Dont yall just love how optimistic people are about their untaken MCAT score??? people who have not even stated studying yet say Im applying next year with a blah GPA and MCAT will be upper 30s low 40s lol Really, you havent even practiced lol I just think its funny. Its great to be optimistic but sometime being REALISTIC leads to more happiness at the end.
MCAT scores!!!
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I'm a really good test taker and I always figured I'd be able to pull a 35+ on the MCAT with a proper amount of studying.
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+1. Its also easy to get the score you want if you refuse to take the test until you're scoring that on the practice tests. The biggest problem people have is taking it when they're not ready. Waiting until your scoring where you want to score or a little above that and you'll have a great shot of getting that dream score.
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I hate when people say "the I have to take my MCATs"...I feel this implies taking the test more than once. It is one test -- an MCAT. I feel like MCATs implies an underlying sense of pessimism that one should not hold when preparing for this beast. Just saying it gets my goat.
MCATs for the multiple sections lol yea I dont understand y they say that either
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How is high 30s or low 40s unrealistic? I don't get it. It's not like they have a goal of a 47U...Setting your bar higher makes you go after it that much more, regardless of how you do in the end.
only like how many % get that score? im not saying its not doable. but at least take a practice test, know how it is... if you are a person who can barely understand the citric cycle, i think its unrealistic when you have not even looked at the format of the exam.
Yea a year or so before the MCAT I thought I'd get 35+. I'm a naturally good test-taker which is why I felt that way. I felt like I couldve hit 39-40+ if I had completed orgo and studied more intensely but I "settled" for a little bit lower since I felt it would make little difference at that point and because I wanted to be complete at a reasonable time (which didn't happen anyways for other reasons).
I think a lot of people settle for lower than their max, but most people cannot get more than 35.
I think a lot of people settle for lower than their max, but most people cannot get more than 35.
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is that a juice?
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I think a goal of ~35 is pretty respectable, and probably the minimum goal score for a lot of SDNers. To assume you're going to make a 40+ is a little cocky. A lot of things have to go right on test day for you for that to actually happen. A lot of it is based on how prepared you are, but the test is pretty different on different days and questions can fall in your strong/weak areas in different subjects.
True. I was hoping in that same range and was scoring in that range on practice b4 test day. after test day nervousness, test anxiety++ everything else that went wrong on day I just said i will just be happy with any score that gets me into A med school
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sdn is probably a bad place to ask because a lot of us did get something near what we were aiming for, but i know what you mean; so many premed gunners think they're hot **** until they take the mcat, which is an excellent killer of unjustified egos.
tru a lot of ppl around me told me brag about their potential MCAT up until they actually take it
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I never understood why people always got so worked up about this. So they call it the wrong thing...who cares? It's probably because that's what people around them call it.
I think the idea is that many people make statements like this without being aware of the difficulty of achieving these scores. It's also not that they're "setting a bar" but making seemingly conclusive statements about what scores they'll get.
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getting a 35~ is a good goal IMO
Is this really a big deal? As it pertains to SDN, it seems like a lot of younger pre-meds want some kind of preliminary assessment about their future competitiveness during upcoming applications. Since the MCAT is such an important part of an application, people who want that kind of advice try to make an educated guess about their score.
Sure, worrying about apps before the MCAT is done is of debatable worth, but I think you can make a decent prediction of your MCAT score if you've done well on practice exams. Even if you haven't even sniffed a review book, some people just do well on standardized exams and it's not unreasonable for them to expect a strong score.
Sure, worrying about apps before the MCAT is done is of debatable worth, but I think you can make a decent prediction of your MCAT score if you've done well on practice exams. Even if you haven't even sniffed a review book, some people just do well on standardized exams and it's not unreasonable for them to expect a strong score.
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Narmer nailed it at the end - "It's also not that they're "setting a bar" but making seemingly conclusive statements about what scores they'll get."
