MCAT Cancellations and Applications

[beachbum75]

I was lucky enough to take the very last MCAT offered before they were canceled. I know AMCAS is allowing submissions without scores and is trying to keep the cancellations from impacting admissions decisions but I was wondering if it is likely to be an advantage that I already have a score back? If I were on an admissions committee it would be less of a risk to invite someone for an interview that you already know has met your score requirements than someone without results.

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[JimKimSlim]

No one knows what exactly is going to happen, as each school sets their own procedure for medical admissions process. I think the right thing for AMCAS to do is delaying the July 10th date to a later time so that more applicants will have their scores ready. However, if they don’t, it would certainly be helpful that you already have your score because the admissions committee will likely look at your application sooner than those without their MCAT score only because your application is more complete. Regardless, what I do know for a fact is that this application cycle will be messy.

 

[KnightDoc]

I was lucky enough to take the very last MCAT offered before they were canceled. I know AMCAS is allowing submissions without scores and is trying to keep the cancellations from impacting admissions decisions but I was wondering if it is likely to be an advantage that I already have a score back? If I were on an admissions committee it would be less of a risk to invite someone for an interview that you already know has met your score requirements than someone without results.

Yup, but don't get too excited. Do you realize testing is starting up again beginning tomorrow? You're going to be competing with everyone who took the test in a prior year, everyone like you who took it this year before the shutdown, and everyone who takes it between this Friday and 6/20, all of whom will have scores before the first application transmission date of 7/10. Then everyone who takes the test by 8/1 will have scores back before Labor Day.

It won't be nearly as big an advantage as you might have imagined. When you back out all the people taking the test from 8/7 forward who aren't applying this cycle, relatively speaking there won't be so many people applying who won't have scores available by Labor Day. Those are the people you might have some advantage over, depending on when your application actually gets reviewed, and on how strong your application is with a score as compared to theirs without one.