MCAT Advice Needed: URGENT

[doctorj4lyfe]

Hello!

I need some urgent advice on the BEST (summer) intensive MCAT prep program money can buy. I want to take the exam again in September 2013. Preferably in CA but any other state in the in the USA is acceptable. I am from the Bay Area (Northern California/Santa Clara County). My plan was obviously to take a gap year and enter med school in Fall 2014. I just graduated from college.

I just took the MCAT on 4/26 and didn't like my score. I'm looking to score a 27+. I used Kaplan and studied on my own. I pretty much finished my AMCAS application and was planning to submit on June 4th when submissions open next week (going along with that submitting earlier, better chance of submission stat). My LOEs are being written and whatnot. The intention is to put the best foot forward and submit as early as possible when we are ready (as it is for all of us).

Other questions:

- I know I can submit my AMCAS app and tell the medical schools I am applying to that I am taking another MCAT, but should I not submit at all if my current MCAT score is below a certain point? And what score would be the absolute cutoff?

- If I submitted, will medical schools wait for those scores from the September exam date to be released? I imagine I will still receive secondaries from some of them that do send them to all of their AMCAS applicants.

- Is it a good idea for me to still submit on June 4 (or close to that date)? I don't want to wait too long. I'm looking for my MCAT score to overshadow my GPA. My grades in college were on an upward swing, I scored a B average. (I am a recent graduate.)

Please advise, any and all helpful advice is welcome!

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[Benedictus123]

The Berkeley Review is great in combination with Examkrackers 1001 series (except for the 1001 bio). Go buy that. What was the weakest component of your last test?

 

[doctorj4lyfe]

I'm not too familiar with Examkrackers, why would 1001 bio not be favorable? And how would one devise and solid study plan with study materials from two different companies?

The weakest component of my last test was a tie between VR and PS.

 

[PanRoasted]

You haven't given us your current MCAT, so it's hard to say. I know some schools will immediately reject you after you post your secondary if your MCAT is below, say, a 25. Therefore, it is sometimes not a good idea to post your primary until you've gotten a better score on your application. A lot of schools also heavily weigh the VR score, so it's even worse if your VR is below an 8 or 7. This, combined with a B average (which I am equating to a 3.0), means you'll be in very hot water with any first-look application reviewer. I'm not sure of the numbers if you're applying primarily to DO schools.

Also, given that you won't get your scores back until October, it will make you very uncompetitive for schools that might even fall within your stat range (there are very few, if any), given rolling admission.

If you want answers about which MCAT prep material is best, I would head over to the MCAT discussion forum. This thread would also be much more appropriate there.

 

[BABSstudent]

- I know I can submit my AMCAS app and tell the medical schools I am applying to that I am taking another MCAT, but should I not submit at all if my current MCAT score is below a certain point? And what score would be the absolute cutoff?

Schools won't review your application until they get all the required information. That means, if you tell them on the AMCAS you will be taking the MCAT again, they won't review until they get that score.

- If I submitted, will medical schools wait for those scores from the September exam date to be released? I imagine I will still receive secondaries from some of them that do send them to all of their AMCAS applicants.

Some schools will send secondaries without receiving your MCAT score, some will wait. Generally, the schools that send secondaries to everyone are ones that don't review your application before.

- Is it a good idea for me to still submit on June 4 (or close to that date)? I don't want to wait too long. I'm looking for my MCAT score to overshadow my GPA. My grades in college were on an upward swing, I scored a B average. (I am a recent graduate.)

Please advise, any and all helpful advice is welcome!

September is a super late MCAT. If you studied before, why push back the test so far? Maybe take the mid-late July test?

Most people are probably going to tell you to wait a year and apply next cycle. September MCAT means you won't get your score back until October which is super late. It pretty much means you will be reapplying next year unless you get a ridiculously high MCAT score.