How do I explain my 29 MCAT without sounding whiney?

[doit4themunki]

---

Members don't see this ad.

So I have an interview tomorrow at Case...their average MCAT is a 34 and I got a 29Q...i know in the interview they are going to ask me basically what happened during my mcat.

I got 11 Bio, 10 Phys, and 8 Verbal. I honestly don't know what happened to the Verbal section...I'm a very strong reader and writer and was scoring 11's and 12's on the practices. I took the GRE and got in the 95th percentile on verbal as well. I honestly don't know what happened on the test--possibly that I became over confident.

How do I explain this without sounding like I'm whining that I got unlucky or something? Did any of you have to explain any glaring deficiencies on your app? I'm freaking out a bit.

 

[sylvanthus]

Dude relax. This is not a "glaring" problem on your application. You already made it through whatever academic filters the school had and now they want to know about your personality and how you get along with others. Chances are, they won't even ask about the MCAT. Their average is 34 which means there are probably others with 29s. So, calm the F down, you'll be fine.

 

[JubJub603]

Like the above poster said, they may not even ask. Do you know if Case is open or closed interviews?

If for some reason it does come up, just be honest. Say you felt confident leaving the exam, and are a bit puzzled by your results as well. As long as you don't come off cocky, you'll be fine.

Good luck! 🙂

 

[muhali3]

You don't need to explain it because its not a bad score. If they're giving you an interview, your MCAT is good enough.

 

[ILikeDrugs]

The fact that you got an interview with a 29 would lead me to believe that the school really doesn't give a damn about your MCAT score when comparing it to whatever else you have on your application, which I'm guessing is good stuff since you landed an interview with a 29. If it's no big deal for them why would it be a big deal for you. I would say, "I thought I went into the test well prepared after considering my practice test scores. I don't know why but my real test score was lower. Perhaps I wasn't as prepared as I thought I was." What else can you say besides something along those lines? That already seems to be your line of reasoning, and you should probably stick to something as simple as that. It's not as if you can analyze the answers you got wrong and reevaluate where your preparation for the test might have gone wrong.

 

[kevster2001]

Theres a 99.9% chance they will not ask. But even if they do, just tell them the truth like you did in your post. People have off days.

 

[GoSpursGo]

As others have basically said, there is no way to "explain" your MCAT without sounding whiny. If somehow they ask the question (which I doubt they will), I wouldn't even bother bringing up your GRE and other things. The fact of the matter is that there is some variance to the MCAT, and just about anyone could argue that they could have done 2-4 points better if X, Y, or Z had happened. If it does get asked, just say that while you would always feel like you could do a little better, that you feel like you did as well as you could for the exam you were given on that day, and leave it at that.

 

[LibbyJ]

I am not sure if this is how it works at all schools, but at the ones I have applied to (and asked current MS1's how the interview process goes) - they do not have any kind of numerical data about you (no grades, etc). They are interviewing you as a person, not based on your stats, so I do not think they will ask about it. I know sometimes they can ask about classes you took, but usually never about actual stats

Hope this helps, good luck!

 

[swamprat]

Didn't both reading above but:

1) If they invited for you an interview, it obviously isn't that big of a deal.

2) It can definitely be brought up at interview, and if it is don't make excuses. I would go along the lines of I did my best and I figured a 29 was competitive so i didn't retake it and applied.

3) Don't bring it up unless it's brought up.

And remember again, obviously the school sees something they like or they wouldn't waste their time interviewing you.. so go kill the interview and get an acceptance. 👍

 

[transfec]

Exclaim that you did the best you could and that you were proud of yourself!

You were invited to an interview!!!

Don't worry about this.