Is a 30 enough?

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Well, the accepted average is 30 and 3.6, so if you are in there, you can reasonably expect an offer or two unless you apply to too many reach schools or interview terribly.
 
it depends. I know a guy with a 39 and a 3.95 that didnt get in this cycle due to lack of EC's. So it all depends.
 
no matter what you get, it's never enough :scared:
 
Yes, a 30 won't hinder you from getting into med school. However, an acceptance is based on the whole package.
 
Assuming your GPA and EC's are good, it should be good enough to get you into an MD school.
 
;
 
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i think people focus too much on numbers when talking about med school applications...
 
bubabugster said:
Yes, a 30 won't hinder you from getting into med school. However, an acceptance is based on the whole package.
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i totally agree with bubabugster. But i can understand what you're getting at...scores and grade averages are creeping up at schools...but a 30 is still a good score. I doubt that most people would tell someone with a 30 to retake the MCAT, unless it wasn't evenly distributed.

Its the total package that matters...you want it to be good and balanced in all aspects of your application. Med schools look at a lot of things, not just MCAT scores and Grades...though it does play a major part.
 
The application process is a multi-pronged attack. A 30 is good enough to get in and all, but the rest of the application has to be good enough as well. Pretty much wat most people have already said.
 
On a related note, I think it was during the 2005 cycle that AAMC switched from reporting mean GPA and MCAT to MCAT. As a result, scores seemed to go up. It's been a while since I took statistics, but I know that the mean is the average while the median is the number in the middle of a group with the highest N value, but does this really matter? Is this another example of grade inflation?
 
A 30 is fine if you have a decent GPA and apply early. With a 30, I got into all but 3 schools that I applied to.
 
My daughter got in to a (great!) US MD school with a 30 - class of 2011. Her whole package was solid! My friends daughter got into 2 schools so far with a 30 - again she had good GPA and strong EC's. Another person I know just got in with a 29 - all three were college seniors.
 
Rocky6 said:
it depends. I know a guy with a 39 and a 3.95 that didnt get in this cycle due to lack of EC's. So it all depends.
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It wasn't the lack of EC's that kept your friend out. Probably a personality like BTK or something.
 
Your ECs, secondary essays, interview performances, updates, and LoI's will together matter more than your 30. I personally know of a 29S that got into 4 MD schools in IL. 👍
 
blargh said:
i think people focus too much on numbers when talking about med school applications...
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I think that they don't focus enough on numbers. The numbers are 70-90% of the application.

In the OP's case, it nearly completely depends on state of residence.
 
Critical Mass said:
I think that they don't focus enough on numbers. The numbers are 70-90% of the application.

In the OP's case, it nearly completely depends on state of residence.
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i focus on CM's sexy ab slideshow more than MCAT scores. i know you're a guy, but you're making me gay.
 
Not if you live in California
 
yes! more people who think abs are not over-rated...its so hard to get a great midsection.. i hate it when people just dismiss them

as to the OP 😛

personally.. I think a 30 is becoming less and less satisfactory in the eyes of medschools as a competitive applicant, yes it is widely accepted, but like everyone says, the whole package needs to be there.

besides 🙂 If you can get a 30. I think you can get a 32; the raw scale differences is are so minute.. those people who score 11's on sections..could have simply been 1 question away from a 12 🙁..semantics!
 
i wouldnt worry too much.. i know a guy who had a 29 and got into Boston, Tufts, USC, UF, UM, and Indiana..
 
Are you kidding? It takes a 45T.
Joking aside a 30 is the average MCAT stat for most Medical Schools.
 
If you've already taken the MCAT, a 30 is fine.

If you haven't taken the MCAT, study to get as high as possible. Don't limit yourself! 😀
 
Well, as the OP surely knows, no particular score is ever satisfactory in and of itself. As for scores trending upwards, it's absolutely TRUE. However, I believe that the demand for more doctors in the near future will balance it out. Also, it seems like every type of standardized test gets periodically revamped. For instance, my interviewer, an older gentleman (MD and vet) had no clue about the quality (or lackthereof) of my MCAT and actually asked me whether it was good. I've also talked to staff at my school, and most agree that anything above, say, a 27 (just throwing out the number) is enough to prove that an individual can handle the curriculum, which is what an admissions staff is trying to confirm.
 
So many people ask, "What number is good enough?" Answer: whatever number you get accepted with.

In short, I don't think there's any magic number. I've met about 60 people in my entering class so far, and whenever scores are brought up, they run a broad range. Go for the best score you can get, and focus on the total package as an applicant.

Good luck!
 
Critical Mass said:
Agreed.

And my slideshow is open to anyone with a photo. Just PM me a link.
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You don't honestly think i'm going to let you put my naked flabs in there with all those hotties 🙄
 
v7, b10, ps11 is that enough considering everything else is average...gpa 3.6
 
28 is a little low for most allo schools...
 
lsumedgirl said:
So many people ask, "What number is good enough?" Answer: whatever number you get accepted with.

In short, I don't think there's any magic number. I've met about 60 people in my entering class so far, and whenever scores are brought up, they run a broad range. Go for the best score you can get, and focus on the total package as an applicant.

Good luck!
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BINGO! :clap::clap::clap::bow:
 
I received two acceptances with a very unbalanced 30. So don't worry. The whole process is very unpredictable. There is only one way to find out!
 
Can someone tell me if I should rewrite my MCAT? I have a 31 R (11 verbal, 10 bio, 10 physics). And a 3.65 cumulative GPA and a 3.76 BCMP GPA (based on that AMCAS spreadsheet floating around). I applied last year too late and only received one interiew invite. I was wondering if I applied early enough this year, would these stats would be enough to land me a school? I have good ECs and I assume I have good LORs.

Thanks.
 
30 with a 3.2...not likely... 30 with 3.8 is looking a lot better
 
Skelfie said:
I got into UCSD with a 30! 🙂
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I got waitlisted by UCSD with higher 🙂.

You absolutely HAVE to interview well. UCSD was just my second interview and I was still a bit green. I thought I did well, but the student probably killed me (as it was with a couple of other schools. Why oh why can't i get 80 year old interviewers?)
 
Joyssoul, please tell me you are kidding. If 31 isn't good enough for you, then retake it. Don't think, however, given that the rest of your application is adequate, that it's going to make a lick of difference. In my estimation, it could only hurt you.
 
Scgoat, I applied late in the game (submitted my AMCAS on Nov 1), so that may have why I received so little interview invites last year. I plan on reapplying this year, so I'm just trying to make sure I am better prepared this year. I am from Canada and I'm new to SDN so all of this is very new to me.

So, assuming that the rest of application is adequate, the 31R with my GPA are high enough numbers to make me a competitive applicant? Thanks for your patience.
 
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