Is it bad idea to retake 35 mcat? low verbal.

[hee8051]

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I got 14ps, 13bs, 8 verbal.
8 verbal worries me, and if I am aiming to top schools,
is it necessary to get at least 9 or 10 on verbal?
do you think 8 on verbal would hold me back?

Which score would be better?

12/12/10 or 14/13/8? because I don't think I can get the same science scores if I retake. I feel like anything above 12 is volatile and out of luck.

Any opinions??

 

[Galileo Galilei]

Verbal is the most difficult section to improve on. What verbal scores were you putting up on practice exams?

 

[drizzt3117]

no you shouldn't retake it.

 

[blackarrowmoose]

a 35 is a 35. so no

 

[hee8051]

Verbal is the most difficult section to improve on. What verbal scores were you putting up on practice exams?

8 is the lowest verbal score I got on AAMC practice exams.
I got 11 once, but I scored 8 or 9 most of times.

I feel like if I practice a lot, I can improve the verbal up to 10,
since I got 10 sometimes.

 

[LuciusVorenus]

Verbal is the most difficult section to improve on. What verbal scores were you putting up on practice exams?

Agreed. Verbal usually takes years of reading/writing to really improve (and not have to rely on getting lucky during the test), it's not something you can cram into 3 months like you can with the sciences. I'd say leave it, a 35 is above a 90th percentile.

 

[Galileo Galilei]

8 is the lowest verbal score I got on AAMC practice exams.
I got 11 once, but I scored 8 or 9 most of times.

I feel like if I practice a lot, I can improve the verbal up to 10,
since I got 10 sometimes.

If you're consistently scoring 8-9 on verbal, you should heed the advice of the above posters and not retake it. You'd risk hurting your excellent science sections. A 35 is good, but you may get screened out at extremely selective schools for having an 8 verbal.

 

[cliffhuxtableDO]

the biggest thing with a retake is that 8 could turn into a 7... or worse. a friend of mine didn't have quite the total score you did, but had an 8 in VR and still got into some nice MD programs. just make sure the rest of your app is bulletproof.

 

[EpicBearMan]

I was pretty consistently getting 10 verbal on my practice runs here, and was a bit disappointed when I got a 9 on real deal. Whether you hit the top or bottom of your practice score range will mainly depend on luck. I happened to have some lucky guesses on BS and some unlucky guesses on VR.

It would be possible to improve the distribution, but there is no guarantee and there is a risk of making things worse. Whether you retake should depend on your school goals and your confidence. Personally, I wouldn't bother rolling the dice. An 8 is "good enough".

 

[hee8051]

is there a huge difference between 9 and 8 on verbal?
Based on the MSAR info, the accepted bottom 10th verbal for the top 20 schools are at least 9. almost most of them

It seems like 8 on verbal would significantly decrease my chances at top 20 schools. Is my assumption true??

 

[patel2]

is there a huge difference between 9 and 8 on verbal?
Based on the MSAR info, the accepted bottom 10th verbal for the top 20 schools are at least 9. almost most of them

It seems like 8 on verbal would significantly decrease my chances at top 20 schools. Is my assumption true??

it might very well...but a 9 won't look substantially better either. But you can definitely get into many good medical schools with an 8 verbal and 35 overall, and even possibly top 20 if you are spectacular everywhere else. Seems like a risky bet to retake- if you were averaging 8-9, then it's entirely possible you will somehow end up with a 7 or something if you're having an off day. Then you'd be really f'd in the a. Maybe I'd consider if you were averaging much higher scores and totally messed up on test day, but if you weren't, just cut your losses

 

[calvnandhobbs68]

Yeah no way, especially if you were only getting 10s on your verbals "sometimes"...if you were hitting 12 and had an off day that would be one thing but it seems like you're hovering around your average. I definitely wouldn't bet on happening to get an easier MCAT verbal section since that would be basically what you'd be doing. Your science scores are great, just make sure you don't make any mistakes in your PS/Secondary essays so you can make sure adcoms know you aren't having real verbal problems 🙂

 

[deleted357625]

don't retake

 

[captaincbr]

I got 14ps, 13bs, 8 verbal.
8 verbal worries me, and if I am aiming to top schools,
is it necessary to get at least 9 or 10 on verbal?
do you think 8 on verbal would hold me back?

Which score would be better?

12/12/10 or 14/13/8? because I don't think I can get the same science scores if I retake. I feel like anything above 12 is volatile and out of luck.

Any opinions??

Why are you aiming for top schools? (This is a rhetorical question)

Are you even considering some other schools? If so, don't retake. It's not worth the risk. Your score is too high for you to gain anything. If you can comfortably score a 10 on verbal, it won't add to much to your 35 composite score. If you can comfortably score 12 or 13 on verbal, then your composite (39 and 40, respectively) would greatly make a difference. Chances are, you can't score above 11 anyways, so be happy about your total score, shine in other areas, and get accepted. 😀

 

[ICD 3]

I got 14ps, 13bs, 8 verbal.
8 verbal worries me, and if I am aiming to top schools,
is it necessary to get at least 9 or 10 on verbal?
do you think 8 on verbal would hold me back?

Which score would be better?

