Hi, and thank you for your help! I am currently in my first glide year and looking to apply for admission to medical school next year. I would like advice on whether I should retake the MCAT given my circumstances.
I graduated with an engineering degree from one of the HYPSM schools, and I have taken two post-bacc classes (stats and anatomy II) at a state university. My cGPA is 3.3 and my BCPM GPA is also 3.3. My sophomore year grades are the lowest due to overextending myself. The worst grade on my transcript is one C+, and all the rest of my grades are in the B range with a few As. My undergrad school and particular program are known for grade deflation. My post-bacc grades are A and A+. I took the MCAT in August 2019, and my score is 515 (131, 130, 128, 126).
In addition to my classes and scores, I have been awarded a patent for something medical-related that I invented a few years ago and currently have a second patent pending for a medical device. Both inventions are unrelated to my school work and were prompted by the health care needs of members of my community. I also have about 560 hours of working in a clinical setting (health assistant at a clinic for children), moderate volunteer work (some is related to child abuse care/advocacy and some is related to engineering outreach to girls), 1 year of biomolecular engineering lab research (cut short by Covid, unfortunately), and significant leadership experience (president of the largest student group at my university and business manager for another student group). I currently work in manufacturing for a large corporation (not health care related) as our facility’s root cause analysis specialist.
I can retake the MCAT if needed but am unsure if I should. On the one hand, improving my Biology and Psychology section scores could help. On the other hand, instead of spending time studying again for the MCAT, I could spend that time improving other areas of my application, such as taking additional classes at night or volunteering somewhere on weekends.
Thank you again for your guidance. -- MimiW
