the worst story of them all

[premedstudent?]

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Hey guys,
I think I have the worst story to tell.
23Q - 9PS 10BS and 4VR..........i'm serious I got a 4.
On all the practise i was getting between VR 7-9.......which isn't much better.
I think you need to have some sort of disability to get a 4 or something...I might as well have circled them all "C" and gotten a higher score...
I'm so so down...I don't know what to do........I'm really not good at VR...I tried lots of tactics...I read everyone's suggestions and did them........I practised, used PR, ExamKrackers...I just really really suck at this section....and there is no way that I would have predicted getting a 4 on VR.

I have a friend who wrote the MCAT 3 times and he still didn't get higher than 6/7 on VR.

Can I just say I'm not good at VR and forget about med school. I really wanted to be a doctor....but maybe I just can't?

 

[premedstudent?]

I wrote above....I want to add I have a 3.7-3.8 GPA at a good university....I've done a lot of extracurricular, volunteering, and presently doing biomedical research......

it's the MCAT that has ruined everything for me 🙁

 

[Bridaddy]

When you were doing the practice exams, what were you getting on verbal?

 

[sickofit]

Originally posted by premedstudent?

On all the practise i was getting between VR 7-9.......which isn't much better.

there.

 

[greggth]

There are plenty of very smart people who would do poorly on a particular section of the MCAT, don't let it get you down. Take a day off to recover emotionally, do something fun, and don't make any final decisions yet.

After you have taken a day off, then consider this. You don't have to give up yet; there are options. First of all, you might try practicing a lot, and reading a lot for pleasure- comic books, newspapers, romance novels, whatever you love to read-- and taking a Kaplan course, and taking the MCAT again. Also you can try to improve the other scores to balance out the VR score.

Second, you might still be accepted this year. Apply to schools with relatively high acceptance ratios (there are a couple in Minnesota and Texas). Look into osteopathic schools and non-American med schools.
http://www.aacom.org/

Here is another tactic-- move to Utah, Mississippi, South Dakota, or Vermont-- places with high acceptance ratios for in-state students. Work there for a year to establish residency, then apply to med school there.

But, most importantly, just in case everything fails and you don't get in anywhere-- look at your options. What attracts you to a career in medicine, and what other careers could you choose that would allow you to do similar work?

Personally, what attracts me to medicine is the possibilty of improving people's lives and communities. If I don't get into med school, I will become a schoolteacher, journalist, or nurse, and I don't think I will regret it.

Tom

 

[drgas]

Don't despair. Keep trying. I scored an 8 on verbal and am a 4th year at a top-5 medical school. Yes, a 4 will knock you out of competition at ALL schools, but if you can get it up to an 8, you will be in much better shape. Keep your chin up.

 

[JonnieQuest]

Hey, like I said in another post, life is full of crap like this. Can I just ask one thing--is English your first language? And I'm not asking this in a mean way. I genuinely want to know.
If English is NOT your first language , then getting lower than a 7 is understandable at many med schools. If English is your first language, then you can work on it by reading A LOT.
As much as I hate to say it, verbal is kind of intuitive...especially reading comprehension. I DID not score well on bio and physical but verbal just makes sense. I think you can't get flustered in verbal and to remember that you do not have to know a damn thing prior to that section--beside how to read.
I know very very smart people who don't do well with verbal...take some humanities classes, read, take practice exams.
I'm in the same boat--great gpa and ECs but bad mcats. hang in there...life is more than a number.

JonnieQ

 

[NRAI2001]

Originally posted by premedstudent?
I wrote above....I want to add I have a 3.7-3.8 GPA at a good university....I've done a lot of extracurricular, volunteering, and presently doing biomedical research......

it's the MCAT that has ruined everything for me 🙁

Not to be mean, but how can u have a 3.8 and get a 4 on any section?

You should just study harder and maybe try again and if that doesn't work, maybe try some of the carribean school. I think a few of them don't even require the mcats.

 

[Bridaddy]

Originally posted by sickofit
there.

whoops!

 

[conure]

Originally posted by greggth

Here is another tactic-- move to Utah, Mississippi, South Dakota, or Vermont-- places with high acceptance ratios for in-state students. Work there for a year to establish residency, then apply to med school there.

Tom

You indicate that because you are a resident it will somehow be eaiser to get in to those state schools. Thats obsurd. Utah for example loves to state that they have some of the highest applicant scores of any state school. In fact their applicants are extremely competetive all over the country. And although Vermont has a high in state acceptance rate this guarantees nothing. They get over 8,000 applicants a year and its as competetive as anywhere. Bottom line its tough no matter what your residency.

 

[NRAI2001]

Originally posted by conure
You indicate that because you are a resident it will somehow be eaiser to get in to those state schools. Thats obsurd. Utah for example loves to state that they have some of the highest applicant scores of any state school. In fact their applicants are extremely competetive all over the country. And although Vermont has a high in state acceptance rate this guarantees nothing. They get over 8,000 applicants a year and its as competetive as anywhere. Bottom line its tough no matter what your residency.

