Mcat

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gibna

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So I am planning on taking the MCAT again this august, for the 5th time now, with a consistent grade of 25.
Do you guys know if medical schools look at all your MCAT scores or just look at your most recent one?
And do you guys think I will be in any disadvantage if I took the MCAT this august?
I will appreciate any input!
 
I think they might wonder why 5x. You have to make sure that you improve significantly this time (30+) in order to make them overlook the number of times you have taken the MCAT. In interviews they will definately ask about it. I took it 2x and they asked. Study hard and see if you can improve. They will look at all of your scores but most schools will place the most significance on the latest MCAT. Good luck.
 
No offense....but if you have been consistently getting 25's on four occasions...what makes you think a 5th time will improve your score? Were there extenuating circumstances each of the 4 previous times you took the test?

Have you made sure to change how you are studying this time around?

Have you explored the DO option?

Not trying to rip you down...just curious. I've never known anyone to put themselves through the mcat more than thrice.

Although I do not have a definite answer to your question, I'd imagine that the schools will average your scores out.
 
Hi there!

Wow the 5th time!! That sure is perseverance!! I think schools know how many times you have taken the MCAT, but they only see the last three scores.
I agree with UCLAman...you should study super hard (which I am sure you are doing) to do as best as you possible can on this MCAT!!
If you really want the MD, you just keep trying!!
I hope you do really well on the MCAT!!
Good luck!
 
You guys make a good point, and I know that I am not in a good position. But I am still hoping for the best. And I am not interested at all in DO.
I took the MCAT's all during my junior and senior year in undergrad and I am screwing up one different section each time I take it for some reason, and since then I got in a neuroscience PhD program and am doing pretty decent. This is my second year but I don't just want to be a research scientist so I am planning on taking two months off before august and taking the MCAT again.
I guess I should talk with the admission office of the schools I am applying to so that I could get an idea on the emphasis past MCAT scores have on my med school application.
But if anyone else reading this message knows what MCAT score med schools are looking at and what looking at all your MCAT scores mean, please reply.
 
How many application cycles have you gone through, and which schools are you applying to? I guess if I was on the admissions committee looking at your file, I'd wonder how you've improved your your application this time around. Are you sure a couple points on the MCAT is what is holding you back?

If you don't mind, you ought to share some of your other stats with us, such as your GPA and where you went to school, volunteer work, what state you live in, etc. Maybe we can identify some other areas that you can improve to help you this next application cycle on top of your MCAT.

Wrigley
 
I applied twice, I don't know how you knowing my stats will make a difference since this is just an MCAT question but here it goes.
I got a double major degree Mathematical science & chemistry in Michigan State with a 3.58 cGPA and I am a michigan resident.
I did three years of volunteering in an ER at a local hospital, tutored Math and chemistry for two years, I am a co-author in a published paper, have huge arms, and I bench 240.
Hope that was enough.
 
Oh yeah, and I just want to add, I am not picky, I will go to any school. And I realy think that my MCAT scores is what is keeping me from getting in. Damn you MCATS
 
If you have done well on different sections each time, maybe you should look into applying to schools that look at your best scores. I think it was the Princeton Review med school book that mentions what scores medical schools look at. Each school has a different way of looking at scores. Good luck!
 
Curious why you would dismiss DO so quickly especially in Michigan where almost a third of the doctors are DO's?
 
I don't know, I just feel that I will be pissed off in the future if someone looked down on me becuase I am a DO. Hmm, it could be that I don't have enough self esteem. I need to see a shrink!
 
one thing to watch for is to make sure schools don't make you finish the phd before matriculating. some schools don't like grad students bailing on one program. the reason why i bring this up is that i was doing a psych phd and wanted to jump ship a while back...spoke to some med schools and they said committees would really not like that.....so i ended finishing up my phd (defending next week!). hope this helps. best of luck!!
 
Well I talked to my advisor about that and he told me that he wouldn't mind me leaving with a MS. I am going to mention that in my personal statement.
So did you apply last year to medical schools? and if so, did the PhD help your application?
 
Oh yeah, Good luck with your defense. Break a leg.
 
I seriously think that if you were going to take the MCAT for the 5th time, at least make sure you're hitting a "significantly" higher of score of at least 30 on practice exams. Even if it means taking an extra year and/or taking extra courses of studying, make sure you're prepared. Taking it for the 5th time "blindly" might show perseverance to adcoms but it may also show you're just "shooting in the dark" for a higher score.
 
Your MCATs are just too low. Your application is getting pre-sorted into the trash bin by the computer (ie: no human even sees it) by many to most med schools just based on not meeting their MCAT cut-offs. After you get past the computer screening (and virtually all schools have one, whether they admit it or not), most schools will look at your most recent scores in making their decisions, but take notice of how many times you've taken it as well.

You need to figure out why you haven't had a consistent performance in your past attempts, and how you'll prevent that from happening again. Do you have to caffeinate/decafinate yourself during exam day? Sleep more? Meditate so you can focus more easily? Have you used a review course? Gone through at least four or five sample exams before the test? etc. etc. You should probably have a friend/admissions counselor/someone here help you figure out why you haven't been able to score higher in the past.

You have to realize-- you'll be taking three more exams that are similar in idea to the MCAT (though covering much more interesting material) during your med school and early residency years, plus tons of multiple choice exams while you're in med school. Schools will be troubled by your not being able to succeed on the MCAT after a large number of attempts, and you'll have to have some convincing explanation for your past performance. If you're in a grad program, you probably took the GREs, how did you do there?

In short, figure out why you haven't done well/consistently in the past before you start any kind of preparation. Somone here can probably help you out if you post more details about your past experiences.
 
Go back to school and get a higher degree and try again in a few years.
 
It depends on the medical school you are applying to, so check with them first. The MCAT is graded on a curve. In terms of your score, if you haven't really pulled it all out for this time around, you probably won't this time. Try an MCAT class and study with friends before you take the plunge and have a stellar gpa to back you up🙂
 
I think you guys are right about my application being cutting off early in the cycle because of MCAT score and that is why I am planning on re-taking it. It is not like I realy want to take it.
And I am not going to make any excuses for not doing that well, becuase at the time I did the best I could. But I never took it without me doing something else at the time while studying for those exams, so taking 2 months off hopefuly will help me out, and I am definetly going to try to score 30+ at least three times before fully deciding on taking it again this august. And to be honest I think getting a 27-29 score will get me in MSU or Wayne since 28 is their average matriculated MCAT score. Or maybe since I am an asian male they will expect more from me.
Well I just want to know for sure that they look at my last MCAT score before deciding on taking it again, if not I will probably apply to MSU-COM and get a DO instead.
 
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