MCAT TIMING FOR 2020-2021 CYCLE

[sylvester500]

I fully understand all who have had test dates cancelled and delay. Must be incredibly stressful, but I firmly believe the setback will be adjust for during the application cycle, and you all will be STRONGER for having face the obstacle.

I'm applying in 2020-2021, and plan to submit my primary on May 28. I already have all my primary materials written, so really just waiting to submit my AMCAS app.

I want to retake because my AAMC practice exams were 518-520, but test day brought 513 back in August. I'm not shooting for Harvard, but more the Emory, Rochester types. I believe my MCAT score is lower than my best AND achieving my best would make me a MUCH better candidate for my true desired schools.

Potential cons of the decision to retake in July would be 1) this is too late to make a difference in my application decisions and 2) taking the test in early July would cut time away from pre-writing secondaries (since I already have a full-time job to balance right now).

Any thoughts as to any other cons to consider?

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[justaperson274939135]

Con would be right now you have a complete application and a really solid MCAT score (assuming it’s balanced) so you are missing out on taking advantage of rolling admissions, which is an especially LARGE advantage in this cycle because so many people are scrambling to get a test date, then will still need to write secondaries, etc. If you can submit that application and secondaries early you will have a very successful cycle. If you retake it and do better you could potentially have a more successful cycle, but no guarantee. Depends how risk averse you are.

 

[Coffee&Scrubs26]

OP If you have solids eccs and a solid gpa I would apply this cycle without a retake.

 

[sylvester500]

OP If you have solids eccs and a solid gpa I would apply this cycle without a retake.

Yeah my one hiccup is the fact that my freshman year was like 2.8. But my last two years were 4.0, and overall is 3.55. So a pretty nice upward trend, but still low overall GPA. ECs are awesome.

 

[justaperson274939135]

Yeah my one hiccup is the fact that my freshman year was like 2.8. But my last two years were 4.0, and overall is 3.55. So a pretty nice upward trend, but still low overall GPA. ECs are awesome.

You’ll be okay especially since 1) it was freshman year, 2) your last two years were not just “better” but a whole 4.0, 3) and your overall is still decent enough to not get screened out!! With everyone’s applications going to be so late this year I think you’re golden, even schools like Emory

 

[sylvester500]

You’ll be okay especially since 1) it was freshman year, 2) your last two years were not just “better” but a whole 4.0, 3) and your overall is still decent enough to not get screened out!! With everyone’s applications going to be so late this year I think you’re golden, even schools like Emory

Thanks for the support. Let's ride.

 

[Seihai]

Emory appreciates people who do well in their last year's of college, and your MCAT (while a bit low) will be competitive for Emory.

 

[JimKimSlim]

I don’t think you should retake it, since your 513 already makes you competitive for schools of your interest. Also, it’s not worth risking obtaining a similar score and negatively affecting your application. Also, MCAT and GPA aren’t the only things that affect your admission chance.

You should rather focus more on your other application materials. Take as much time as you need refining your essay and activity descriptions through peer reviews and mock interviews. You can submit on May 28th and get it out of the way, but med schools don’t receive processed AMCAS apps until July 10th, and it takes one month from submission to get your application processed. So the latest you can submit without having to worry about rolling admission penalty should be June 9-10th.