MCAT writing score

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AegisZero

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Do MCAT writing scores really matter?

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I think if you get like a J or a K, a red flag may go up, but if you have a decent verbal score, I doubt it is a big deal, especially if you fall in the middle tier of writing scores. I know some/most adcoms have been noted as saying they don't even screen for writing scores, and it's hardly come up interview-wise. I think the gain from receiving an S or a T is less than the loss you may get from receiving a J or a K. I think they will see your essays as a better indication of your writing.

I could be wrong though. I mean, I guess it's on there for something. But that's just what I have heard.
 
it would be great if they factored it in b/c i got a T on the writing...impressive because I scored a N last time...and i didn't really practice much for the writing...
 
Who knows? I've gotten an interview at every school I applied to except one, UCSF, who rejected me pre-secondary. I'm thinking there had to have been something gravely wrong that UCSF didn't like. I think there are two things that it could be, my non-Cali status (which I doubt because other people have gotten secondaries) or my MCAT writing - N. My numbers are fine. Maybe UCSF actually does use the writing sample?
 
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I too have a T on writing, but I really doubt it is that important. I am actually asking for a friend who got a scored he is worried about.

So if you are within the 50-75th percentile, it really doesnt matter. If you get a S,T on writing it really doesnt matter. But if you get <50th percentile it matters negatively?
It seems dumb to even have a writing section then if it won't help you.
 
I was actually told by the director of admissions of the following schools that it doesn't matter: NYCOM, PCOM, SUNY Upstate, Jefferson, UMDNJ (newark)....the stipulation was that it wasn't a j or k....
 
I've heard it's the extremes that matter. J or K will worry them, and RST can help you out on rare occasions. Basically you want to hit the average or above.
 
i read somewhere in internet land that while most schools encouraged the addition of the writing sample to the MCAT many don't like the way it is graded and don't view it as an accurate measuring device. i think your personal statement and other secondary essays far outweigh the value of the writing sample on the MCAT. if this is true, which i'm pretty sure it is, it's good for me because i got an O and a 10 on verbal. i've received secondaries from everywhere except Stanford and UCSF. so, again, UCSF may use it as a tool...
 
I've actually heard from MCAT teachers for both Princeton and Kaplan that some committees try to compare the writing sample score with the quality of the personal statement. Basically, if you submit a PS worthy of Dosteovsky and got a score of J on the MCAT, the begin to think something's shady...
 
i've had no problem with my L in writing, i got a 10 in VR.......i think that it may hurt you a very little bit, but only if they are choosing between 2 people with exact stats, ec, lors.......just a thought...

nero
 
i would trade in my Q WS for a 10+ verbal score anyday ( i got a 9). it seems like they throw a dart at a letter when determining your WS score:p
 
At one interview i've been on (i cant remember which one exactly but it was on my nyc circuit) they had little summary files of our stats, schools, and ECs etc on a sheet of paper for the interviewer. I saw my mcat subscores on it, but the writing score didn't even have a block designated for it :rolleyes:

i'm not sure about marq_bme's theory, my feeling is that they use a computer to take a random letter from your first name and designate it as your score. So, if you officially go by "J.K. Williams" or something, you're f*cked. thank god for all those "Rs" in my name :p
 
yeah... after interviewing at every school i applied to on my nationwide circuit...the writing sample didn't seem to matter.
 
I heard this through someone from a UCLA adcomm...

They wanted to have the writing sample only b/c one time a resident wrote down that a patient was recently "circus-sized" :laugh:

It is basically unimportant unless you do poorly. However, if you've got a lower verbal score, an S or T can help that out.
 
Then this is just ******ed. Why waste an hour of MCAT time doing this if it doesn't matter. And THEN do a real section (BioSci).

What a buncha bullcrap.
 
haha!! nice. "I was saying boo-urns" - old decrepit hans moleman
 
it is lame that they have it on there and not give it too much credit. that's why i basically blew it off, spent no time practicing for it, and just wrote a bunch of crap. maybe it's good for wearing students out, like a hurdle or something. who knows.
 
When I took the test, I figured...I'm a Philosophy major! I've done nothing but form coherent arguments in writing over the past four years. Piece of cake!

Well, they weren't too impressed with my flowing, tangential thinking ("...that's not a very interesting topic...I'll talk about this instead...") or my loose interpretation of the directions ("...give three arguments for this....hmmm....I'll just list two overwhelmingly persuasive ones...").

I honestly can't remember my score, but I think it fell somewhere near the average of folks for whom english is a second language.

Fortunately my high verbal score must have offset any concerns; I can't say that anyone ever even mentioned my low writing sample score :p .
 
I totally blew off the writing section because I have always gotten very high marks for my writing and I tried to write like the Kaplan course teaches you and it sucked. I guess I am what some would call verbose, but my grammar is right so they can't do much about it. They used to tease me about being the king of run on, grammatically correct and perfectly punctuated sentences in high school and I guess the MCAT folks didn't find my particular style appealing as they awarded me the lowly O. Bottom line is that I didn't care because I don't think that schools pay much attention to the score. Be true to yourself.
 
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