Mcat retake dilemma

[OPH4Life]

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My mcat retake is coming up and im panicking! My last score was a 9ps 6vr 9bs (24O). I know the verbal will hold me back so I decided to retake. Now im nervous if my score stays the same or decreases. I have applied already and sent out secondaries with my old acore.

Any advice? I am scoring much higher 8-9 on vr, but sometimes im falling back down. Not sure if im risking too much and will get shot in the foot. I decided to retake after I applied ao achools dont know yet. I was thinking to wait for the new score and update at once.

I have a lot of anxiety right now and feel i might ruin any chances I have for acceptance. Not sure what to do.

 

[MedPR]

My mcat retake is coming up and im panicking! My last score was a 9ps 6vr 9bs (24O). I know the verbal will hold me back so I decided to retake. Now im nervous if my score stays the same or decreases. I have applied already and sent out secondaries with my old acore.

Any advice? I am scoring much higher 8-9 on vr, but sometimes im falling back down. Not sure if im risking too much and will get shot in the foot. I decided to retake after I applied ao achools dont know yet. I was thinking to wait for the new score and update at once.

I have a lot of anxiety right now and feel i might ruin any chances I have for acceptance. Not sure what to do.

Well hopefully each section will see a score increase. Trust your preparation and be confident that you will do better. Confidence really helps in this process.

 

[NeuroLAX]

My mcat retake is coming up and im panicking! My last score was a 9ps 6vr 9bs (24O). I know the verbal will hold me back so I decided to retake. Now im nervous if my score stays the same or decreases. I have applied already and sent out secondaries with my old acore.

Any advice? I am scoring much higher 8-9 on vr, but sometimes im falling back down. Not sure if im risking too much and will get shot in the foot. I decided to retake after I applied ao achools dont know yet. I was thinking to wait for the new score and update at once.

I have a lot of anxiety right now and feel i might ruin any chances I have for acceptance. Not sure what to do.

Like MedPR stated, you have to trust yourself and the preparation that you've completed. I was in your shoes not too long ago. I felt uneasy with my first score and a 6 on verbal, but it made me restrategize and focus on my weaknesses. I did the EK Verbal book again and pulled off a 10 on Verbal of my second attempt. Stay confident, you'll get it done.

 

[Icy Snow]

My mcat retake is coming up and im panicking! My last score was a 9ps 6vr 9bs (24O). I know the verbal will hold me back so I decided to retake. Now im nervous if my score stays the same or decreases. I have applied already and sent out secondaries with my old acore.

Any advice? I am scoring much higher 8-9 on vr, but sometimes im falling back down. Not sure if im risking too much and will get shot in the foot. I decided to retake after I applied ao achools dont know yet. I was thinking to wait for the new score and update at once.

I have a lot of anxiety right now and feel i might ruin any chances I have for acceptance. Not sure what to do.

As hard as it is, try to stay relaxed. It makes a huge difference.

 

[touchpause13]

to be honest im feeling pretty much the same way right now. :/

 

[OPH4Life]

to be honest im feeling pretty much the same way right now. :/

I just got an interview and I dont know what to do 🙁 Should I do the retake or cancel or what??

 

[411309]

if you got an interview go to it, you may still want to take your mcat though....it depends on your gpa/ecs also

 

[OPH4Life]

But my score won't be back before my interview. I dont know what to do or what to tell them. if I have a shot with my bad score, am I risking it by trying to get a higher score. What if they put my file on hold to see my new score? I have two weeks to decide

 

[NeuroLAX]

But my score won't be back before my interview. I dont know what to do or what to tell them. if I have a shot with my bad score, am I risking it by trying to get a higher score. What if they put my file on hold to see my new score? I have two weeks to decide

I would go to the interview and retake the MCAT when you're scheduled to do so. There's no telling how many more interviews you'll get with your current score. I wouldn't expect much more unless you're able to raise your score. Just keep practicing Verbal and don't neglect the other sections.

 

[OPH4Life]

I would go to the interview and retake the MCAT when you're scheduled to do so. There's no telling how many more interviews you'll get with your current score. I wouldn't expect much more unless you're able to raise your score. Just keep practicing Verbal and don't neglect the other sections.