Thats BS, its definitely easier in some states than others.

 

[PublicHealth]

You may have "bubbled in" the answer choices in the wrong order. Take as many verbal practice tests as you can and re-take it. Verbal sucks, but it should not keep you out of med school, especially if the rest of your application is strong.

Keep your head up. Use GRE, LSAT, and MCAT practice tests for verbal practice. Do practice exams ad nauseum.

 

[conure]

I would not use the word easier. It is not easy anywhere. It may be harder elsewhere but that does not neccessarily means its easier somewhere else.

 

[Robz]

Originally posted by greggth

Look into osteopathic schools and non-American med schools.
http://www.aacom.org/

Originally posted by Slickness
DO

I think its good to have hope but a 4 is hard to overcome by any standards. I don't think it is easy to get in anywhere with a 4 even if you have a lot of incredible EC's to accompany the other good numbers you have.

check out the applications data page to see how many people with a 4 got accepted. There were a few fives but I didn't see any fours.

Good luck

 

[TheFlash]

Originally posted by conure
Thats obsurd. Utah for example loves to state that they have some of the highest applicant scores of any state school. In fact their applicants are extremely competetive all over the country.

Actually, I think Utah's numbers are around the averages for most state schools. The highest applicant scores for state schools are at UMich/UVA/UIowa/UAB/UNC etc...

Happy nitpicking,

Flash

 

[NRAI2001]

Originally posted by conure
I would not use the word easier. It is not easy anywhere. It may be harder elsewhere but that does not neccessarily means its easier somewhere else.

Yea i guess thats true, its difficult everywhere, but there are certain areas where it is easier to get into.

 

[Sparkles]

What about 6's?
My MCAT: 24N: 6VR, 9PS, 9BS

 

[PakFistInYoMouf]

to the original poster:
I suspect the 4 in verbal reasoning was bad luck, especially with the 7-9 you were getting in practice exams. Defintely retake the mcat--specifically working on the verbal reasoning. A really good recommendation i've seen floating around the boards is the ExamKracker's 1001 verbal reasoning passages book, which you can probably get off of amazon. I improved verbal reasoning from a 6 on my first practice test to a 9 with lots of repitition and practice. If you start reading enough of the pasages, you will find yourself predicting the questions even before getting to them. I feel lots of empathy for you--the 4 in verbal reasoning really hurts but;
(a) it's prolly a fluke
(b) you can certainly bring up your vr score with some practice
(c) the rest of your app looks pretty good


Also, if you don't want to wait for a year, you might want to consider osteopathic schools. They tend to evaluate applicants as a whole, making the 4 less terminal. I still feel it's a longshot. However, if you do apply to an osteo school, make sure you don't turn them down if you get accepted. The second time around, they will not consider you, as they will feel miffed (and rightly so)by feeling like a second choice to allopathic schools.

 

[A.D.O.R.]

I would definitely study for the verbal using relevant material from LSAT prep books. A friend of mine did this and she ended up with a "10" in the VR section. Best of luck.

 

[medman12677]

I used LSAT practice passages for verbal reasoning and did quite well. I feel that the LSAT passages require more inductive reasoning skill and tertiary thought processes. The AAMC verbal passages are fairly good but it may not do the job. If you want to do well, you must tackle material at a higher difficulty level. Having taken the LSAT and MCAT, I can only speak from my personal experience. I did extremely well on LSAT and it correlated to my Verbal Reasoning score on MCAT. Others may have different experiences but I agree with the above poster about using LSAT study material for MCAT verbal.

 

[PakFistInYoMouf]

medman--are you applying to a jd/md program?

 

[AthanasiusJam]

It seems obvious to me that you almost definitely misbubbled. I have heard of this before, and I am sure that admissions commitees see this all the time.

I am pretty sure you going to have to retake the exam--that's life-- but when they see your old score when you apply again they will definitely realize that you probably misbubbled. Remember, lots of students apply a year late.

 

[medman12677]

Reviving this post for my pal Evo 👍

 

[EvoDevo]

Thanks man! 👍

*heads to the bookstore*

 

[TheRussian]

Originally posted by AthanasiusJam
It seems obvious to me that you almost definitely misbubbled. I have heard of this before, and I am sure that admissions commitees see this all the time.

I've heard that it is possible to request to have your test regraded by hand in which case they will look at your test booklet so if you circled the correct answers in the text book but screwed up when transfering them to the answer sheet you might get your 7-9 if you request this. I think you've got nothing to lose at this point so look into this and perhaps you'll get lucky

 

[Eraserhead]

honestly if you excel in many other areas, an 8 or 9 is fine.

kick the writing sample's ass for example.

 

[NRAI2001]

yea kick ass sea bass.