I was just going to say this. Some posters I think are misunderstanding what the OP is trying to say. I feel that it's great to set a bar for yourself like getting a 34+. But I do find it crazy when people say " I expect or I will get a 34,35, 36+...whatever score" especially when there a person has not seen the MCAT before or practiced it.
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Haha, to be honest I was banking on a 35+. I never told anyone because I don't like talking about these things in person but I figured "I have a 3.9+ GPA, how could I not get a 35+?" and yeah ... it's a lot tougher than most people think...
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Yeah, your GPA is great, but it doesn't correlate with a great MCAT score...especially if the school you go to doesn't prepare you well for the MCAT (bad competition, grade inflation, etc.).
My point is before any practice exam i think its a lil pretentious
Its not pretentious, its idiotic. There are plenty of "good-standardized" test takers and 4.0s' that cannot break 30 on the MCAT. There was a whole thread on the issue. It has already been established that SAT/ACT are bad predictors on success on the MCAT. I think without a practice test asking for your chances is stupid. I did the same thing a lot of budding premeds do and posted my chances without my MCAT. I was like, "I should get a 33+" when I actually started taking practice tests I realize that 33+ was really a 28-. I actually pulled and got the min. score I was shooting for but, 4ksibe makes a valid point asking about your chances before you have taken the MCAT is worthless. Anybody who thinks they can ballpark their MCAT score without a practice test..haha needs to take a practice test.
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How much were you guys able to pull up your scores after your first practice? I took a practice before having taken Orgo & Physics and got 7VR, 9PS, and 10BS. I'm taking it in April and praying for a 33+, but I'd have to raise it quite a bit. Why is verbal so hard to get anyway?
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I've always been a really good test taker, too, making an extremely high ACT score which got me a full academic scholarship to an expensive private school. Then I made a 25Q on the MCAT. Maybe I just had a bad day; I don't know. For those of you who haven't taken the MCAT, don't be naive.
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I sucked on my first practice test. But keep practicing and you should be able to bring up your scores. Verbal is the only hard section to truly raise your score b/c it's harder to learn how to do better. BS and PS are sciences, you learn and practice them. BS and PS were easier to raise, verbal was different. My scores ranged from crappy to great and it's just harder to "study" for it. It's something more innate. The best thing you can do is read a lot in general and practice.
If those were your scores before taking any Orgo or Physics, you should do fine on the science sections. Verbal is tough to improve - I think most people aren't able to move it more than a few points. It's more straightforward to study the sciences, and so a lot of people end up spending too much time there and neglecting VR. Do not fall into this trap.
Have you finished Orgo and Physics? If so, take another practice test now and see where you stand.
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Just finished Orgo 1 and did well, but I am not taking Physics until next semester. I have all of the practice tests, but I wanted to save them for March/April. The physics and verbal parts are still giving me trouble. I bought 101 in Verbal to keep from neglecting it. Thanks for the advice.
Wait, have you had neither Physics I (traditionally mechanics) nor Physics II (traditionally electricity and magnetism)? No wonder the physics sections are giving you trouble. Which are you taking in the spring? I would strongly recommend that you not take the MCAT until you've had both of these classes.
I had both physics a year almost 2 years before my MCAT and honestly ALL the physics i learned for MCAT was from thos Kaplan books. COuld not remember s*** of course if i took the MCAT right after I finished it would have probably made a difference
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wrote practice verbal exam day b4 MCAT...got a 5... (highest ever being a 9)
ended up with a 10 on the mcat.. i just want to give a shout out and big thanks to all those who did worse then me that day. u saved me <3
ended up with a 10 on the mcat.. i just want to give a shout out and big thanks to all those who did worse then me that day. u saved me <3
Is that really how it works? cus i heard someone say that the curve is set before the exam. If the grading really depends on how everyone else did then way to be an objective test!!!
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It is. He must have just gotten really lucky on verbal lol
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I had a non-calculus based Electricity and Magnetism course a year ago, and will be taking Physics 1 (motion, sound, etc.) next semester. I think that after taking Phys 1 and doing MCAT prep, I should be OK. Due to scheduling, I will not be able to take Physics 2 (w/ calc) before taking the MCAT and applying next summer.
