are tiers defined by mcat score?

[radioactive15]

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can someone explain how people classify top, middle, and low tier by mcat averages?

is my assessment accurate and largely representative:
high tier = 37+
mid tier = 32-36
low tier = 31 & lower

if this was redefined for the new mcats, what would the scaling be? i read here that the deciders will use percentiles to identify candidates, so would it translate to:
high = 95 percentile or better
mid = 90-95 percentile
low = 90 percentile or below

edit: I know i did not include gpa and other factors, but for each tier, consider that the same person got the average gpa for the school they are applying to

 

[darkjedi]

I would say as a general rule of thumb that your break downs are appropriate. There will always be exceptions and other things to consider. I also wouldn't get too tripped up over classifications and just focus on how your LizzyM score matches up with your target schools.

 

[Lamel]

If 35-36 is mid-tier, then damn, you just knocked out most of the top 20 schools.

 

[Goro]

I would slightly modify to:

high tier = 36
mid tier = 33-35
low tier = 32 & lower

high = ~96 percentile or better
mid = 91-95 percentile
low = 90 percentile or below


Now, I KNOW that people are going to start pissing and moaning that THEIR school is NOT a low tier based upon my schema. Don't take it personally.

 

[Psai]

tiers by mcat score

high tier: "wow, nice!"
mid tier: "oh okay"
low tier: "heh"

 

[justadream]

As with like everything in admissions, this probably depends a lot by school.

For example, WashU might think 36 is "mid tier" or worse (since they have median of like 38).

However, [school with lowest MCAT median here] would probably view a 36 as "high tier".

 

[efle]

There are also places which love to admit high scores but are not quite on a par with the other schools of the same median, like Icahn has the same (37) as Stanford and Harvard, and Northwestern has the same (36) as Hopkins

 

[gyngyn]

There are also places which love to admit high scores but are not quite on a par with the other schools of the same median, like Icahn has the same (37) as Stanford and Harvard, and Northwestern has the same (36) as Hopkins

Those are all fine schools. Their median MCAT scores do not define them. They have the luxury of admitting wonderful students who also have very fine scores. Other schools admit very fine students with lower scores and teach them what they need to succeed. I have respect for both outcomes.

 

[efle]

Those are all fine schools. Their median MCAT scores do not define them. They have the luxury of admitting wonderful students who also have very fine scores. Other schools admit very fine students with lower scores and teach them what they need to succeed. I have respect for both outcomes.

Oh yeah they're all phenomenal schools, I just imagine a big majority of people would opt for Hopkins > NW or Harvard > Icahn given the chance, which you couldn't read from stats alone

 

[gyngyn]

Oh yeah they're all phenomenal schools, I just imagine a big majority of people would opt for Hopkins > NW or Harvard > Icahn given the chance, which you couldn't read from stats alone

Interestingly, it is not at all that straightforward in practice.

 

[Goro]

Concur, not everyone wants to go to Chicago, Boston, Baltimore or NYC.

Interestingly, it is not at all that straightforward in practice.

 

[altblue]

I would slightly modify to:

high tier = 36
mid tier = 33-35
low tier = 32 & lower

high = ~96 percentile or better
mid = 91-95 percentile
low = 90 percentile or below


Now, I KNOW that people are going to start pissing and moaning that THEIR school is NOT a low tier based upon my schema. Don't take it personally.

I totally like this list, but it's rather odd how schools with 85-90 percentile mcat scores are generally called low tier.

It just reminds me, well, of how hard med school is to get into. 🙂

 

[efle]

Interestingly, it is not at all that straightforward in practice.

Interesting, I thought the % of acceptees matriculating was considerably higher at say Harvard (~2/3?) than say NYU (~1/3?) and that this indicated a greater favoritism of the former despite similar stats. Do they actually just do a better job of assessing whether people would enroll?

 

[radioactive15]

@Goro @gyngyn does the percentile rating apply for the old mcats as well or do you just look at their numerical score out of 45?

on an unrelated note, the mcat is valid for 3 years right?

 

[gyngyn]

Interesting, I thought the % of acceptees matriculating was considerably higher at say Harvard (~2/3?) than say NYU (~1/3?) and that this indicated a greater favoritism of the former despite similar stats. Do they actually just do a better job of assessing whether people would enroll?

