RN to MD - Retake a 508?

[L&DtoMD]

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Hello, people, it's been several years since I last came on here and oh boy have things changed. I diverted from the MD path to go for nurse-midwifery. Although I enjoy being an L&D nurse, I do not feel like I am meant to be a permanent bedside nurse. It doesn't meet my career goals. Since my BS in philosophy (on the pre-med track), I've since earned an MSN (there are entry level MSN programs that just give you the RN, this was not an NP program) with a CNL certification. Along the way, I've realized that any kind of NP school, including CNM school, is not going to have the rigor I'm looking for. There is a lot more to it but I'll stop talking.

I took the MCAT in 2022 (see below), so I figure it's too old for the 2026-2027 cycle? I think I tried taking it without biochemistry under my belt like an idiot, so that explains the 124 which is the main thing I'm caught up on. TO RETAKE OR NOT TO RETAKE?

My stats for a full picture, but please don't feel obligated to read past the MCAT score:

508 MCAT (126/129/124/129), cumulative undergrad GPA: 3.79, sGPA 3.68 (edit: graduated in 2023), MSN GPA (which I'm aware doesn't matter much) 3.91

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Research: research assistantships in 3 specialties (FM, surgical education, and OBGYN), 1 publication (it won that society's best paper of the year), 2 posters (1 at grad school level but it was not in a hard science that time), 1 graduate QI capstone project (which I may publish in a low(er) impact factor journal)

1 graduate nursing honor society, 2 other undergrad awards

4 public talks/lectures on topics ranging from the history of midwifery, reproductive anatomy, and global sexual health trends

Internships: graduate nurse externship on L&D, undergrad public health internship for 2 semesters

Employment: CNA for ~1 year at 24 hours a week (med/surg and ICU), CCMA for ~1 year (ranging from 8-32 hours/week), OB technician for 6 months full time, PRN free birth doula work on the side, and by the time I apply I'll have total 1 year and 9 months of nursing experience (all L&D so far) ranging from 12-36 hours/week

Misc: Chair of research on current hospital's professional governance board, was a member of my undergrad's survivor services advisory board, 3 different smaller healthcare-related volunteer gigs over 2 years (none currently), bioethics club member

I'm also a first generation college graduate. None of these activities are older than 2020.

 

[Goro]

State of residence?

What non-clinical volunteering have you done?

You're fine for DO right now, and MD with a strategic list.

 

[L&DtoMD]

State of residence?

What non-clinical volunteering have you done?

You're fine for DO right now, and MD with a strategic list.

State of residence is currently Illinois. For nonclinical volunteering all I have is that I was a notetaker for a disabled student at my university for a semester through my school's disability resource center. I could volunteer right now if I'm not dedicating my time to an MCAT retake.

You don't think the MCAT is too old? I'm willing to retake, but I do worry about scoring worse and ugh, that 124 on B/B!!!

I forgot that I also have 36 shadowing hours. 12 in OBGYN, 24 in plastic surgery (clinic and OR).

Thank you!

 

[Goro]

Your problem is the schools that are most likely to take a look at you are the ones that value service to others.

In order to develop a competitive application, you may very well have to retake the MCAT in addition to getting in the extracurriculars

 

[wysdoc]

MCAT for most AMCAS schools needs to be within 3 years I’m sorry to say, so you would need to retake it for applying in 2026-27

 

[L&DtoMD]

MCAT for most AMCAS schools needs to be within 3 years I’m sorry to say, so you would need to retake it for applying in 2026-27

Don't be sorry! I am not that bothered having to retake and I think I know where some of my weak points were last time and some things I did wrong in studying. I'm going to give myself more time to study than last time now that I work full time, but still leave enough of a safe gap between testing and applying. I think aiming for a 512 or higher isn't too bad of an expectation for myself. I primarily need to improve B/B and a little bit of C/P.