Hello! I graduated undergrad in 2008, am currently in a doctoral program in public health, and am hoping to enter medical school after my PhD. Trying to give the MCAT its due diligence while doing research full-time is not going so well, and it does not make sense to be paying lots of tuition to my school while spending my time mostly studying for the MCAT, rather than making progress toward my degree, so I am considering taking a leave of absence (potentially of up to a year or more... however long it takes, pending approval from my school) from my doctoral program to focus on and get the MCAT out of the way. It's been 10+ years since I have taken the science courses on the MCAT, and I have never taken psychology/sociology, so I feel I will need more time to refresh on content and prepare than the average test-taker. How bad does it look to adcoms to have a long gap that is spent primarily studying for the MCAT? To what extent should I try to supplement this time with work or other activities? I was thinking of doing some clinical volunteering during this time to also get more recent clinical experience, but wanted to avoid getting bogged down in so many other activities that I'm not making good progress on MCAT preparation, which would defeat the purpose of taking a leave of absence from my program. I already have more than enough relevant/interesting activities for my application; a good MCAT score is all that I still really need.
How bad does it look to have a long gap for primarily MCAT studying?
- Thread starter ellieo8
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Hi @ellieo8
Where are you in your studying? It's possible you may be overestimating how long it will take you to prepare for the MCAT, as I did. I had taken several of the prereqs for the MCAT 10 years before, never took psych or soc, and was able to prepare for the MCAT in 4 months while working 40 hours/week. If possible I would only take a maximum of one term off to study for the MCAT instead of drawing it out over a year, but you'll know better what's going to work for you.
Where are you in your studying? It's possible you may be overestimating how long it will take you to prepare for the MCAT, as I did. I had taken several of the prereqs for the MCAT 10 years before, never took psych or soc, and was able to prepare for the MCAT in 4 months while working 40 hours/week. If possible I would only take a maximum of one term off to study for the MCAT instead of drawing it out over a year, but you'll know better what's going to work for you.
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Two months off completely should do. Ask for a summer off maybe?
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How exactly are adcoms supposed to know how long you studied for the MCAT? I finished my undergrad 14 years before I took the test. <damn, I should have done a lot better after all that studying>
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I think you're probably overthinking it. The only thing that matters now is your MCAT and I would just focus on that. The other posters are right too though, you don't have to devote a huge chunk of time with absolutely nothing else going on to do well on this thing. Maybe do volunteering or shadowing you enjoy a few hours a week, too. Trust me the MCAT burn out is real and another activity may serve you well.
Don't be too worried about not having psych/soc. I took both in UG and frankly neither really helped me prep for the MCAT. I used TPR and Khan to prep for that stuff and it was more than enough. You'll be fine OP!
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With no other commitments, I think a summer is more than enough for anyone to achieve their MCAT potential, no matter how rusty their science background is.
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68PGunner
8-10 weeks is more than sufficient. If you put in an honest 6-8 hrs of study everyday, you will do well enough to get accepted to medical school.