The better job the school does of identifying likely matriculants the higher the "yield" will be. Many things go into this. Many CA applicants for example, do not even apply to east coast schools , even (especially!) with killer applications.

 

[efle]

@Goro @gyngyn does the percentile rating apply for the old mcats as well or do you just look at their numerical score out of 45?

on an unrelated note, the mcat is valid for 3 years right?

Numerical score and percentile are interchangeable

varies by school

 

[gyngyn]

@Goro @gyngyn does the percentile rating apply for the old mcats as well or do you just look at their numerical score out of 45?

on an unrelated note, the mcat is valid for 3 years right?

We've accommodated to the old MCAT so we just look at the scores. Depends on the school.

 

[efle]

The better job the school does of identifying likely matriculants the higher the "yield" will be. Many things go into this. Many CA applicants for example, do not even apply to east coast schools , even with killer applications.

TIL, I was under the impression there was a lot of acceptee-stealing and strategic financial aid offers like with undergrad! Thanks for clarifying

 

[gyngyn]

TIL, I was under the impression there was a lot of acceptee-stealing and strategic financial aid offers like with undergrad! Thanks for clarifying

No mistake.
Everyone steals from each other after traffic day. That is normal. You don't need $. One usually doesn't have recruitment dollars for waitlist offers anyway.
CA schools steal CA kids from Ivies (and each other, of course) all the time.

 

[Goro]

This business of tiers is pure BS and was started by USN&WR to sell copy and is now fixed in pre-med mentality.

ALL medical schools are hard to get into. Albany to Yale; ACOM to Western.

My own DO school gets ~5000+ applications for ~100 seats. Rosy Franklin and Gtown are statistically harder to get into than Harvard!

I totally like this list, but it's rather odd how schools with 85-90 percentile mcat scores are generally called low tier.

It just reminds me, well, of how hard med school is to get into. 🙂

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

The better job the school does of identifying likely matriculants the higher the "yield" will be. Many things go into this. Many CA applicants for example, do not even apply to east coast schools , even (especially!) with killer applications.

Lol, it would be a waste of their time to apply to east coast schools.

 

[Shams al Deen]

I think making tiers from USNews and median MCAT is a good way to gauge the general reputation a med school has. I understand that school reputation in medicine is not nearly as important as in law or business. But wouldn't it be naïve to think that med school reputation plays no role whatsoever.

 

[efle]

I think making tiers from USNews and median MCAT is a good way to gauge the general reputation a med school has. I understand that school reputation in medicine is not nearly as important as in law or business. But wouldn't it be naïve to think that med school reputation plays no role whatsoever.

Probably depends on the residency in question, if there are medical schools which view community college and ivy league equally then maybe the trend continues

 

[gyngyn]

Lol, it would be a waste of their time to apply to east coast schools.

Especially if they wouldn't go if they got into a CA school!

 

[Dr. Stalker]

tiers by mcat score

high tier: "wow, nice!"
mid tier: "oh okay"
low tier: "heh"

Loved the "heh" part xD

 

[efle]

Especially if they wouldn't go if they got into a CA school!

How can you determine this? I'm planning to apply to the UCs but spent time living in the northeast and midwest and actually enjoy having seasons, sure hope I don't get yield-protected just because people assume I'd prefer Cali

 

[gyngyn]

How can you determine this? I'm planning to apply to the UCs but spent time living in the northeast and midwest and actually enjoy having seasons, sure hope I don't get yield-protected just because people assume I'd prefer Cali

They don't yield protect. They manage resources.

Considering how few spots there are for IS CA residents, most of them have to leave the state (not by choice). OOS schools know this so they are not risking that much. Let's compare two large states:
CA had 5,920 premeds last year. 1,436 went OOS for medical school and 870 got to stay IS.

TX had 3,870 applicants. Only 193 went OOS while 1,418 stayed home! You can see that all things being equal, an OOS school would be happy to take the odds on a CA applicant.

I have been counseling CA med school applicants since the 1970's. The most common error resulting in a re-application is: not applying out of state to schools that might interview them! Thankfully, it sounds like you won't suffer from this.

 

[Ace Khalifa]

Lol, it would be a waste of their time to apply to east coast schools.

Not always, there were a few CA applicants at my Miami interview day. Unless "east coast" means everything but FL lol.