mcat and boards

[jasveen]

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hey guys,

i was just wondering if you do poorly on the mcat (like 25) and have an average gpa , but you still get accepted into med school, will you do poorly on the boards? in med school? why are the boards so tough?

thanks a lot,
jasveen

 

[DrBuzzLightYear]

i was just wondering if you do poorly on the mcat (like 25) and have an average gpa , but you still get accepted into med school, will you do poorly on the boards? in med school? why are the boards so tough?

if you really tried and did your best, then the best indicator for performance on the boards is your MCAT score. if you sucked on the MCATs, then you'll continue to fellate on the boards. you'll probably do fine getting through med school, once you're accepted most schools would rather graduate an idiot that have to fail someone.

 

[tupac_don]

hey guys,

i was just wondering if you do poorly on the mcat (like 25) and have an average gpa , but you still get accepted into med school, will you do poorly on the boards? in med school? why are the boards so tough?

thanks a lot,
jasveen

Not neccessarily. You jsut gotta understand that although in first two years you are essentially taking basic sciences, on the boards the q will be more geared clinically than basic science like. So if you never really had clinical experience you will find the board pretty tough. Since some stuff you really learn on the job and if you never relaly worked in a hospital in capacity of a doctor, you won't have that expereince. That is what makes boards tough, but not impossible. I think if you want to do well on the boards, you should really make it a goal to prepare since first year and just study for regualr subjects and then check the board books to gauge your progress and see how much you learned. Trust me once the boards come and you have to learn the stuff from past two years in 6 weeks, you will be glad you started early. But I wouldn't say u will do badly on boards b/c you got 25 on MCAT. I mean just study and u will be A ok. GOod luck champ.

 

[morganlefay]

I would have to agree...even though I'm not in med school, my mother is a doc and has told me that there is a pretty significant difference between the tests, so I'm not too worried about boards given that I plan to study from year one instead of semi-slacking like I did for the MCAT. Now the question is, can one get in with a 26? Hrmmmm.....🙁

 

[phillyfornia]

i'd say no b/c the mcats test you on reading skills as well as physics and other conceptual stuff. step I (as well as the rest of med school), IMO, tests your ability to memorize craploads of stuff.

 

[Siggy]

Well, I'm not going to argure the merits of the MCAT and the boards since the tests test different subjects at different times in your life. I do have one question, though, are they compatible to say, a 5th grade math test vs a high school pre-calc math test. Sure, the 5th grade test is easier, but when you take into account the grade level, the tests are really equal. Just testing different information at a different time in a persons education.

 

[hotlikebutter]

if you look on the aamc web page, they have posted research on this very topic. basically they found that mcat score was a better predictor of how well you do on the USMLE 1 than GPA alone. However, MCAT with GPA was the best indicator taken together.

 

[realruby2000]

if you look on the aamc web page, they have posted research on this very topic. basically they found that mcat score was a better predictor of how well you do on the USMLE 1 than GPA alone. However, MCAT with GPA was the best indicator taken together.

i dont care what the research says...there's no absolute correlation. I know a student with mcat scores worse than yours but board score was the exact opposite.

 

[hotlikebutter]

i dont care what the research says...there's no absolute correlation. I know a student with mcat scores worse than yours but board score was the exact opposite.

this is statistics, this cannot describe every outcome out there.their research just uses averages to suggest things. of course there are situations you describe and I am personally banking on it not describing my performance on my boards in 2 years. just like SAT scores. i had an non 1000 SAT score which at UCLA meant that I would not be doing well, but I graduated top 15% by the way, there is no such thing as an absolute correlation with a real population, sorry im a stats dork.

 

[Dukes]

MCAT vs. boards was a big concern for me when I enrolled in med school. I've always pretty much stunk it up on standardized tests. My mcat score lead me down to the islands for med school (SGU). I know there are people out there who are worried about poor mcats and how it will correlate to Step I. Regardless of what the statistics say it is quite possible to do very well on step I after not doing well on the MCATS. Here's a few examples of myself and some of my close friends that I happen to know how they did on MCAT and Step I. Just wanted to show that it can be done. I know when I was an MS I or II I felt very encouraged to hear a few specific examples of people who did well on step I after bad mcats. Best of luck.

