mcat AFTER getting interviews??

[bel]

Hi ya'll, I've already taken the MCAT once and got myself a 31. I'd like to pose the [rash?] hypothetical that this score is the weakest part of my application. I'm looking at some top schools (talkin' Mount Sinai, Emory, and the like), but I'm thinking this 31 could be what holds me back. I don't know what happened on my test date, but I was scoring consistently 3-5 higher on my practice tests, so I don't think this score is the reflection upon my abilities that I was hoping for.. One section, for instance, was the same exact score that I got on my very first diagnostic test 6 months prior to the exam.

So my question is this: has anyone ever heard of cases in which someone gets an interview, somehow works into the conversation the less-than-ideal MCAT by school's standards, and is offered a chance to re-take it as late as say, January in the middle of the application cycle, to demonstrate that the score is truly not an accurate reflection? Or maybe after being placed on a waitlist, take it again, and show 'em then?

I'm planning to submit next week, though the possibility of re-taking in July still sits at the back of my mind. I haven't begun studying yet and would honestly rather not go through that again this soon and have my application "late" as people-who-have-been-giving-me-advice say it will be. If I can take it in January though, I'd be totally up for it. Lol, this might be a completely ABSURD proposition, but I'd like some thoughts! Thanks!

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[scarletgirl777]

It is absurd. If you're not going to take it in July, it's not worth taking, and since you haven't started studying yet, it doesn't seem worth it.

 

[Myuu]

Some schools explicitly say that they will not consider MCAT scores from X date. Last cycle, these were January scores. If you feel that badly about it, you have to be a lot more proactive about raising that score and soon. It's not going to fall out of the sky in the middle of interview season!

 

[DrBowtie]

Retake in January, scores back February. Unlikely you'll have many interviews after that date so really it would only be useful for update letters.

Realistically, taking it again in January will have close to zero effect in boosting your chances.

 

[bel]

Retake in January, scores back February. Unlikely you'll have many interviews after that date so really it would only be useful for update letters.

Realistically, taking it again in January will have close to zero effect in boosting your chances.

Hmm, yea, I was going more for that update letters point - if I show good improvement whether or not it could be something of a decision breaker. Or, if in fact a January test wouldn't even factor into statistics, I suppose more numbers-concerned places won't even bother. I've heard one story of someone doing this, but can't recall exactly where the story went...

 

[mrbeantown]

Could help you if you managed to get yourself on a waitlist but I agree with everyone else that you should aim for a sooner date.
As an aside, I would take into consideration that although you can definitely get in this year with a 31, the top schools may wait on considering your application till they receive your second set of mcat scores. This means your application wouldn't get consideration for awhile.
Best advice- put everything into your 31 and this application cycle if you intend to start Fall 09 and retake your mcat when you are bexst prepared and use that score for next year. I am sorry if this is bad news but the "game" of getting into medical school is a tricky one.

 

[BluePhoenix]

I was under the impression that if you got an interview, you were for the most part, all considered equal...at least in terms of grades or test scores. Sure, update letters help if you're trying to show an improving trend or you published a paper or presented or won a major award. But somehow...I really doubt that you'd move from a rejection or waitlist to an acceptance simply by raising your MCAT score from a 31 to a 36 or higher AFTER receiving an interview. Seems like a fairly pointless waste of time and money. You'd be better off spending all that time working on research or doing some sort of meaningful volunteering or other activity than retaking the MCAT.

 

[Frank Hardy]

I was under the impression that if you got an interview, you were for the most part, all considered equal...at least in terms of grades or test scores. Sure, update letters help if you're trying to show an improving trend or you published a paper or presented or won a major award. But somehow...I really doubt that you'd move from a rejection or waitlist to an acceptance simply by raising your MCAT score from a 31 to a 36 or higher AFTER receiving an interview. Seems like a fairly pointless waste of time and money. You'd be better off spending all that time working on research or doing some sort of meaningful volunteering or other activity than retaking the MCAT.

You would think so but remember schools review your application again a second time after the interview. Someone with a higher MCAT and sub par interview may get the seat over someone with a good interview and below school average MCAT.

 

[Ginzo]

I don't think you should retake. You probably won't be getting any interviews from Emory or Hopkins with that 31, but it is good enough to get you into a nice school that you will like. There's no guarantee that your MCAT will be any higher next time around. It could be *lower*. Why risk damage to your application?

 

[armybound]

I did this -- applied with a 31, interviewed, retook in January, and updated the schools with my new score (33).

It appears to have been WAY too late to matter at all.

 

[BluePhoenix]

You would think so but remember schools review your application again a second time after the interview. Someone with a higher MCAT and sub par interview may get the seat over someone with a good interview and below school average MCAT.

Maybe but I would imagine that the interview is probably going to weigh more on their decision than test scores and GPA. Why? Because they obviously though you did well enough that you could successfully complete their school when they asked you to interview. As an adcom, I would wonder why you decided to spend 6 months studying to take the MCAT halfway through the admissions cycle, AFTER already having an interview...rather than something more productive with your time. I believe that if you've made it to the interview than they're willing to take a chance on you unless you screw up the interview. Schools don't necessarily pick the guy with the highest MCAT, there's plenty of people that get into good schools with MCAT scores below the average (hence the term average) and there's a good number of people with excellent MCAT scores and high GPAs that get rejected. Think of them more as an initial screening tool...they'll help you get an interview but they probably won't admit you just because you have high scores. You'd be better off spending the time doing something great to update them on at your interview rather than dwelling on one test score.

 

[nontrdgsbuiucmd]

I was under the impression that if you got an interview, you were for the most part, all considered equal...at least in terms of grades or test scores. Sure, update letters help if you're trying to show an improving trend or you published a paper or presented or won a major award. But somehow...I really doubt that you'd move from a rejection or waitlist to an acceptance simply by raising your MCAT score from a 31 to a 36 or higher AFTER receiving an interview. Seems like a fairly pointless waste of time and money. You'd be better off spending all that time working on research or doing some sort of meaningful volunteering or other activity than retaking the MCAT.

I've heard this same thing from several schools and an admissions advisor at my school -- if you are offered an interview, it means on paper that you are qualified to attend the school, now (in the interview) the school is looking at you as an person to check your "fit" with the school. The two schools I can think of said that they do an initial screen based on mcat/grads, after you pass that "screen", they do not consider those areas again.

I can't imagine that a 31 would be a major negative factor in an application if it is evenly weighted, any scores below 9 may warrant a retake however.