12/12/10 or 14/13/8? because I don't think I can get the same science scores if I retake. I feel like anything above 12 is volatile and out of luck.

Any opinions??

I received the exact same scores, as well as a K in the writing section (no I don't know what happened and yes I am able to actually type coherent sentences, for the most part). I was accepted to a top 20 school as well as a few others so I don't think it really hurt my chances too much.

 

[raltima07]

I would not retake

 

[drizzt3117]

I'm not on an adcom anymore but I certainly would have seen retaking a 35 as a lack of judgment.

is there a huge difference between 9 and 8 on verbal?
Based on the MSAR info, the accepted bottom 10th verbal for the top 20 schools are at least 9. almost most of them

It seems like 8 on verbal would significantly decrease my chances at top 20 schools. Is my assumption true??

 

[naijapikin]

Nope, don't retake

 

[KING3]

I would not retake if I were you. From what I have heard from admissions deans is that state schools all have an unofficial single section cut-off of a 6 in any section. If your verbal is low but above a 6 they look at your writing score more closely.
You got a good score, keep it.👍

 

[whoknows2012]

echoing other posters, retaking a 35 is a huge risk. You could easily do worse on any section including verbal. You could also do about the same and maybe only improve a point on verbal which in the end wouldn't be worth it (IMO). 35 is really solid and even with an 8 you will get interviews at some good schools, assuming the rest of your app is solid. I would just be happy with your great score and work to make sure the rest of your app is as good as it can be. Good luck

 

[johnwalldance]

This one guy I knew retook a 35 and got a 39, he got into med schools like WashU, Cornell, and Yale...but yeah 35 is a really good score, I suppose its really up to you (sorry for the lack of advice)

 

[fizzgig]

i asked a similar question after my scores came back and got the same general advice. i ended up not choosing to retake because the huge amount of time i'd have to put in could be spent elsewhere and because if i didn't bump my score by at least 2 points or so i figured it wouldn't be worth anything to me. plus i might get the same score (huge time waster) or get a lower one (then i'd have real mcat rage). seems like there's a feeling of diminishing returns at around a 34-36ish for the work you'd be putting in for round 2?

 

[skyhyp2009]

I got 14ps, 13bs, 8 verbal.
8 verbal worries me, and if I am aiming to top schools,
is it necessary to get at least 9 or 10 on verbal?
do you think 8 on verbal would hold me back?

Which score would be better?

12/12/10 or 14/13/8? because I don't think I can get the same science scores if I retake. I feel like anything above 12 is volatile and out of luck.

Any opinions??

I wouldn't retake......especially for the reasons you cited. Anything above a 12 is volatile. Also, even if you could guarantee the same or better scores on the science sections, there is no guarantee that you'll do better on the verbal.

12/12/10 is probably better than a 14/13/8 IMO, but the difference is marginal at best. Keep your score.

 

[DumbMD]

I got 14ps, 13bs, 8 verbal.
8 verbal worries me, and if I am aiming to top schools,
is it necessary to get at least 9 or 10 on verbal?
do you think 8 on verbal would hold me back?

Which score would be better?

12/12/10 or 14/13/8? because I don't think I can get the same science scores if I retake. I feel like anything above 12 is volatile and out of luck.

Any opinions??

What I would do is this:

Figure out how long it would take me to retake it, all told. Study time, time reading NY times, Smithsonian, New Yorker, Scientific American, etc., AND time brushing up on Science Sections.

Come up with a good total.

Then I would spend that amount of time doing something AMAZING, something no one else has on their application. Like what? I don't know. Has to come from you. Write a book, start an organization, pursue an idea you've had.

That will go a lot farther on your app.

DumbMD

Edit: and in the world, coincidentally...

 

[untouchable]

you only got a 35 hahahah

thats so sad

 

[hiyaman]

lol I wouldn't retake any score that places you above the 90th percentile...

 

[hiyaman]

I would.

y u no A+?

cos an A and an A+ are the same in terms of gradepts earned. In my eyes a 35 is an A on your mcat lol!

 

[sylvanthus]

I would absolutely not retake. Verbal has got to be the hardest thing to raise. You can study more and improve your BS and PS, but verbal is not something that can easily be increased.

 

[Kgizzle]

why retake seems like the risk outweigh the benefits btw congrats on the score

 

[daeojkim]

Don't retake it. 35 is a solid score and verbal 8 is not terrible. Hope you did well in writing. With you your score, as long as you have good GPA, good EC, and of course do well in interview, you will get into good schools. Just be confident during your interviews.

If you retake it and unless you improve significantly overall, it will more likely to hurt you. God forbid you score 7 or less in verbal. Plus it will be a fluke if you score higher in science sections. When you go over 13, we are talking 1 or 2 questions. There is a higher chance that you will score lower in science and less likely that you score above 10 in VR.

Anyways, concentrate on preparing your application thoroughly, get great LOR. Once you are in med school, you are all equal. No one will care what you got in MCAT or your UG GPA never ever again.

From personal experience, I did poorly in VR (My third language). But got into a decent med school, did well and now going into ophtho. Just concentrate on trying to stand out on other aspects of your application.

Don't let that one number distract you. There is nothing worse than an applicant with good numbers without personality. Med schools are not looking for robots.

Good luck!