When should I let the schools know about the retake? I'm still having second thoughts. I was going to update them when my score comes out.

 

[NeuroLAX]

When should I let the schools know about the retake? I'm still having second thoughts. I was going to update them when my score comes out.

Since your score is on the low side they might ask you upfront if you plan on retaking anytime. Be honest. At my interviews, they saw both scores (1st- 24; 2nd- 29) and asked what I did differently. I just told them I focused on my weaknesses and restrategized to ensure I did better. Be diplomatic and honest, but don't say things like "I didn't try very hard the first time" or anything like that.

I understand where you're coming from. Retaking the MCAT can be very risky. But I feel it's more risky for those who did pretty well the first time but have it in their head that they need to get 32+, either because of some self-fulfilling dream or out of angst. I owe much of my own improvement to a better Verbal score, so put extra focus on your weaknesses and be confident!

 

[Goro]

Time to go talk to a therapist/counselor/pastor about your anxiety. Your worry over your performance will likely impact your performance even more.

My mcat retake is coming up and im panicking! My last score was a 9ps 6vr 9bs (24O). I know the verbal will hold me back so I decided to retake. Now im nervous if my score stays the same or decreases. I have applied already and sent out secondaries with my old acore.

Any advice? I am scoring much higher 8-9 on vr, but sometimes im falling back down. Not sure if im risking too much and will get shot in the foot. I decided to retake after I applied ao achools dont know yet. I was thinking to wait for the new score and update at once.

I have a lot of anxiety right now and feel i might ruin any chances I have for acceptance. Not sure what to do.

 

[Capltd29]

Definitely agree with the posters above. As someone who retook the MCAT recently and did much better, it will open up a lot of doors if you improve. If you do worse... well there's that opportunity for it to hurt you.

I had this idea that I would go into my first MCAT, do great and go immediately into medical school and have a great life, yada yada yada. That didn't happen. What did happen was that I took some time off, spent 6-7 months preparing and really analyzing what I did wrong. I decided that with the verbal section, I was over analyzing and focusing on how the test was trying to trick me, and doing poorly. I tried just reading the passages (albeit quickly) and answering the questions with the best and most obvious answer, and I did MUCH better on the verbal. I now have my score for this cycle, and if I don't get in... for any subsequent cycle. I will not likely ever have to take that beast again. If you aren't really sure you are going to do better, you may think of pushing back your test date if you can.

As far as interviewing and retaking. I would definitely still plan on taking it if you aren't going to postpone; if your interview doesn't work out in your favor, but you do have the MCAT, you'll have it to carry forward with you for any subsequent applications you submit.

 

[Machine33]

Time to go talk to a therapist/counselor/pastor about your anxiety. Your worry over your performance will likely impact your performance even more.

This.

Just one session relieved my anxieties substantially and my score went up 6 points from my retake just from not being as nervous. I was still nervous, of course, and scored less than my practice average but it got me a score that should allow me to get into a school somewhere!

 

[OPH4Life]

This.

Just one session relieved my anxieties substantially and my score went up 6 points from my retake just from not being as nervous. I was still nervous, of course, and scored less than my practice average but it got me a score that should allow me to get into a school somewhere!

Wow congrats!!!! A therapist helped that much???? Im just nervous about the end result as everone is. Ill get over it and attempt to rock the exam. Then prepare for my interview 🙂

 

[Machine33]

Wow congrats!!!! A therapist helped that much???? Im just nervous about the end result as everone is. Ill get over it and attempt to rock the exam. Then prepare for my interview 🙂

It absolutely helped that much. Anxiety is a serious thing and it needs to be addressed. I basically lost my ability to read in such a high pressure situation and as goes without saying, you cant do well if you aren't comprehending anything After seeing her I felt much better and confident in my abilities.

As a disclaimer though, that was my 4th retake so I think the stress added to that. So just trust in your preparation. I was still nervous the day of (enough to make me score 5 points lower than my last practice test) but it's over now and I never have to look back (hopefully )

Let us know how it turns out! Good luck!

 

[Emerald84]

Don't take it unless you are consistenly scoring 10s on verbal. I liked exam krackers for verbal.