Non-traditional pre-med student in need of advice!

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

ClarkKentofPreMD

Membership Revoked
Removed
7+ Year Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2014
Messages
21
Reaction score
1
I have just recently signed up for the MCAT. My test date is January 23, 2014 at 8AM.
My back story is very simple. I received a GED diploma. After that I went to a community college where I took 60 credits with an overall GPA of 2.7. Then I transferred to a 4 year school and went there for 4 semester. In those 4 semesters I have taken 69 credits with an overall GPA of 3.93. I have made the highest honor's list at this school also for past four semesters. Now, I'm two semesters away from my bachelors degree. I have signed up for 13 credits this upcoming fall semester in which I have 2 full days of school and 1 half day. I want to do really well on the MCAT and I don't plan on taking it twice. I have EC, Berkeley, Princeton, Kaplan, 9 AAMC practice exams (3R, 4R, 5R, 6R, 7R, 8R, 9R, 10R, and 11R) and AAMC self-assessment package. I also took questions from different websites that had MCAT material on it.
I'm trying to aim for a 40+ and I feel if I do not take this upcoming fall semester off... I won't be able to get the score I desire. Over all I'm looking at 20,000 questions for the MCAT material.
My question is if I take time off for the MCAT will that effect my medical school application in any way?
I'm 26 years old and I started college at the age of 21. I took part time and full time during my community college years. However, during my 4 semesters in a 4 year school I have taken 17, 17, 18, and 17 making it a total 69 credits with a 3.93 GPA over all at this 4 year school.
Overall, I have a 3.35 GPA currently and after graduation if I keep getting A I will have a 3.62+ GPA over all and 3.62+ GPA in overall science also.
I want an honest and professional advice on this matter.
I don't want to do bad on the MCAT and nor do I want to hinder my chances towards good medical schools.
I know I'm not perfect and I'm well aware of how bad I did during my community college years. However, I refuse to give up on myself. I just need proper guidance. I have no one else to ask and even the pre-health adviser at my school isn't very helpful.
By the way, I'm majoring in Bioscience with a minor in chemistry and psychology.

Thank you,
CK

Members don't see this ad.
 
Last edited:
Well, something that you should know; a 40+ is incredibly rare on the MCAT. Fortunately, you'll be taking one of the last standard format MCATs, so you should be able to rely on most of the advice already in the MCAT section. Personally, I think if you get anything like a 30 or better, you'll be doing pretty well for yourself.

If you're worried about your previous GPA hindering you, utilizing DO grade replacement will be the quickest fix. However, if you're expecting a 3.6 in both categories, you don't really have to do that unless you have no luck in the cycle.

Did you take your pre-requisites at community college? Some institutions don't accept them if they are. It's worth looking into if that's your situation.

Don't fret, and good luck! :D
 
Well, something that you should know; a 40+ is incredibly rare on the MCAT. Fortunately, you'll be taking one of the last standard format MCATs, so you should be able to rely on most of the advice already in the MCAT section. Personally, I think if you get anything like a 30 or better, you'll be doing pretty well for yourself.

If you're worried about your previous GPA hindering you, utilizing DO grade replacement will be the quickest fix. However, if you're expecting a 3.6 in both categories, you don't really have to do that unless you have no luck in the cycle.

Did you take your pre-requisites at community college? Some institutions don't accept them if they are. It's worth looking into if that's your situation.

Don't fret, and good luck! :D

Nothing in life is rare and nothing is impossible. I want to aim for a high score so my mind can adjust to the type of studying a 40+ score requires. I took most of my pre-reqs at a 4 year school if not all except biology 2, gen chem 1 &2. The rest I took it at my current 4 year school. I did my grade calculation and saw that if I keep getting the grades I am now.. I will have a chance of getting a 3.6+ sGPA and over GPA also. I'm only going for MD and nothing else. No DO, MD/PhD or anything like that. I just want to know if I take this semester off for the MCAT... will that effect my medical school application in any way in the long run when I start applying for medical schools?
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Personally, I'm not sure how a semester leave is construed. You may be able to rely on your winter break for dedicated study time. I can't answer the former, sorry. But good luck! :)
 
Nothing in life is rare and nothing is impossible. I want to aim for a high score so my mind can adjust to the type of studying a 40+ score requires. I took most of my pre-reqs at a 4 year school if not all except biology 2, gen chem 1 &2. The rest I took it at my current 4 year school. I did my grade calculation and saw that if I keep getting the grades I am now.. I will have a chance of getting a 3.6+ sGPA and over GPA also. I'm only going for MD and nothing else. No DO, MD/PhD or anything like that. I just want to know if I take this semester off for the MCAT... will that effect my medical school application in any way in the long run when I start applying for medical schools?

