Should I retake? Advice needed!

[junos187]

Hi all,

I have a quick question about my MCAT scores. I got a 31R on my MCAT last yr with the following breakdown: PS 8, VR 12, BS 11. I'm debating if I should retake it because of the PS score at the same time I don't want to mess up the VR score. My GPA is not that great and I'm gonna do a post bac to fix that problem.

Do you think retaking the test is a good idea because of the 8? Or should I now focus on the postbac and other aspects of the application?

Thanks for your time

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[LifetimeDoc]

It depends on where you are applying, how the rest of your application compares (i.e. do you have a GPA of 3.8 or 3.3), and if you are confident your other scores won't go down the next time. A 31 is the "average" for white males (I believe for black and hispanic URMs it's a 25, check the AAMC stats) who matriculated to medical school in the USA, so that score should be fine for many schools as long as the rest of your application is average to above average. If you are a

 

[Beau Geste]

Don't Retake It!

 

[GujuMD]

Don't retake it!

 

[QofQuimica]

No, I wouldn't suggest that you retake it. If you're a reapplicant who was rejected everywhere last year, there are probably more serious problems with your app than your MCAT score (such as weak grades, essays, ECs, LORs, interview skills, etc.) You should contact the med schools that rejected you and ask for some advice to improve your app. If you're a first-time applicant, your MCAT score is adequate for the majority of medical schools. Work on strengthening the rest of your app.

 

[GuzzyRon]

Your scores are good enough to get you into medical school. If you don't get in, it is definitely something other than your MCAT scores. So you should be looking at buffing other aspects like your GPA, ECs, clinical experiences, personality and even interviewing skills. Bottomline: focus on your postbacc and other aspects.

Hi all,

I have a quick question about my MCAT scores. I got a 31R on my MCAT last yr with the following breakdown: PS 8, VR 12, BS 11. I'm debating if I should retake it because of the PS score at the same time I don't want to mess up the VR score. My GPA is not that great and I'm gonna do a post bac to fix that problem.

Do you think retaking the test is a good idea because of the 8? Or should I now focus on the postbac and other aspects of the application?

Thanks for your time

 

[theunremarkable]

Dont retake. Your mcat score is not the problem.

 

[junos187]

Thanks for the advice, I greatly appreciate it. I was worried about the 8 but we'll see

 

[TPROrgoTutor]

Just a statistic for you. Over 70% of retesters who have a score below 31 decrease on their retest. Over 70% of those above a 31 increase in their score. You seem to fall right on the line there.

 

[bubabugster]

Just a statistic for you. Over 70% of retesters who have a score below 31 decrease on their retest.

Oh man! If I knew that I wouldn't have retaken, now I'm 110% sure my MCAT score will suck. Before reading this I was pretty sure things would be bad because of the VR, but now it's practically written in stone

 

[DrVanNostran]

Thanks for the advice, I greatly appreciate it. I was worried about the 8 but we'll see

Which masters did you end up applying for? I would think a 31 is solid, you just need to boost that Science GPA to atleast a 3.0...good luck

 

[j-med]

You should contact the med schools that rejected you and ask for some advice to improve your app.

Are they willing to do that? What's the best way to ask? Do you just directly ask them, for example, what they thought of your essay and how you may improve it? And is it also a good idea to share with them your GPA/MCAT?

I am rejected by a summer program by one of these schools, and the admissions dean, who also manages some of the med school admissions, offered to give help on the med schools application. But I'm just wondering, would approaching the dean for advice, in some ways be a negative thing to do, because there's a chance that he/she may link up your name with the title "failed applicant at our program" everytime he comes across my application in the future?

Especially if I have some true concerns about my application, some mediocre scores that is affecting my decision that I need advice on, it's still best not to talk about that with him right? or no?