WAMC + MCAT Retake (3.86, 512)

[amber43325]

Hello: I got my MCAT score today and I am a little disappointed. Trying to check my school list for 2025 cycle and decide whether to just send in my app for the upcoming cycle, take a 2nd gap year to increase ec's or just retake the MCAT.

CA ORM (Norcal) senior undergraduate student
cGPA: 3.86, MCAT: 512 (128, 128, 127, 129)

Clinical: 500 total (300 over 3 years as a caregiver for elderly patients with dementia, 200 volunteering at geriatric floor at the hospital over 3 years)

Nonclinical: 450 total (250 crisis text line, 100 tutoring adults to help with English, 50 over 4 years volunteering at childhood swim team)

Research: 650 over 3 labs, currently working on independent project with mentor so not sure how many hours that will be

Employment: 550 total (300 via public health project on campus during COVID, 250 teaching children as an educator)

Misc: 400 total over 3 years (scientific journalism/research group. Wrote some papers and held leadership position, led by med school prof)

Shadowing: 30 hours pediatrics, 12 hours EM

Hobbies: medieval studies (have been running a blog for the last 5 years, and I studied abroad in UK partially because of my hobby)

Here's my school list so far (yes there's a lot): I want to do primary care so considering NYU LI

1. UCLA
2. UCSD
3. UCSF
4. UCI
5. USC
6. Georgetown
7. Tulane
8. Boston University
9. Tufts
10. Ohio State
11. University of Virginia
12. UCF
13. Cincinnati
14. NYU Long Island
15. Loyola
16. SUNY Downstate
17. Boston University
18. George Washington
19. Colorado
20. St. Louis
21. Wake Forest
22. Creighton
23. Sidney Kimmel
24. Geisenger
25. Drexel
26. Temple
27. Miami
28. U Illinois
29. VCU
30. UC Davis
31. Cooper
32. University of Iowa
33. Wayne State
34. Medical College Wisconsin
35. TCU
36. Saint Louis University
37. New York Medical College
38. UVM
39. Penn State
40. Dartmouth
41. EVMS
42. Rosalind Franklin

Any and all advice is appreciate!! I am not sure what to do from here on out especially because of the MCAT.

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[Mr.Smile12]

A 512 MCAT is fine, and I trust that the listmakers will give you some suggestions.

Primary care is a noble direction. Would you consider DO programs? Are you considering any accelerated three-year tracks?

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[amber43325]

A 512 MCAT is fine, and I trust that the listmakers will give you some suggestions.

Primary care is a noble direction. Would you consider DO programs? Are you considering any accelerated three-year tracks?

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I want to work in geriatrics and I thought about the UC Davis 3 year track or the NYU LI 3 year track although they're really competitive so for Davis I will probably just apply regular. I have not really thought about DO, I'd really prefer MD because I think it gives me more options just to be cautious but if I have to I will apply.

I am trying to cast a wide MD net because of my MCAT, although I am seriously considering a retake in April to get a 515

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

I want to work in geriatrics and I thought about the UC Davis 3 year track or the NYU LI 3 year track although they're really competitive so for Davis I will probably just apply regular. I have not really thought about DO, I'd really prefer MD because I think it gives me more options just to be cautious but if I have to I will apply.

I am trying to cast a wide MD net because of my MCAT, although I am seriously considering a retake in April to get a 515

Retaking would be foolish and a waste of time, especially if you want primary care. Look up how MCAT score bands work.

 

[amber43325]

Retaking would be foolish and a waste of time, especially if you want primary care. Look up how MCAT score bands work.

Yeah, my FL average was a 514.5 so I could probably score higher but I know it's a big risk. I really want to go to an MD school and because I'm in CA it's really competitive and it makes me nervous especially since my EC's are kind of mediocre. I also am hesitant to say I want to do primary care or make my narrative based on that because I don't know if I have enough demonstrated interest.

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

To make retaking worthwhile you should be looking for at least a 6 pt increase. 3 pts in either direction is meaningless because scores are given within a confidence band of 3. You going from 512>515 means absolutely nothing. 512>518 would be something somewhat worth your while but schools that average scores would still consider it a 515 anyway.

