Latest MCAT retest date?

[DontSugarCoatIt]

I am in somewhat of an unique situation. My previous MCAT is enough to get me to all my secondaries. However, it is not enough to get me into all my interviews.

I guess you could call me a "near miss" this year. With a 510 MCAT and 3.87 cGPA, I received two interviews last cycle. Alas, I fell short of an admission to an allopathic school. I believe it was because of two main reasons: no research and disproportionately low CARS score. So the only logical reaction is to retake my MCAT and do some meaningful research during my gap year.

MCAT 510 (129/123/129/129) ... I know, CARS is my arch nemesis
cGPA 3.87
Strengths D1 student-athlete for a year and GPA (my undergrad school rewards A+'s with a 4.33 weighting so my GPA was actually higher than the cGPA posted above at 3.98)
Weaknesses disproportionately low CARS score and lack of research

I passed all automatic filters last cycle to receive secondaries from each of the 15 allopathic schools I applied to, even my reaches. However, after a closer look at my application, the schools must've seen some imbalances; I only got 2 interview invites. With this in mind, I want to retake my MCAT with an insane amount of study time and knock it out of the park. All I have to do is level out my CARS with the rest of my previous MCAT sections and a 516 should help me immensely in getting considered for admissions at even my top schools.

Important dates to remember:
May 31st AMCAS Primary Application open for submission
(2 week verification process by AMCAS)
June 29th AMCAS Primary Application is sent to medical schools
(3-4 weeks to get secondary invites on average)

The main point of confusion for me:
When is the latest my application can update with the new MCAT to be seen by medical schools prior to interview invite review process?

TL;DR My first MCAT is just barely high enough to pass through the secondary invite filters and is still in date to be used next cycle. I want to retake my MCAT to increase my CARS score. However, I want as much MCAT study time as possible without sacrificing being first in the cycle. When is the latest I can take my MCAT before schools consider me for an interview invitation?

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[carebear204]

If you don't mind applying a little later (not late, just a little later), you can take it in May or June. I took mine June 1, 2017 and knew the results by early-mid July. I applied right away to only 1 school so that my application would verify right away, and then added all of my other schools once I knew my MCAT score (mid July). I started receiving secondaries late July-early August, and my first interview was right before Thanksgiving. Hope this helps!

 

[Xanias]

A 510 with a 3.87 should be good enough to get you into med school, so I am actually kind of baffled by the fact that you couldn't get in. I understand that your CARS score is a 123, but unless you're applying to schools that have a minimum cutoff per section, the 123 shouldn't be a death sentence. There are also plenty of students who get into med school without research experience, if you have enough clinical experience or exposure to make up for it. Also, do you think the problem was your interview performance with the schools that invited you to one ? How's your science GPA and do you have any clinical experience that you pursued before applying ?

To answer your actual question; if you indicate on your application that you are scheduled to take another MCAT, most schools will put you on hold until they receive that score before inviting you to interviews. You will probably still receive secondaries to work on since your first MCAT score is good enough. That being said; I would aim to take the MCAT in the summer (June or July) and update your score then. You can technically update the scores up until the end of the cycle but the quicker you complete your application the better.

 

[DontSugarCoatIt]

A 510 with a 3.87 should be good enough to get you into med school, so I am actually kind of baffled by the fact that you couldn't get in. I understand that your CARS score is a 123, but unless you're applying to schools that have a minimum cutoff per section, the 123 shouldn't be a death sentence. There are also plenty of students who get into med school without research experience, if you have enough clinical experience or exposure to make up for it. Also, do you think the problem was your interview performance with the schools that invited you to one ? How's your science GPA and do you have any clinical experience that you pursued before applying ?

To answer your actual question; if you indicate on your application that you are scheduled to take another MCAT, most schools will put you on hold until they receive that score before inviting you to interviews. You will probably still receive secondaries to work on since your first MCAT score is good enough. That being said; I would aim to take the MCAT in the summer (June or July) and update your score then. You can technically update the scores up until the end of the cycle but the quicker you complete your application the better.

Your suspicions are right about my interview performance! It was particularly poor at my first interview. I was working through an extremely rare case of Bell's palsy (the plot thickens) coupled with the fact that it was my first medical school interview experience ever. But the interview performance cannot be the only reason since I did not receive interview invite from more schools. Perhaps it was my ECs and how I presented them as you suspect.

To answer your questions, my sGPA is 3.85. I do not believe this would be an issue. I had around 500 clinical hours and will have around 1500+ hours this upcoming cycle. I am also applying to some research lab positions currently.

Regardless, you response helps tremendously! I appreciate it!

 

[Xanias]

Your suspicions are right about my interview performance! It was particularly poor at my first interview. I was working through an extremely rare case of Bell's palsy (the plot thickens) coupled with the fact that it was my first medical school interview experience ever. But the interview performance cannot be the only reason since I did not receive interview invite from more schools. Perhaps it was my ECs and how I presented them as you suspect.

To answer your questions, my sGPA is 3.85. I do not believe this would be an issue. I had around 500 clinical hours and will have around 1500+ hours this upcoming cycle. I am also applying to some research lab positions currently.

Regardless, you response helps tremendously! I appreciate it!

No problem; another thing I would advice is getting a subscription to MSAR (Medical School Admission Requirements) from AAMC and looking into school's stats. It will give you a break down of each MCAT scores and GPA per school, and you will know whether a 123 in CARS is considered particularly low. You will also get to see the percentage of students they accept with research experience and you will have a better idea of what the population of matriculants is like. Don't limit yourself to only competitive schools and if I were you I would probably throw in an AACOMAS application for a couple DO schools just in case.

 

[carebear204]

No problem; another thing I would advice is getting a subscription to MSAR (Medical School Admission Requirements) from AAMC and looking into school's stats. It will give you a break down of each MCAT scores and GPA per school, and you will know whether a 123 in CARS is considered particularly low. You will also get to see the percentage of students they accept with research experience and you will have a better idea of what the population of matriculants is like. Don't limit yourself to only competitive schools and if I were you I would probably throw in an AACOMAS application for a couple DO schools just in case.

I agree with all of this 100%