Retook MCAT second time and got a lower score, already have interviews. CHANCES?

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ronisback1

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Hey all,

here is my situation: i took the MCAT for the first time on 5/31/12.. got a 10PS, 11BS, 8VR (29R) composite. registered to take it again on 8/23/12. the only reason I registered again was because a lot of things went wrong on 5/31 and I was sure I would do better next time around. I had a call from nature in the middle of my PS section.. got up and went to the restroom with the clock running. came back and about 2.5 minutes had passed on the clock. I had to guess on about 3 questions at the very end of PS (didn't even get to answer one before time ran out). then came verbal... didn't finish. had to guess on 2 or 3 at the end. BS was the only section I felt good about. with all these things going wrong, i STILL ended up getting a 29R. not saying it's a stellar score but I felt it was decent considering the circumstances. and I took the kaplan online class to study prior to 5/31. i registered for the 8/23/12 because I felt that this time around, if I didn't take a bathroom break, I would at least hit 30.. hell I was one point away!

so between 5/31 and 8/23, I finished my TMDSAS and AMCAS, and studied my butt off.. studied all the AAMCs, retook some and took some for the first time, went over each answer, etc.

Between 8/23 and 9/13, I received an interview from UTMB and TCOM based on the 29R.

9/25/12- score on second MCAT released.. 11PS, 11BS, 6VR (28Q) composite. what the hell... VR kicked my *** and I didn't even see it coming! I actually felt good about VR the second time. finished all passages and questions. didn't skip anything on any section, and still bombed it. extreme disappointment unleashed at this point. i guess there was a gap in my preparation for VR the second time around.

so now my question is, do you think the one point decrease will be consequential to my acceptance.. at least from the two schools I have interviews with? I was counting on getting an interview at baylor and UTSW, but I think that ship has sailed... I fear rejection. From what I've read on here, it seems that some schools still look at your mcat scores to make a decision post-interview, it's not all a level playing field after invites. and with a one point decrease, it certainly can't look too great from the adcom's perspective.

any comments/advice will be MUCH appreciated from you future docs..

my other stats:
GPA: 4.0 (cumulative and science), bio major/chem minor, working as an ER scribe, decent research and volunteer experience.

TMDSAS verified and transmitted to schools 8/7/12. AMCAS transmitted to schools 8/30/12. secondaries submitted in july.

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Hey all,

here is my situation: i took the MCAT for the first time on 5/31/12.. got a 10PS, 11BS, 8VR (29R) composite. registered to take it again on 8/23/12. the only reason I registered again was because a lot of things went wrong on 5/31 and I was sure I would do better next time around. I had a call from nature in the middle of my PS section.. got up and went to the restroom with the clock running. came back and about 2.5 minutes had passed on the clock. I had to guess on about 3 questions at the very end of PS (didn't even get to answer one before time ran out). then came verbal... didn't finish. had to guess on 2 or 3 at the end. BS was the only section I felt good about. with all these things going wrong, i STILL ended up getting a 29R. not saying it's a stellar score but I felt it was decent considering the circumstances. and I took the kaplan online class to study prior to 5/31. i registered for the 8/23/12 because I felt that this time around, if I didn't take a bathroom break, I would at least hit 30.. hell I was one point away!

so between 5/31 and 8/23, I finished my TMDSAS and AMCAS, and studied my butt off.. studied all the AAMCs, retook some and took some for the first time, went over each answer, etc.

Between 8/23 and 9/13, I received an interview from UTMB and TCOM based on the 29R.

9/25/12- score on second MCAT released.. 11PS, 11BS, 6VR (28Q) composite. what the hell... VR kicked my *** and I didn't even see it coming! I actually felt good about VR the second time. finished all passages and questions. didn't skip anything on any section, and still bombed it. extreme disappointment unleashed at this point. i guess there was a gap in my preparation for VR the second time around.

so now my question is, do you think the one point decrease will be consequential to my acceptance.. at least from the two schools I have interviews with? I was counting on getting an interview at baylor and UTSW, but I think that ship has sailed... I fear rejection. From what I've read on here, it seems that some schools still look at your mcat scores to make a decision post-interview, it's not all a level playing field after invites. and with a one point decrease, it certainly can't look too great from the adcom's perspective.

any comments/advice will be MUCH appreciated from you future docs..

my other stats:
GPA: 4.0 (cumulative and science), bio major/chem minor, working as an ER scribe, decent research and volunteer experience.

TMDSAS verified and transmitted to schools 8/7/12. AMCAS transmitted to schools 8/30/12. secondaries submitted in july.

I doubt schools will care. A 1 point difference is well within a standard of error. It would be much more worrisome if your score dropped 3 points or more. The 28 just confirms that your score of 29 was not a one-off event.

Nice work on your GPA. I would be pretty confident in your chances this cycle.
 
Quit fussing and start preparing for that interview. You're fine.

Hey all,

here is my situation: i took the MCAT for the first time on 5/31/12.. got a 10PS, 11BS, 8VR (29R) composite. registered to take it again on 8/23/12. the only reason I registered again was because a lot of things went wrong on 5/31 and I was sure I would do better next time around. I had a call from nature in the middle of my PS section.. got up and went to the restroom with the clock running. came back and about 2.5 minutes had passed on the clock. I had to guess on about 3 questions at the very end of PS (didn't even get to answer one before time ran out). then came verbal... didn't finish. had to guess on 2 or 3 at the end. BS was the only section I felt good about. with all these things going wrong, i STILL ended up getting a 29R. not saying it's a stellar score but I felt it was decent considering the circumstances. and I took the kaplan online class to study prior to 5/31. i registered for the 8/23/12 because I felt that this time around, if I didn't take a bathroom break, I would at least hit 30.. hell I was one point away!

so between 5/31 and 8/23, I finished my TMDSAS and AMCAS, and studied my butt off.. studied all the AAMCs, retook some and took some for the first time, went over each answer, etc.

Between 8/23 and 9/13, I received an interview from UTMB and TCOM based on the 29R.

9/25/12- score on second MCAT released.. 11PS, 11BS, 6VR (28Q) composite. what the hell... VR kicked my *** and I didn't even see it coming! I actually felt good about VR the second time. finished all passages and questions. didn't skip anything on any section, and still bombed it. extreme disappointment unleashed at this point. i guess there was a gap in my preparation for VR the second time around.

so now my question is, do you think the one point decrease will be consequential to my acceptance.. at least from the two schools I have interviews with? I was counting on getting an interview at baylor and UTSW, but I think that ship has sailed... I fear rejection. From what I've read on here, it seems that some schools still look at your mcat scores to make a decision post-interview, it's not all a level playing field after invites. and with a one point decrease, it certainly can't look too great from the adcom's perspective.

any comments/advice will be MUCH appreciated from you future docs..

my other stats:
GPA: 4.0 (cumulative and science), bio major/chem minor, working as an ER scribe, decent research and volunteer experience.

TMDSAS verified and transmitted to schools 8/7/12. AMCAS transmitted to schools 8/30/12. secondaries submitted in july.
 
I doubt schools will care. A 1 point difference is well within a standard of error. It would be much more worrisome if your score dropped 3 points or more. The 28 just confirms that your score of 29 was not a one-off event.

Nice work on your GPA. I would be pretty confident in your chances this cycle.

Thank you! the only thing that worries me is the 6 in VR the second time around. I have heard on this forum that 8 is generally the cut off for most schools. However, I did improve in the other two sections. I have an interview at TCOM next tuesday. Do schools look at the mcat score after the interview to assess whether or not they will offer acceptance?
 
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