You'd get way more bang for your buck volunteering and working than trying to scrape out more points on your MCAT.

 

[amber43325]

To make retaking worthwhile you should be looking for at least a 6 pt increase. 3 pts in either direction is meaningless because scores are given within a confidence band of 3. You going from 512>515 means absolutely nothing. 512>518 would be something somewhat worth your while but schools that average scores would still consider it a 515 anyway.

You'd get way more bang for your buck volunteering and working than trying to scrape out more points on your MCAT.

I guess that makes sense. I'm just mad at myself for not performing as well as I should have and I keep getting in my head that a 512 is a fail even when I can see the percentile and the averages and know it's not. I was tempted to retake because I am worried that if I don't and I get rejected in the upcoming cycle I will always worry that my MCAT was the reason

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Just wait until you underachieve in your Step score, which can lump you into a residency direction. Regardless, 512 is solid for MD programs, so the question is why you want a much higher score. Mission fit means something, and given the challenges of getting people interested in family med, geriatrics, or pediatrics, being sincere and informed will help you.

 

[Hollow Knight]

If you're set on primary care don't retake. Also go to the cheapest school you can get into.

 

[Hollow Knight]

I guess that makes sense. I'm just mad at myself for not performing as well as I should have and I keep getting in my head that a 512 is a fail even when I can see the percentile and the averages and know it's not. I was tempted to retake because I am worried that if I don't and I get rejected in the upcoming cycle I will always worry that my MCAT was the reason

A 512 is a great score. I know lots of good doctors who didn’t do that well. And quite frankly, the MCAT is a bogus test anyway.

I know California is super competitive, but you’ll at least get into a DO school probably. And you’re going to be just as good of a doctor (or maybe even better) than your friends who went to fancy schools. A lot of those fancy places would give you inferior training for primary care anyway. A lot of these top tier med schools seem to not believe in primary care these days unfortunately.

And again, a 512 is good,you’re competitive for MD. But at the end of the day you’ll still be helping people and you’ll get paid the same.

 

[wysdoc]

I guess that makes sense. I'm just mad at myself for not performing as well as I should have and I keep getting in my head that a 512 is a fail even when I can see the percentile and the averages and know it's not. I was tempted to retake because I am worried that if I don't and I get rejected in the upcoming cycle I will always worry that my MCAT was the reason

I agree you don’t need to retake, go into the cycle with confidence and choose schools where you are in the competitive range and where you would like to be for 4 years.

 

[LizzyM]

Clinical: 500 total (300 over 3 years as a caregiver for elderly patients with dementia, 200 volunteering at geriatric floor at the hospital over 3 years)

This is a pretty good start for an interest in geriatrics. I would recommend spending the next 6 months (or more) doing a bit of non-clinical volunteering with older adults to further solidify your application in that regard. (right now you have a major focus on children). You could also put an emphasis on family medicine across the life cycle with experience working with people at both ends of the age spectrum. Some schools will eat that up.

 

[Goro]

[*]UCSF
[*]UCI
[*]USC
[*]Georgetown
[*]Tulane
[*]Tufts
[*]NYU Long Island
[*]Loyola
[*]George Washington
[*]St. Louis
[*]Wake Forest
[*]Creighton
[*]Sidney Kimmel
[*]Drexel
[*]Temple
[*]Miami
[*]VCU
[*]UC Davis
[*]Medical College Wisconsin
[*]TCU
[*]Saint Louis University
[*]New York Medical College
[*]UVM
[*]Dartmouth
[*]EVMS
[*]Rosalind Franklin
NOVA.md
Wake
Hofstra
USUHS (but note military service requirement)
Albany


I have modified your list to be more realistic. And you should have some DO schools on your list

Suggest PacNW
TOURO.CA
WESTERN
AZCOM
TUNCOM
KCU
UIW
SAM HOUSTON
KCOM
DMU

 

[eigen]

Yeah, my FL average was a 514.5 so I could probably score higher but I know it's a big risk. I really want to go to an MD school and because I'm in CA it's really competitive and it makes me nervous especially since my EC's are kind of mediocre. I also am hesitant to say I want to do primary care or make my narrative based on that because I don't know if I have enough demonstrated interest.