Probably not, but it might end up being one of those "damed if you, damned if you don't" type of situations. If you take a semester off to devote all your time to studying, thats 4.5 months of dedicated study time. Let's pretend you get a 31 (avg score for matriculants), then it may seem as though you didn't know the material well enough (despite getting good grades in those classes) since it took you 4.5 months of dedicated studying just to get that score. If you end up with a 35+, then anyone evaluating your app may be inclined to think, "Well, I would expect that high of a score, considering all of the time off he/she took to study." Either way, your score appears less impressive than it would have had you taken a more typical amount of time to study.

P.S. Obviously, its great to aim for the highest possible score you think you can achieve, but it also helps to be realistic. MCAT data from 2013 shows that 0.6% of test takers achieved a 40+. Thats less than 600 examinees out of ~95,000. You can check it out here: https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/data/mcat_stats/
 
Probably not, but it might end up being one of those "damed if you, damned if you don't" type of situations. If you take a semester off to devote all your time to studying, thats 4.5 months of dedicated study time. Let's pretend you get a 31 (avg score for matriculants), then it may seem as though you didn't know the material well enough (despite getting good grades in those classes) since it took you 4.5 months of dedicated studying just to get that score. If you end up with a 35+, then anyone evaluating your app may be inclined to think, "Well, I would expect that high of a score, considering all of the time off he/she took to study." Either way, your score appears less impressive than it would have had you taken a more typical amount of time to study.

P.S. Obviously, its great to aim for the highest possible score you think you can achieve, but it also helps to be realistic. MCAT data from 2013 shows that 0.6% of test takers achieved a 40+. Thats less than 600 examinees out of ~95,000. You can check it out here: https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/data/mcat_stats/
MCAT is not based on luck. The more you study the better you get at it. Sure it is very hard to even think of getting a 40+. However, others ability to whether do well or not does not dictate my score range nor my abilities. I believe in myself. Obstacles are only as hard as you make it. If I work hard I'm sure I will get rewarded. You made a good point about reviewing the application if I take the time off and do in 35+. I have two weeks to think about this. I'm not afraid of working hard. I just don't have the right guidance.
 
I'm more a fan of good preparation rather than magic thinking. I see both in your posts.

Your upward trend in the last three semesters will help a lot, and I don't think you'll be hurt by the semester off too much. You'll need to explain it well in interviews, so be prepared for the "why no fall 2014 semester?" questions.

The advice you're being given on being realistic and tempering your expectations is extremely sound. You could take all the batting practice you like, but it's highly unlikely you'll be hitting anything when Mariano Rivera throws a 99 MPH fastball to you.

At the least, during your study this fall, take a stats course.

MCAT is not based on luck. The more you study the better you get at it. Sure it is very hard to even think of getting a 40+. However, others ability to whether do well or not does not dictate my score range nor my abilities. I believe in myself. Obstacles are only as hard as you make it. If I work hard I'm sure I will get rewarded. You made a good point about reviewing the application if I take the time off and do in 35+. I have two weeks to think about this. I'm not afraid of working hard. I just don't have the right guidance.
 
I'm more a fan of good preparation rather than magic thinking. I see both in your posts.

Your upward trend in the last three semesters will help a lot, and I don't think you'll be hurt by the semester off too much. You'll need to explain it well in interviews, so be prepared for the "why no fall 2014 semester?" questions.

The advice you're being given on being realistic and tempering your expectations is extremely sound. You could take all the batting practice you like, but it's highly unlikely you'll be hitting anything when Mariano Rivera throws a 99 MPH fastball to you.

At the least, during your study this fall, take a stats course.
You know I would have believed your statement four semesters ago but Mariano Rivera and Randy Johnson on his prime got nothing on me. I do believe if you work hard and study in the way the test requires... Anything in possible. At the end of the day it is just an exam. You can make it hard by thinking it that way or you can make it easy by studying the right way. MCAT is just a number and I'm greater than that. I won't give up. I'm just going to take 9 credits and study day and night for this exam. I'm sure that 40+ will come knocking on my door. At the end of the day HOPE is all I have whether its for the better or worse.
I believe in myself and I will try my best to make this a reality.
 
Take the time off and kill the test! Just be ready to have a good answer during interviews. If you do really well, I don't see a problem. Good luck.
 
Top