MCAT Rescoring?

[91Bravo]

This is just the kind of luck I have.....
When I received my MCAT score from the August test administration I was floored. Given my Verbal Reasoning score of '11' (87-95.2 percentile) and my past academic success with writing, I was surprised to find I have an 'L' (3.4-9.8 percentile) for my Writing Sample section. On test day, I had great confidence with respect to my performance on this section (covered the topics well and in the 'format' that they wanted). So you can probably imagine my confusion.

Today I sent a letter (and the $50 fee) to the MCAT folks requesting that the WS be rescored. However, I have a feeling this will take forever. Given where I'm at in the application process, I'm curious to see if anyone has had a WS rescored, and if so, how long did it take to get the results back?

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[Steiner]

This is just the kind of luck I have.....
When I received my MCAT score from the August test administration I was floored. Given my Verbal Reasoning score of '11' (87-95.2 percentile) and my past academic success with writing, I was surprised to find I have an 'L' (3.4-9.8 percentile) for my Writing Sample section. On test day, I had great confidence with respect to my performance on this section (covered the topics well and in the 'format' that they wanted). So you can probably imagine my confusion.

Today I sent a letter (and the $50 fee) to the MCAT folks requesting that the WS be rescored. However, I have a feeling this will take forever. Given where I'm at in the application process, I'm curious to see if anyone has had a WS rescored, and if so, how long did it take to get the results back?

Id kiss that 50 bucks goodbye. I got an L also, and a 13 on verbal, I know I don't write that bad, but the rest of my score is good, and my personal statement is written well also. I wouldn't have tried to have my essays regraded because its the least important score. I've had a few beers during the game tonight, so if my response is written bad, it's the beers fault.

 

[MeowMix]

you could have sent me the $50 and gotten the same result as you are about to get - no change!

it's not about luck and it's not about how good a writer you are. It's all about following the instructions to the letter. Think of WS as a test of ability to follow instructions, not a test of writing skill.

 

[91Bravo]

Hmm...what would the world do without a-holes?
If I wanted a condescending remark, I would have asked for one. I have a family friend who retired from MCAT in Iowa City a couple of years ago. According to her, WS scores do get entered incorrectly on occasion. THAT'S WHY THEY OFFER RESCORING.

So, let me ask this question again. Has anyone requested a rescoring of their WS, and if so, how long did it take to get the results?

I will thank you in advance for keeping your sarcastic and/or meaningless comments to yourself.

 

[bgreet]

Hmm...what would the world do without a-holes?
If I wanted a condescending remark, I would have asked for one. I have a family friend who retired from MCAT in Iowa City a couple of years ago. According to her, WS scores do get entered incorrectly on occasion. THAT'S WHY THEY OFFER RESCORING.

So, let me ask this question again. Has anyone requested a rescoring of their WS, and if so, how long did it take to get the results?

I will thank you in advance for keeping your sarcastic and/or meaningless comments to yourself.

If you don't want these kind of responses, just don't post. Honestly I don't see how these people are being sarcastic simply by posting something that you may not want to hear, despite how truthful it is. I reiterate what they said, kiss those fifty dollars goodbye and grow up.

 

[prime1991]

cant agree with u more

 

[Potato!]

cant agree with u more

Yah, so we all agree it's a waste of fifty bucks. I agree with the OP on this though, he asked a question and no one has told him anything useful. Cut him some slack. We'd all spend the $50 if we were in his situation.

 

[NeverMore]

Yeah I got an M. I also was very surprised becauseI was expecting at least an O or P. Apparently they had higher expectations. But as everyone has said, you pretty much wasted your money.

 

[themadchemist]

Personally, I think 50 dollars is a small price to pay for peace of mind in the grand scheme of things. Whether you get a higher score or not, you know you did everything in your power to see it through. If you hadn't tried by asking for the rescore, you would have always wondered if you could have gotten a higher score and if that's what brought you down in the case that you get rejected from a particular medical school (of course, I hope you don't get rejected). Anyway, I think you may have made the right decision, whatever the results of the rescoring might be.

It also makes a lot more sense to get a WS rescored than anything else, since the rest is just scantron and there was probably not a mistake in the first place. On the other hand, a real jerk might have scored your essay in the first place and you might have gotten screwed.

So don't listen to these other folks or even me--It's your money, it's your life, it's your peace of mind, so ultimately, you should do what you think is right...And you did.

 

[Ypo.]

I read a thread somewhere on SDN several months ago-someone had contested their score (an L, I think) and had succesfully got it changed...to an M. Don't expect a big raise.

Its a very subjective score, and I don't think the adcoms pay as much attention to it (hardly any). If you got an 11 on the VR, that matters more. Doctors don't really have to be excellent writers, they do have to be good at reasoning and interpreting. An M is not that bad. I'd trade my Q for your M if I could have 11s in my BS and VR.

 

[Code Brown]

I read a thread somewhere on SDN several months ago-someone had contested their score (an L, I think) and had succesfully got it changed...to an M. Don't expect a big raise.

Its a very subjective score, and I don't think the adcoms pay as much attention to it (hardly any). If you got an 11 on the VR, that matters more. Doctors don't really have to be excellent writers, they do have to be good at reasoning and interpreting. An M is not that bad. I'd trade my Q for your M if I could have 11s in my BS and VR.

Hey, that was me. Yes, they did re-score the test and it went up from an L to an M. Nothing great, but it couldn't hurt. That said, it took 3 months for them to do it. As for the L, I don't think it really matters that much, as I had 7 or 8 interviews already set up before they corrected my score with AMCAS and the schools.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

I've had a few beers during the game tonight, so if my response is written bad, it's the beers fault.

ok excused (unless you are celebrating the Red Sox vistory!). I normally wouldn't notice or comment on poor grammar unless you are using it to emphaizie good writing skills.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Yah, so we all agree it's a waste of fifty bucks. I agree with the OP on this though, he asked a question and no one has told him anything useful. Cut him some slack. We'd all spend the $50 if we were in his situation.

exactly! and whereas i know nothing about this, i;'d say the greatest chance of having a score changed by requesting rescoring is in the writing section. Doesn't 4 different people read the essays, so it is possible for them to score it differently.

And to the OP: how is your penmanship? That goes into the scoring also, so you can do very well on verbal and write good essays but it could be so messy that you would lose points that way. Props for making the effort (I know I would also if I thought I wrote good essays) and best of luck to you; let us know how it goes!