Multiple MCAT scores

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Goro said:
Do NOT retake.

Get your anxiety under control

Make better choices
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Thanks for the reply! I meant to say I know the 3rd time around I wont be anxious IF i had to retake. Hopefully not though. Are 2-3 tries with vast improvement seen unfavorably?
 
Nancycutie said:
Thanks for the reply! I meant to say I know the 3rd time around I wont be anxious IF i had to retake. Hopefully not though. Are 2-3 tries with vast improvement seen unfavorably?
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It's not optimal. One and done is the best, as with the boards, if you pass you cannot retake. but obviously adcoms will take into account vast improvement.
 
Nancycutie said:
Hi everyone

So I took the MCAT back in January I was scoring really well on my FLs and I knew I knew the material and the test. Thing is I got really anxious the night before and didnt get a blink of sleep (and the day before I only slept for like 6 hours) so my head was about to explode. You know that weird feeling when you get no sleep like its just been 1 LONG day not 2 different days? Either way I got there anyway and took the thing. Pretty much took thay whole thing on a weird trip, panicked a bit during it and guessed on a lot except the Bio biochem. Ended up with 128/123/131/127 509. Although the chem and physics surprised me (i thought i tanked it) i knew cars and psych had gone horribly. Basically couldnt read anything longer than a sentence without focusing. I took it again april but panicked the night before thinking the same thing was gonne happen. But I did get some sleep! Like 4 hours which was enough for me. Because of my nerves however i was having super bad chest pains (im usually a great test taker idk why these 2 things happened). Either way I took this test and feel like it went better especially the psych but still dont know for sure until I find out May. Just wanted to know if scoring so low on CARS would ruin me even if everything went up the second time around. Also in case it didnt or not by too much will it be horrible if I take it the 3rd time? Cause I feel like at this point Im gonna go in there with a la vie est belle attitude and do the way I was supposed to the first time around, but dont want the first and possibly also 2nd score hurting me. What schools reject 3 tries? Thanks loves!
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I guess what Im looking for is someone who took the MCAT multiple times and managed to get into a school
 
Nancycutie said:
The way I see it though is that once you take boards you've learned a lot about handling life and have already gone through all of this (the med school process) that kind of desensitizes you to the nerves. Coming out of college there's still so much about life we dont know how to handle and all the pressure put on us to become functioning members of society. Also, medicine is my strong suit. I got 99% on B/B on 30 hours of no sleep and right after knowing I bombed CARS. I think that showed me Bio/medicine is something I could do without thinking too hard about it
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You should not be taking the MCAT on no sleep. You only have the results you obtain - ADCOMs won't say, "well she would have gotten a 128 had she gotten 8 hours of sleep". It's important to make wise decisions. If I were running on no sleep, I would cancel my exam. And coming from someone who scored at the 100th percentile on B/B last June - after a good night's rest - I also wouldn't say that B/B performance strongly predicts step 1 performance, as it tests far less information and focuses more on knowing the basics of physiology and being well-versed in the requisite biochemistry and amino acids, along with passage-based reasoning. Step 1 is much more a content-based exam than it is a reasoning exam, and tests orders of magnitude more content than the MCAT.
 
Nancycutie said:
The way I see it though is that once you take boards you've learned a lot about handling life and have already gone through all of this (the med school process) that kind of desensitizes you to the nerves. Coming out of college there's still so much about life we dont know how to handle and all the pressure put on us to become functioning members of society. Also, medicine is my strong suit. I got 99% on B/B on 30 hours of no sleep and right after knowing I bombed CARS. I think that showed me Bio/medicine is something I could do without thinking too hard about it
Click to expand...

Start studying for Step and then see if you still think this.
My nerves before exams are worse than they ever were before I started med school. Step 1 is nothing like the MCAT.
 
DubbiDoctor said:
You should not be taking the MCAT on no sleep. You only have the results you obtain - ADCOMs won't say, "well she would have gotten a 128 had she gotten 8 hours of sleep". It's important to make wise decisions. If I were running on no sleep, I would cancel my exam. And coming from someone who scored at the 100th percentile on B/B last June - after a good night's rest - I also wouldn't say that B/B performance strongly predicts step 1 performance, as it tests far less information and focuses more on knowing the basics of physiology and being well-versed in the requisite biochemistry and amino acids, along with passage-based reasoning. Step 1 is much more a content-based exam than it is a reasoning exam, and tests orders of magnitude more content than the MCAT.
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Thing is I can handle both content and reasoning, it's just that on no sleep there's no way anyone can do cars or psych thats all. Steps doesnt have you reading passages on the most obscure subjects and answering trippy questions. I obviously understand its not a good idea to not sleep. I wasnt going to cancel cause I paid money for it nor void it because Im a person that rathers failures than what ifs
 
ciestar said:
Start studying for Step and then see if you still think this.
My nerves before exams are worse than they ever were before I started med school. Step 1 is nothing like the MCAT.
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Ill reply in a few years time when Im studying for it and will let you know haha good luck!
 
