Should I take the MCAT this summer or wait until next year?

[Upward Spiral]

Ok so here's my current situation. I'm a biology major and will be finishing up my junior year of college in roughly a month. Originally I planned to take the MCAT after my junior year, but due to some unpredictable circumstances, there are a few classes I still need to take and in general, I don't feel ready at all for the MCAT. I still need to take Biochemistry and Intro to Sociology which is two core classes needed to take the MCAT and there are some extra classes I wanna take as well such as Cell Biology, Instrumental Analysis, and Developmental Biology. Would I be able to study on my own and do well or should I wait to apply next instead? Personally, I don't feel ready and would like to wait a year, but pressures from my family and uncertainty about what I would do during my gap year are pushing me towards taking it anyway. I want to get some outside opinions on this situation.

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[honey0102]

Ok so here's my current situation. I'm a biology major and will be finishing up my junior year of college in roughly a month. Originally I planned to take the MCAT after my junior year, but due to some unpredictable circumstances, there are a few classes I still need to take and in general, I don't feel ready at all for the MCAT. I still need to take Biochemistry and Intro to Sociology which is two core classes needed to take the MCAT and there are some extra classes I wanna take as well such as Cell Biology, Instrumental Analysis, and Developmental Biology. Would I be able to study on my own and do well or should I wait to apply next instead? Personally, I don't feel ready and would like to wait a year, but pressures from my family and uncertainty about what I would do during my gap year are pushing me towards taking it anyway. I want to get some outside opinions on this situation.

If you personally don't feel ready, then take the extra year. You are the one taking the exam so you would likely be able to gauge this better than others. It is better to take it once and do well than to take it twice, and if you don't do well the first time it's possible that you may not get into medical school if you apply with that score.
A gap year done well can also enhance an application. You could get clinical experience, volunteer, do research, etc

 

[Welshman]

Biochem is the foundation of the new mcat since everything has to be biologically relevant so I would definetly not take the mcat without it.

As for sociology it really isn't even a core part of the PS section, I think it's only like 20% of questions, and it's definetly the one section that's easiest to study on your own. (I took soc before the MCAT and was pretty disappointed by how little was on there)

The other classes you mentioned are going to be fairly low yield in terms of mcat benefit/ time invested

Self studying has been discussed elsewhere on the forum but by self studying you tend to miss the tips and tricks that professors learn from a lifetime of learning and teaching, my 2¢.

 

[123456ers]

Ok so here's my current situation. I'm a biology major and will be finishing up my junior year of college in roughly a month. Originally I planned to take the MCAT after my junior year, but due to some unpredictable circumstances, there are a few classes I still need to take and in general, I don't feel ready at all for the MCAT. I still need to take Biochemistry and Intro to Sociology which is two core classes needed to take the MCAT and there are some extra classes I wanna take as well such as Cell Biology, Instrumental Analysis, and Developmental Biology. Would I be able to study on my own and do well or should I wait to apply next instead? Personally, I don't feel ready and would like to wait a year, but pressures from my family and uncertainty about what I would do during my gap year are pushing me towards taking it anyway. I want to get some outside opinions on this situation.

Take the extra year man. No harm in that at all.. I am finishing up biochem 1 right now and it has been so unbelievably helpful for preparing for the MCAT. I highly suggest you take the MCAT after a semester of biochem.

 

[markovchn123]

Definitely take biochem, it is crucial, and difficult to learn on your own efficiently. You should only ever take the MCAT when you feel ready, remember that every score counts on your app, so if you don't do good the first time and have to retake, med schools know that. I was in your situation, I didn't take biochem yet and was planning on taking the MCAT the summer after my sophomore year, but at some point during the time I studied I didn't feel ready and decided to postpone until after biochem. Best decision I could have made

 

[Dagrimsta1]

Take the year, Take it in january and re apply. Your best bet it looks like

 

[fivemoreminutesplease]

Everyone here is giving great advice. I've been an MCAT tutor for almost two years. Postpone the exam and take biochem first. The MCAT is a confidence game and you want to be as confident as possible during your prep.