Is 28 on the MCAT and a 3.7 gpa good enough

[mintjajaja]

Hi,
I'm stressing over whether to take the mcat one last time..
to be honest with you I took the mcat 4 times...
the first 3 scores are all the same...really low...21,22,22
But the fourth time I got a 28
I took it last september so I applied really late into the cycle.
I still havent received any interview invites, 11 schools still haven't rejected me totally.
I didn't exactly give up hope on this cycle but i am preparing myself also to apply again in June.
at first I thought 28 omg!!! i wouldn't have to retake this test ever again
but right now I'm not too confident because I havent received any interview and my friend said that 28 is kind of in a low end.
I was born in Thailand and English is my second language.
my GPa is 3.7 and my experiences and activities are pretty solid I think
I have clinical/shadowing experiences abroad in Thailand and the US, president of Thai club, members of flying sams, teaching and tutoring experiences, research, studying abroad, scholarship, and work experience...
Do you think it would look bad if I take the mcat for the 5th time (very excessive in my opinion too)? should I just stop here and focus more on building my experiences and try better to apply early right on June?
is it necessary for me to try to get a 30 or 31,,,do you think this score would make that much of a different?
Please lemme know any opinion or suggestion you might have >.<
thank youuuu so much, I really really appreciate it!!
I go crazyyy
lol

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[FijiGNR89]

Definitely don't retake it. Medical schools will see the fact that you took it four teams, 3 of which saw no improvement. To take it a fifth time and get 1-2 points higher will be insignificant and they will only wonder why you're doing it. I'm not trying to be a dick, I'm just hitting you with some honesty. I would also consider DO school. A 28 mcat is much more competitive there.

 

[as1212559]

Look seriously at DO schools, you are quite competitive for all of them. Low chances at MD. You would have to apply to in-state schools and low-tier schools that do NOT average MCAT scores/only take most recent score to stand a chance at MD. Do not retake.

 

[SSC2]

Do not retake. You have shown improvement from your previous attempts. This time apply to both MD and DO schools.

Apply as soon as the applications open and it will give you a much better chance in landing an interview. Apply to MANY schools but make sure you know the OOS acceptance rate etc by looking into the MSAR for MD schools.

How are your other stats? Volunteering, etc? Make sure you are consistent and you have good experiences to work off from. Your GPA is competitive.

Anyway, yeah, as others have said, make sure you apply to both type of medical schools.

 

[Goro]

Strongly concur.

Definitely don't retake it. Medical schools will see the fact that you took it four teams, 3 of which saw no improvement. To take it a fifth time and get 1-2 points higher will be insignificant and they will only wonder why you're doing it. I'm not trying to be a dick, I'm just hitting you with some honesty. I would also consider DO school. A 28 mcat is much more competitive there.

 

[mintjajaja]

Hi!!
Thank you so much for all your honest suggestion and advice,
I really do appreciate it so much!
I think I'm through with the MCAT too >.<
kinda relieve deciding not to take it..I think I've done my part in it and
will move on to spend more time with (make it better)
on building a strong experiences, stories, and essays.
Hopefully this 28 will get me through the initial screening and they could see
my other side too..And definitely will submit my app right when it opens ^^
I think part of the reason I'm still waiting might be because of my late submission
of my primary (waiting for the mcat score that come out in oct.) and consequently secondary. I'll try looking into DO school also this cycle!

To answer SSC2:
my experiences so far are around this,
-Volunteering with a hospital team at the flood evacuation center during the flood in Thailand last year
-Helping out at a private clinic over there (orthopedist)
-Observing the work in the social medicine department over there too
-President of Thai Club at UC Irvine
-involvement with Flying Sams--student run clinic in Mexico
-Volunteering at the Children Hospital of Orange County for a year
-Chemistry Department tutor
-Teaching 1st grade Summer English in Thailand
-Research
-Studying abroad
I was born in Thailand and first came to the US when I was a high school freshman
-I'm looking to do more shadowing and clinical research in the upcoming months too
Hopefully I will have a good and unique enough stories to tell >.<

Thank you again everyone

 

[mwall003]

I would like to echo what everyone here has said. You've shown improvement, and the low MCAT scores may have been a result of ESL.

You applied too late this cycle, that definitely hurt you. Strengthen you application right now and submit your AMCAS in early June right when it comes out. Prewrite secondary applications and apply extremely broadly. You may have a shot then at an MD school, if that's what your set on. But to ensure (not guarantee) you get in, apply to some DO schools that interest you as well. Best of luck, despite what people say on sdn a 28 is good enough to get in to a program (more difficult into an MD program) with no other application weakness, strong essays, LORs, GPA, ECs, etc.

 

[mintjajaja]

Thank you!!! >.<