Goro said:
No, but bad choice making is.
Click to expand...
I guess it is easy to say what I did was a bad choice when my circumstances aren't known. I just wanted to know if I will get screened out with that 123 even if I scored higher the next or 3rd and last time around. Thanks for your input though!
 
Nancycutie said:
Hi everyone

So I took the MCAT back in January I was scoring really well on my FLs and I knew I knew the material and the test. Thing is I got really anxious the night before and didnt get a blink of sleep (and the day before I only slept for like 6 hours) so my head was about to explode. You know that weird feeling when you get no sleep like its just been 1 LONG day not 2 different days? Either way I got there anyway and took the thing. Pretty much took thay whole thing on a weird trip, panicked a bit during it and guessed on a lot except the Bio biochem. Ended up with 128/123/131/127 509. Although the chem and physics surprised me (i thought i tanked it) i knew cars and psych had gone horribly. Basically couldnt read anything longer than a sentence without focusing. I took it again april but panicked the night before thinking the same thing was gonne happen. But I did get some sleep! Like 4 hours which was enough for me. Because of my nerves however i was having super bad chest pains (im usually a great test taker idk why these 2 things happened). Either way I took this test and feel like it went better especially the psych but still dont know for sure until I find out May. Just wanted to know if scoring so low on CARS would ruin me even if everything went up the second time around. Also in case it didnt or not by too much will it be horrible if I take it the 3rd time? Cause I feel like at this point Im gonna go in there with a la vie est belle attitude and do the way I was supposed to the first time around, but dont want the first and possibly also 2nd score hurting me. What schools reject 3 tries? Thanks loves!
Click to expand...

This is too much speculation. When you get your second score back, we can better advise. Hopefully, you improved on your retake.
 
Nancycutie said:
Hi everyone

So I took the MCAT back in January I was scoring really well on my FLs and I knew I knew the material and the test. Thing is I got really anxious the night before and didnt get a blink of sleep (and the day before I only slept for like 6 hours) so my head was about to explode. You know that weird feeling when you get no sleep like its just been 1 LONG day not 2 different days? Either way I got there anyway and took the thing. Pretty much took thay whole thing on a weird trip, panicked a bit during it and guessed on a lot except the Bio biochem. Ended up with 128/123/131/127 509. Although the chem and physics surprised me (i thought i tanked it) i knew cars and psych had gone horribly. Basically couldnt read anything longer than a sentence without focusing. I took it again april but panicked the night before thinking the same thing was gonne happen. But I did get some sleep! Like 4 hours which was enough for me. Because of my nerves however i was having super bad chest pains (im usually a great test taker idk why these 2 things happened). Either way I took this test and feel like it went better especially the psych but still dont know for sure until I find out May. Just wanted to know if scoring so low on CARS would ruin me even if everything went up the second time around. Also in case it didnt or not by too much will it be horrible if I take it the 3rd time? Cause I feel like at this point Im gonna go in there with a la vie est belle attitude and do the way I was supposed to the first time around, but dont want the first and possibly also 2nd score hurting me. What schools reject 3 tries? Thanks loves!
Click to expand...

I was (kinda) in your situation last year. Took the MCAT first time around and scored a 123 in CARS and a score around yours. Took the MCAT a second time and improved in all categories. It did not seem like any place I interviewed at cared that I took the MCAT twice. Can't speak for taking it 3 times, but 2 times is not a death sentence anywhere if you do show improvement.
 
Nancycutie said:
The way I see it though is that once you take boards you've learned a lot about handling life and have already gone through all of this (the med school process) that kind of desensitizes you to the nerves.
Click to expand...

Yeah that’s not how that works. The MCAT is nothing compared to Step. Your entire career hinges on that one test, a test where literally any, and every, minute detail is fair game and will be presented in a 3rd/4th order question. A test that you have sunk over $100k in prep for. The MCAT is a JV game to the Step’s Major Leagues.

Nancycutie said:
Also, medicine is my strong suit. I got 99% on B/B on 30 hours of no sleep and right after knowing I bombed CARS.
Click to expand...

That’s not how that works either.

