MCAT Point of Diminishing Returns

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

fizzgig

LudicrousSpeed!
10+ Year Member
Joined
Dec 10, 2009
Messages
915
Reaction score
4
If you are shooting for being a reasonable candidate for well ranked research schools, is there a point where the two months of ramping it all back up for a better MCAT becomes less of a good use of time if you're expecting a couple of points improvement?

For example, a couple of schools list averages of 11.x and another gives the full score average of 36.

Does anyone have an idea of whether a 35 vs a 37 makes a huge difference here, versus strengthening other areas of the application? At some point do they say ok your MCAT is fine, let's look further? Maybe it depends on where you are vs their average? Like X points below or X points above means they are going to investigate, but 2 fewer is a red flag and 2 more would make you really stand out to them?

I'm a non trad, PhD student, white, female, long walks on the beach, dunno what all's relevant.

If the change got big enough, I could see how it might make a difference, but I found myself wondering today after the score release how much I would reaaaaally be increasing my chances if I threw myself back down the rabbit hole. That's of course assuming I improved - my AAMC scores were several points higher and consistent at the end, so the possibility is there. That said, the point of this deal is not so I sleep happy, hugging my MCAT score, but so that I can maybe get into some schools, and hopefully one or two of those will be happyfun research schools too.

Any ideas or additions welcome. I don't want to be a lazy pile of mush if it's a huge difference and will tractorbeam me into interviews to potentially have a couple more points, but I don't want to do it because my pride is wounded or something stupid either. The percentage likelihood of getting admitted at all somewhere doesn't appear to change a great deal with a couple of points, but that's a very general statistic of course, so I thought I'd look for other people's impressions. I looked on MDapps to see if there were people with my stats getting into this or that school, but you can't see all of others' info, so for all I know they invented a vaccine too and that's why they got in with a lower stat. I know it's a nebulous kind of question but that's why I'm asking here. Sorry for the premeddy obsessions, just trying to gather all the info I can. Thanks all.

Members don't see this ad.
 
Around a 34 or 35 is considered the point of diminishing returns around these parts.
 
Last edited:
I'm a non trad, PhD student, white, female, long walks on the beach, dunno what all's relevant.
Well, hello there.

I think you are severely risking an amazing score of 35 if you try to obtain an even higher MCAT score. In the high chance that you don't score higher than your 35, I'm pretty sure adcoms will simply become puzzled on why you retook it at all.
 
According to the AAMC an MCAT score of 36 when the Gpa is 3.6 to 4.0 is the cut off as score higher then that no long show significant benefit ( after running a pearson's test) also though with any grade level lower then that of 3.6, a score of 39 or high show a significant increase in chance of admission.

In English this means the lower your grades are the more likely that a high MCAT score will override the nasty of rejection and if your Grade are at the applicants average ( 3.6 cGPA) then a score of 36 has equivant benefits to a 45 in term of admission chances.
 
thanks very much for the responses y'all. the general consensus so far seems to be that for my situation at least, i'm around the area where it's not likely going to give me a huge bump if i got a couple of extra points. i'm in the second GPA hunk that the big gpa/mcat/admissionslikelihood. overall chance would only go up a few percent it looks like. didn't know if there'd be any "but if"s that might raise a flag for me, but so far, not looking like it. if i don't find out any new info, guess that re-study time should be devoted to, you know, getting a degree or something. i hear admissions likes it when you graduate :)
 
Top