MCAT I MCAT 2 Step I
20 24 246
19 26 240
27 242
28 232
25 25 235

 

[phoenixsupra]

It's all about the study. No mystery. 😉

 

[Kevbot]

hey guys,

i was just wondering if you do poorly on the mcat (like 25) and have an average gpa , but you still get accepted into med school, will you do poorly on the boards? in med school? why are the boards so tough?

Maybe I'm wrong, but the boards have nothing that comes close to verbal reasoning right? So maybe it depends which sections you had trouble with. I'm still in undergrad, but from what I've seen, the boards look like they are closer to the biological science section than anything. So if PS and VR were your weak points then I wouldn't worry 😎

 

[jasveen]

thanks for all the replies guys 🙂

 

[Stinger86]

thanks for all the replies guys 🙂

There is absolutely no correlation between the MCAT and the Step board exams. They're two completely, COMPLETELY different types of exam and doing poorly or well on one does not mean you'll fare the same on the other.

The boards aren't inherently tough. Underneath it all, they're just exams, like every other one you've taken in your education. Like another poster commented, it's all about the studying and preparation. If you prepare correctly, you'll probably do very well on the boards and find them to be easy. If you slack off, or spend most of your study time using resources that are of no benefit to you, you're probably going to have a difficult time. There's nothing magic about it.

 

[Kevbot]

Underneath it all, they're just exams, like every other one you've taken in your education.

If you considered the MCATs to be "just another exam" you're either a genious, or just chose to forget that part of your life. Having taken the MCATs twice, I don't blame you if you did. 😀

 

[jvarga]

Remember that although the MCAT has been shown to be an "OK" predictor (subject to debate) for future performance on the USMLE, it does not have a direct relationship with the boards (ex. getting a 30 MCAT does not mean you will get a 250 Step I). Despite the study that claims the MCAT to be a predictor, my anecdotal experience is quite the contrary. Many people with good MCATs receive average to below average Step Is. Many people with average to below average MCATs ace the Step I. As far as I'm concerned, all standardized tests are essentially worthless. There are far better methods to truly "standardize" the applicant pools, but, of course, none are as "cost efficient" as the good-ole tests. Isn't it comforting to realize your future is dictated in part by the "lowest bidder"?

 

[Wrigleyville]

Can we please dispense with using anecdotal evidence in attempts to discredit studies backed up with actual data and valid statistical analyses? You're supposed to be scientists for God's sake.

 

[Frijolero]

Can we please dispense with using anecdotal evidence in attempts to discredit studies backed up with actual data and valid statistical analyses? You're supposed to be scientists for God's sake.

Amen to that. I think the posters trying to brush away the stats are the ones that did poorly on the MCAT. Go Irish, by the way, and the game yesterday sucked. Damn refs had it out for us I guess.

-Frijolero

 

[wonderkid]

Can we please dispense with using anecdotal evidence in attempts to discredit studies backed up with actual data and valid statistical analyses? You're supposed to be scientists for God's sake.

the point is that it can be done.
personallly, i think mcat biological sciences is the best indicator.

 

[Entol]

could someone put up a link to the aamc study where it correlates gpa/mcat and mcat to usmle? Thanks! 🙂

 

[thackl]

the point is that it can be done.
personallly, i think mcat biological sciences is the best indicator.

According to AAMC the highest correlation to USMLE1 is the verbal reasoning, which is why most med schools place the highest wieght on this part. In your defense, I've always felt the BS section was simply VR#2. You you could read, then the questions were very answerable despite your level of bio knowlege.

 

[hotlikebutter]

ok here it is for you all to read. it took me a while, but i found the link to the study that compared gpa and MCAT scores to board scores.

http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/research/bibliography/blueg001.htm