Don’t make excuses. Adcoms won’t care if you didn’t sleep at all, what they see is the 123. If you make excuses like this in your app then adcoms will probably just chuck it. Let us know how the retake goes, as all this worry may be for naught.
 
personperson said:
I was (kinda) in your situation last year. Took the MCAT first time around and scored a 123 in CARS and a score around yours. Took the MCAT a second time and improved in all categories. It did not seem like any place I interviewed at cared that I took the MCAT twice. Can't speak for taking it 3 times, but 2 times is not a death sentence anywhere if you do show improvement.
Click to expand...
Thats good to know! And nice on the interviews! If i may know what schools you applied and got interviews at? Did you matriculate into an MD? Thanks 🙂
 
Nancycutie said:
Thats good to know! And nice on the interviews! If i may know what schools you applied and got interviews at? Did you matriculate into an MD? Thanks 🙂
Click to expand...

I'm not going to list all of the schools out, but I interviewed at places including Hopkins, Penn, and Columbia. And yes, I will be matriculating MD
 
abc123. said:
what are my chances of getting into US MD/DO school?
Took MCAT 5 times - 490, 492, 495, 494 (planning to take 5th time. It has been 1 year since the last MCAT)
Undergrad GPA: 3.65
Also completing a post-bac. Have 2 years of medical field experience and lots of volunteer experience.
Click to expand...

This better be a joke question....
 
Nancycutie said:
Hi everyone

So I took the MCAT back in January I was scoring really well on my FLs and I knew I knew the material and the test. Thing is I got really anxious the night before and didnt get a blink of sleep (and the day before I only slept for like 6 hours) so my head was about to explode. You know that weird feeling when you get no sleep like its just been 1 LONG day not 2 different days? Either way I got there anyway and took the thing. Pretty much took thay whole thing on a weird trip, panicked a bit during it and guessed on a lot except the Bio biochem. Ended up with 128/123/131/127 509. Although the chem and physics surprised me (i thought i tanked it) i knew cars and psych had gone horribly. Basically couldnt read anything longer than a sentence without focusing. I took it again april but panicked the night before thinking the same thing was gonne happen. But I did get some sleep! Like 4 hours which was enough for me. Because of my nerves however i was having super bad chest pains (im usually a great test taker idk why these 2 things happened). Either way I took this test and feel like it went better especially the psych but still dont know for sure until I find out May. Just wanted to know if scoring so low on CARS would ruin me even if everything went up the second time around. Also in case it didnt or not by too much will it be horrible if I take it the 3rd time? Cause I feel like at this point Im gonna go in there with a la vie est belle attitude and do the way I was supposed to the first time around, but dont want the first and possibly also 2nd score hurting me. What schools reject 3 tries? Thanks loves!
Click to expand...

I did not take the MCAT two times, but my one score I stuck with had a low CARS (129/124/129/130), and I was surprised with how well the cycle went! I don't think any school screens for a low subsection score, but it is not the best thing for sure.. If your CARS didn't improve, you will definitely need to explain the low CARS on the secondaries and hope adcoms look past it. I hate CARS more than anyone, so I feel your pain. I would not take the MCAT a 3rd time no matter what score you get.

On the secondaries, I just stated something along the lines of, "the subject matter in the CARS section on this test day did not interest me at all, and I often lost focus during the exam. This being said, I realize that it is a standardized test and thus many students must have performed very well. I am disappointed for not performing as well as I could." I think it was well received because I didn't just make excuses, I admitted that I did not perform as well as many of my peers and took accountability for that.
 
Anonymityismyname18 said:
I did not take the MCAT two times, but my one score I stuck with had a low CARS (129/124/129/130), and I was surprised with how well the cycle went! I don't think any school screens for a low subsection score, but it is not the best thing for sure.. If your CARS didn't improve, you will definitely need to explain the low CARS on the secondaries and hope adcoms look past it. I hate CARS more than anyone, so I feel your pain. I would not take the MCAT a 3rd time no matter what score you get.

On the secondaries, I just stated something along the lines of, "the subject matter in the CARS section on this test day did not interest me at all, and I often lost focus during the exam. This being said, I realize that it is a standardized test and thus many students must have performed very well. I am disappointed for not performing as well as I could." I think it was well received because I didn't just make excuses, I admitted that I did not perform as well as many of my peers and took accountability for that.
Click to expand...

Awesome!! I’m glad it went well for you! Thanks for your words.
 
doctorcocter said:
None? How do you get in without taking the MCAT?
Click to expand...

Some places, like Feinberg, have programs where you apply after your sophomore year and don't have to take the MCAT to get into school, and the MSQ is given to all 1st years.

Also, only 9% of matriculated students took it 3 times, but that really doesn't speak to the percentage of people that took it 3 times and got in. I took it 3 times, 34 33 37 and still matriculated MD.
 
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