A 512 is not materially different from a 514. You're in the same general band of scores. Re-taking it is not worth your time, spend those hours on another part of your application.

 

[amber43325]

This is a pretty good start for an interest in geriatrics. I would recommend spending the next 6 months (or more) doing a bit of non-clinical volunteering with older adults to further solidify your application in that regard. (right now you have a major focus on children). You could also put an emphasis on family medicine across the life cycle with experience working with people at both ends of the age spectrum. Some schools will eat that up.

I actually originally started out with geriatrics but then I shadowed a pediatrician who was the most amazing person I've ever met so I started pivoting to other ages so I could do family med instead! I was going to make my personal statement related to family medicine/primary care generally because that's what I really want to do and I think I have a fairly cohesive story so far since I've tried to focus on doing activities I'm genuinely passionate about for long periods of time.

Are there any other MD schools that slipped my mind that seem to emphasize primary care? I will be applying to NYU LI (even though I likely won't get it lol) but that's the only specifically primary care program I know of that I'm applying to.

 

[amber43325]

A 512 is not materially different from a 514. You're in the same general band of scores. Re-taking it is not worth your time, spend those hours on another part of your application.

Thanks! That's what I thought. My friend said to retake below a 514 but because it's only a 2 percentile difference (and I think he's crazy- he hasn't taken the exam yet or started prepping lol) i don't think it's worth my time and I don't want to be the type of person to do something stupid because of my pride.

 

[amber43325]

[*]UCSF
[*]UCI
[*]USC
[*]Georgetown
[*]Tulane
[*]Tufts
[*]NYU Long Island
[*]Loyola
[*]George Washington
[*]St. Louis
[*]Wake Forest
[*]Creighton
[*]Sidney Kimmel
[*]Drexel
[*]Temple
[*]Miami
[*]VCU
[*]UC Davis
[*]Medical College Wisconsin
[*]TCU
[*]Saint Louis University
[*]New York Medical College
[*]UVM
[*]Dartmouth
[*]EVMS
[*]Rosalind Franklin
NOVA.md
Wake
Hofstra
USUHS (but note military service requirement)
Albany


I have modified your list to be more realistic. And you should have some DO schools on your list

Suggest PacNW
TOURO.CA
WESTERN
AZCOM
TUNCOM
KCU
UIW
SAM HOUSTON
KCOM
DMU

Thanks! I wasn't originally going to apply DO because I would rather save money and go MD so I have more options (I also don't want to do the extra exams), but because of my MCAT i feel like i have to and I think it's dumb to retake just to not go to a DO school

 

[eigen]

Thanks! That's what I thought. My friend said to retake below a 514 but because it's only a 2 percentile difference (and I think he's crazy- he hasn't taken the exam yet or started prepping lol) i don't think it's worth my time and I don't want to be the type of person to do something stupid because of my pride.

The number of pre-meds who give bad advice based on zero personal experience is... way too many.

I feel like half of my time in advising is trying to correct the misinformation / bad information / bad advice that seems to spontaneously generate in clusters of 5+ pre-med students talking with each other.

 

[amber43325]

The number of pre-meds who give bad advice based on zero personal experience is... way too many.

I feel like half of my time in advising is trying to correct the misinformation / bad information / bad advice that seems to spontaneously generate in clusters of 5+ pre-med students talking with each other.

Yeah it was my mistake for asking him for advice considering he has barely started studying and didn't even really know the structure of the test but it kind of freaked me out?? I think retaking above a 514 is kind of psychotic. He also advised me to retake because his friend had the same score and retook it and got "either +/- 1 point" which to me makes you look worse than just keeping the 512 assuming everything else is fine.

I go to a really really premed heavy undergrad and I think bad info and neuroticism tends to spread like wildfire here

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I go to a really really premed heavy undergrad and I think bad info and neuroticism tends to spread like wildfire here

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