It looks like people who receive accommodations on the MCAT will no longer have their score flagged:
AAMC website announcement
I make no value judgment about whether score flagging is good or bad (not at present). However, I invite other people to post their opinions.
Interestingly, I don't see any news stories about this. Prior to this policy change, which takes effect in "late March of 2015", people who received MCAT accommodations for a disability got an asterisk or something similar stating that the test was "administered under non-standard conditions". Although this asterisk sometimes meant the student got extended time, it could also appear if the proctor fell asleep during the test (true story) or if there was a power outage during the test (also a true story). Same asterisk in all cases.
Of note, the MCAT is the last major exam in the US to abandon the policy of flagging scores. The LSAT (law school admission test) had to stop flagging scores in 2014 because they lost a lawsuit, it was a somewhat major news item. The LSAT was also fined several million dollars. News stories at that time pointed out that the MCAT was the only holdout, and their policy probably would not withstand a lawsuit.
The SAT had to stop flagging scores in 2002, also because they lost a lawsuit.
The GRE (for grad school) is not flagged. The TOEFL (test of English as a foreign language) is not flagged. The GMAT (for business school) is not flagged. I have grown bored of looking up standardized tests, it is apparent that none of them are flagged anymore.
Receiving accommodations on the MCAT is still extremely difficult. The MCAT has a reputation for setting the bar extremely high, relative to other standardized tests. According to the latest data I can find, less than 1% of MCAT examinees are approved for extended time, stop-the-clock breaks, extended breaks, or other accommodations that change the timing. Accommodations for personal medical items (such as food, water, or medication) are more common and apparently easier to get. Other accommodations include increased font size for poor vision. All these accommodations used to get an asterisk (a flag), now none will.
Whether it is fair to grant extended time is a difficult question, but it is possible to address this question with science. Unfortunately, this research has not been done in the case of the MCAT. Research does exist for the SAT, and it seems that extended time on the SAT is indeed fair. The disabled students who receive extended time go on to do well in college, their SAT scores remain a valid predictor of college grades.
From a legal standpoint, it seems rather clear that score flagging was a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Every time this question was tested by a court, the court ruled that score flagging is illegal (see the LSAT decision in 2014 and the SAT decision in 2002). The ADA makes it very clear that employers and schools cannot ask applicants if they are disabled (with limited exceptions). If you cannot ask, then why should you be notified?
The ADA is actually an interesting law. A man applying for a job was asked if he was disabled, and he lied and said no. Upon learning of his disability, the employer fired him for lying in his interview. This went to court, and the court ruled that the man had been wrongfully terminated. The man had a right to lie, because the question itself was illegal. The opposing lawyers argued that the man should have told his interviewer, "that question is illegal, I will not answer it," but the court found that answering in that manner would potentially bias the interviewer. Lying was legally permissible under those circumstances.
As I mentioned in another post, the ADA does not protect people with temporary disabilities such as broken bones. The MCAT doesn't allow you to have a cast on, and they are not obligated to bend this policy, even with advance notice and a doctor's note. This seems rather silly to me, but in theory you could hide a cheat sheet inside your cast. Also in theory, you can wait until your bone heals and then take the MCAT.
Laws are weird.
AAMC website announcement
I make no value judgment about whether score flagging is good or bad (not at present). However, I invite other people to post their opinions.
Interestingly, I don't see any news stories about this. Prior to this policy change, which takes effect in "late March of 2015", people who received MCAT accommodations for a disability got an asterisk or something similar stating that the test was "administered under non-standard conditions". Although this asterisk sometimes meant the student got extended time, it could also appear if the proctor fell asleep during the test (true story) or if there was a power outage during the test (also a true story). Same asterisk in all cases.
Of note, the MCAT is the last major exam in the US to abandon the policy of flagging scores. The LSAT (law school admission test) had to stop flagging scores in 2014 because they lost a lawsuit, it was a somewhat major news item. The LSAT was also fined several million dollars. News stories at that time pointed out that the MCAT was the only holdout, and their policy probably would not withstand a lawsuit.
The SAT had to stop flagging scores in 2002, also because they lost a lawsuit.
The GRE (for grad school) is not flagged. The TOEFL (test of English as a foreign language) is not flagged. The GMAT (for business school) is not flagged. I have grown bored of looking up standardized tests, it is apparent that none of them are flagged anymore.
Receiving accommodations on the MCAT is still extremely difficult. The MCAT has a reputation for setting the bar extremely high, relative to other standardized tests. According to the latest data I can find, less than 1% of MCAT examinees are approved for extended time, stop-the-clock breaks, extended breaks, or other accommodations that change the timing. Accommodations for personal medical items (such as food, water, or medication) are more common and apparently easier to get. Other accommodations include increased font size for poor vision. All these accommodations used to get an asterisk (a flag), now none will.
Whether it is fair to grant extended time is a difficult question, but it is possible to address this question with science. Unfortunately, this research has not been done in the case of the MCAT. Research does exist for the SAT, and it seems that extended time on the SAT is indeed fair. The disabled students who receive extended time go on to do well in college, their SAT scores remain a valid predictor of college grades.
From a legal standpoint, it seems rather clear that score flagging was a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Every time this question was tested by a court, the court ruled that score flagging is illegal (see the LSAT decision in 2014 and the SAT decision in 2002). The ADA makes it very clear that employers and schools cannot ask applicants if they are disabled (with limited exceptions). If you cannot ask, then why should you be notified?
The ADA is actually an interesting law. A man applying for a job was asked if he was disabled, and he lied and said no. Upon learning of his disability, the employer fired him for lying in his interview. This went to court, and the court ruled that the man had been wrongfully terminated. The man had a right to lie, because the question itself was illegal. The opposing lawyers argued that the man should have told his interviewer, "that question is illegal, I will not answer it," but the court found that answering in that manner would potentially bias the interviewer. Lying was legally permissible under those circumstances.
As I mentioned in another post, the ADA does not protect people with temporary disabilities such as broken bones. The MCAT doesn't allow you to have a cast on, and they are not obligated to bend this policy, even with advance notice and a doctor's note. This seems rather silly to me, but in theory you could hide a cheat sheet inside your cast. Also in theory, you can wait until your bone heals and then take the MCAT.
Laws are weird.
Yeah, agreed, a 4.0/40+ doesn't mean you'll be a good doctor, but that's a red herring. At the moment med schools seek people who read and process accurately and quickly - whether that's a legitimate way to select physicians is a different discussion entirely.
