RETAKE MCATS??

[IGGA]

hello everyone...
my mcat scores are back.. vr=6, and 10,10 in biological and physical..and my gpa is 3.5.. i'm expecting a dual degree in biophysics and psychology... i'm really worried about my verbal score however english is my second language.. and also i took mcats last august and i got 8 in verbal and 9,9 in biological and physical section... should i retake my mcats or no?? i don't think i can boost up my verbal score by much... i would really appreciate your answers.. thank you

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[MTY]

would you consider osteopathic or do you only want to attend allopathic schools?

 

[Carbon Klein]

Too bad about your poor verbal showing. Having English as your second language will account for some of the negative impact of the low showing, but it still won't be enough to get ad coms to overlook the fact that they have way too many qualified applicants with better MCATs than you.

With the rest of your MCAT being pretty good, you should retake the MCAT. Make sure your 10s don't slip into 9s or 8s. To prep for your verbal, read lots of books over the summer. Take your TV and put it in the basement and unhook your computer from the internet (surfing and forums like this one takes up an enormous amount of time). Go to the library, go the bookstores, borrow from friends etc. Read everything. Read fiction, read non-fiction. Read trashy John Grisham novels and literary greats like Sam Beckett. (I wouldn't waste my time with poetry, it's too difficult and may not help with the MCAT).

Here's some medically related books that are well written and easy/fun to read:

The House of God, Samuel Shem MD (about IM residents at Harvard, this one is fiction)

Walking Out on the Boys, Frances Conley MD (about male and female neurosurgeons and the academic politics at Stanford)

When the Air Hits your Brain, Frank Vertosick MD (about a med student who becomes a neurosurgeon)

The Healing Blade, Edward Sylvester (about cutting edge vascular neurosurgery at the Barrow Neuro Institute, I love this book)

Gifted Hands, Ben Carson MD (an inspiring story about a pediatric neurosurgeon who grew up in the ghettos of Detroit and Boston, I'm reading this book now)

These books are fairly quick reads. You can literally read 100 pages in one afternoon. They are well written and do include technical information that teachs the reader about the field (much like the Verbal passages in the MCAT). There's no simple answer to the Verbal except that you must read, read, read!

 

[IGGA]

THANKS for ure advice Klein... i'll get started reading now..

i'm still scared :-( hopefully i'll do better....

 

[buttercup]

IGGA, as usual I agree with carbon, but I'd like to add that it's really really important to read some boring material- particularily political magazines like "atlantic monthly", "george", "the economist", in addition try some science magazines like "discover" or "nature". And finally, the New York Times is always a good way to brush up reading and speed skills. Believe me, this practice reading really helps. It got me a 15 verbal on my MCATs

 

[nontradstudent]

IGCA,

I'm also a non native English speaker. I was in a similiar situation like you last year. If you decide to retake MCAT again (3rd time) and can't improve your score much, it'd look bad on your application. With your GPA and MCAT, I think you have good chance with DO schools, but you have to apply NOW. If your heart only lies on MD schools, then try to retake MCAT.

 

[IGGA]

What are the similarities and differences in a DO school and a allopathic school?? and what would i be loosing if i decide to go to a DO school instead of allopathic school?? I'm interested in going for surgery.. would it be possible if i go to a DO school?? thank you
-IGGA

 

[kmmath]

Have you spoken with a pre-med advisor at your school? Because English is your second language, I have to think that that would be considered in your application...

 

[jimmybee]

hi......I am in a very similiar situation... I too got a 6 in verbal, and 10's in the sciences. I have a 3.88 gpa (3.9 in science), but English is not my second language. I do not beleive that a 6 in verbal will be the only reason an applicant is not accepted into medical school even if it is an MD school. For instance I have talked to admissions at MSU-COM and they told me that I shouldn't worry about retaking the test because of my high grade point and extra-curricular activities. Undoubtedly, however, many schools we will be left out from and it is a shame. But in my opinion, anywhere is better than no where.

 

[Ducki]

I have the same MCAT scores and am actually pretty shocked at such a low verbal score, especially since I was getting at least 9's on my practice tests. I do not consider English to be my second language, although I was not born here. However, my Premed advisor told me that if you did not check the box on the MCAT application saying that your native language is English, adcoms will not be so harsh on a low verbal MCAT score. (Which I didn't do.)

But my question is will a low score be overlooked if good grades (A's) were received in the humanities, social sciences and English courses taken in college?

 

[Arti]

Having one weird (low) score or thing on your application will not hinder you. Most schools will give you the benefit of the doubt (except for duke). Retaking the MCAT is a really bad idea, it is BITCH of a test and ussually you can only get enough juice to do it once. My advice for all with one low score (esspecially verbal) is too forget about it and apply. On my MCAT my physical and verbal had a 6 point difference and out of more than 20 interviews only one person brought it up and I still got accepted into that school.

The other piece of advice for everyone is too really spend time on your essay and give it to lots of people to read, that is the thing that will ultimately decide whether you get an interview and later on an acceptance.

Arti

Arti

 

[tristate]

Well, I really don't think that you should retake the MCAT. The composites are the same, so unless you study super hard for the next few months, I would predict that you'll stay in the same range. Right now, focus on your essays and application to whatever school you decide.

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