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The curve is NOT set before you take the MCAT. It is truly standardized to the people that you take it with. If it were already set, you would be able to get your scores immediately after the test, like pre-dents do with the DAT. Hence, there is a 30 day wait for the scores.
Source: I am an instructor for The Princeton Review, a company that prides itself on knowing the ins and outs of the MCAT (material, test day, scoring, etc), among many other things.
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Also I don't get, why are people insecure with 34 and 35 mcat scores? My friends with those scores have received interviews at some of the best schools in the nation including Harvard, Yale, and Columbia. However, when they interview at these schools, they come back only hoping for a waitlist.
When I ask them why so pessimistic, they replied simply because their score is too low -_-
When I ask them why so pessimistic, they replied simply because their score is too low -_-
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Thats ~95th percentile. A 35 should be plenty to get into a top school, given that everything else on the application is fine. It's more likely that they wouldn't be admitted on the basis of their interview/ps/lor/ecs/etc.
There are a few schools that are known for being gpa/mcat stat ****** where feeling like this post-interview may be more accurate.
My thoughts are
1) It's really effing annoying when applicants talk to each other about MCAT scores on interview days. You're not dogs, stop sniffing each other.
2) A lot of people are disparaging about their chances because they a) don't want to seem cocky/arrogant or b) they are mentally bracing for the rejection/waitlist etc. Things seem less bad when you're expecting them.
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That sucks, but honestly I would take your score in a heartbeat. I'll be very happy just landing a 10VR, and the other two I'm hoping for 12/13.
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Around when I took the MCAT someone posted what they do but I don't remember the details. There isn't a "curve" of any sort, but there is some sort of estimation that takes place before the test is given (based most likely on prior experimental questions) and generally the AAMC doesn't change anything around once the test is administered.
MB333999, you either got lucky or just were never focused when you took the practice MCATs/VRs.
Also the DAT I believe is based on a bank, which is how it's graded so quickly.
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My goal before I actually started studying/practicing hardcore was a 34. I ended up with a much higher score, but I definitely don't know if that would've happened had I felt "comfortable" that I would get such a score. The fear of a mediocre score is what really lit a fire under me to study my butt off.
Eh, it's a test like any other. Bragging about what you expect to get would be stupid, but I don't think the MCAT is some special situation that renders all previous test-taking history moot. I had several good friends take the test in prior cycles and was aware of how much they had studied and how well they'd done on previous standardized and classroom exams we'd taken together. That seemed like meaningful information that I was able to use to ballpark what my score might be, and which proved to be reasonably accurate. People I know who took the test after and alongside me did about what I would have anticipated beforehand using the same information.
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Who cares? If they want to be optimistic, let them be. If they don't get a 35 after bragging about getting one, then it's a reality bitch slap in the face. If they do get it, awesome.
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i don't think you are curved/compared to the people you test with that day. my understanding is that the question difficulty, and therefore point-worth, of each question you have on test day is determined during a previous test session, likely one in which that question was experimental. that question doesn't affect those kids, but the aamc then has a pool of X test takers that all got that question right or wrong. most people who got a 20 and up that day get that question right? it's easier. only those who got a 40 and up got it right? it's hard. creepy/no pattern emerges? scrap or rewrite that question. by the time the question gets to you its worth in your total is set.
my understanding from reading around and the official guide to mcat exam book, so obviously it's not like i've had a conversation with the mcat folks or anything and i could be wrong. but they seem pretty adamant that you are NOT curved with your test day peers. the 30 day wait is just because they are cruel 😉
my understanding from reading around and the official guide to mcat exam book, so obviously it's not like i've had a conversation with the mcat folks or anything and i could be wrong. but they seem pretty adamant that you are NOT curved with your test day peers. the 30 day wait is just because they are cruel 😉
