retake mcat in july? please help

[ricecakeMD]

Hi guys

So I got my scores back from the May 31st test and I got a 11/8/12 (PS/VR/BS).
I was so shocked about VR because I has been getting 11s consistently on every single practice aamc and I am not completely sure I actually answered all of the questions because the power went off for everyone during that section and rebooting everyone's computers disoriented me, not to mention my extreme nerves during the real test. My question is should I retake? I am planning for a July 24th date to still be able to apply for this cycle (already verified and sent in primary to one school). I think that I can definitely improve VR b/c I had never gotten anything other than an 11 or 10 (once!) on a test but I'm not sure about sciences. My GPA is a 3.77c and a 3.62s. My ECs are decent and letters of rec probably decent. Thank you guys so much for reading and any suggestions would be EXTREMELY appreciated!

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[Heplayer92]

I also received an 8 in Verbal...and averaged 11s on AAMCs so I feel your pain. Bummer on the power going out though...gez! It is what it is though. Honestly, 31 is the national average/median for matriculants, and your GPA is around the average too. If you apply broadly and research schools via MSAR, there is no reason why you shouldn't get a couple of interviews, especially at your state schools. The consensus on SDN is that 8 is not a deal-breaker, but it's definitely on the edge. If everything else is fine, you should be OK.

I honestly would not retake unless you were averaging 34/35+. You will always run the risk of scoring lower, and that would dramatically decrease your chances. It's common to do +/- 3 points from your AAMC averages. Unfortunately for some of us, we score below our averages =/ But the MCAT is only one part of the application process. Make sure you write some solid secondaries, prepare well for your interviews, and you'll definitely be getting for medical school this time next year. All it takes is 1 school!

Best of luck OP!

 

[ricecakeMD]

I also received an 8 in Verbal...and averaged 11s on AAMCs so I feel your pain. Bummer on the power going out though...gez! It is what it is though. Honestly, 31 is the national average/median for matriculants, and your GPA is around the average too. If you apply broadly and research schools via MSAR, there is no reason why you shouldn't get a couple of interviews, especially at your state schools. The consensus on SDN is that 8 is not a deal-breaker, but it's definitely on the edge. If everything else is fine, you should be OK.

I honestly would not retake unless you were averaging 34/35+. You will always run the risk of scoring lower, and that would dramatically decrease your chances. It's common to do +/- 3 points from your AAMC averages. Unfortunately for some of us, we score below our averages =/ But the MCAT is only one part of the application process. Make sure you write some solid secondaries, prepare well for your interviews, and you'll definitely be getting for medical school this time next year. All it takes is 1 school!

Best of luck OP!

Thank you so much for your advice! I was averaging 34 but idk...I feel like I just didn't demonstrate the amount of effort and time I put into studying and I had extreme nerves. I also don't think I would get an interview from my state school because I'm from CA. Also I'm Asian. Would it be better to apply early and write good secondaries fast with my current score or retake in July 24th (assuming I get at least a 33) and have secondaries and a complete application a bit later? (end of August)?

 

[ricecakeMD]

bump

 

[DocInTheBox92]

OP, I've talked to several advisers about this exact problem. As long as you have a competitive score that is within range of your target score, you should not retake the MCAT. The reason for this is because if you retake it and get the same score, worse score, or even a 1 pt improvement, med school admissions will assume that is your ceiling and you are incapable of doing better. So I think it would be very risky for you to retake the MCAT. Also, your scores are good enough to grant at least a few interviews where you will be able to talk about the power outage.