What effect will Aug. re-take have on app even if submitted in June

[Longshanks]

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Hopefully, someone can help me out with this or have some knowledge on this topic. I'd rather not get into specific numbers, but PM me if they're necessary to you being constructive. I took the MCAT in April, not happy with my score, its not a bad score (maybe on SDN) but with my GPA being on the lower end of the application pool it doesn't help. I will be retaking on Aug 6th, but all of my AMCAS material is pretty much done, as my original goal was to submit in June, thinking/hoping I did well in April. If I submit it June, I've heard I would be on hold until the scores for August come back in early September. Would I be at a significant disadvantage due to this?

The options I'm thinking of would be to either submit how I originally planned, hopefully kill the MCAT this time in August, and all goes well. But, being on hold until September... some individuals will have been interviewing already at this point, correct? So would it be better off to submit after I take the MCAT again, or even more radically hold off applying until next year? Personally, and economically, I'd rather not hold off another year but if submitting in early June would really make that big of a difference, especially considering my numbers and original plan to go broad and early, I'd rather not waste a year of applying and not getting in, and having to apply again next year, with all the money involved in this process. Or would I not really be at such a big disadvantage and it would be worth it? The most bizarre option would be to just apply and don't retake so I'm still in the early group and pray for a miracle - I think this would be foolish but just throwing it out there to see if someone thinks otherwise.

Thanks everyone.
(If this thread doesn't really belong in "What are my chances?", can it be moved to the main pre-allo?)



Note: There is an old thread about this from 2002 but doesn't contain much info, or doesn't really answer my question

 

[JJMrK]

I think it really depends on what your score was.

 

[Longshanks]

I think it really depends on what your score was.

As in the new score?

April score was a 28R (9/9/10..PS/VR/BS), scored 30-37 on practice, avg. 33. Majority of scores were a 33 or 34. I just didn't want to rehash the same old story from the mcat thread from my day. Essentially, I let myself get thrown off my gameplan when I ran out of time on PS, the thought of voiding was in my head too much during VR, as can obviously be seen since I was scoring 11 usually on practice.

I'm confident I can improve and am putting the time into it. I didn't want to enter into too much of a hypothetical world with this thread. My question really boils down to: will submitting in June, and not getting my score back until the first week of September put me at a significant disadvantage regardless of the score (presumming it doesn't go down)? If we want to get into theory, does it matter if I make my target of 33-34 or if I improve but fall short and only make or break the 30 mark?

 

[JJMrK]

As in the new score?

April score was a 28R (9/9/10..PS/VR/BS), scored 30-37 on practice, avg. 33. Majority of scores were a 33 or 34. I just didn't want to rehash the same old story from the mcat thread from my day. Essentially, I let myself get thrown off my gameplan when I ran out of time on PS, the thought of voiding was in my head too much during VR, as can obviously be seen since I was scoring 11 usually on practice.

I'm confident I can improve and am putting the time into it. I didn't want to enter into too much of a hypothetical world with this thread. My question really boils down to: will submitting in June, and not getting my score back until the first week of September put me at a significant disadvantage regardless of the score (presumming it doesn't go down)? If we want to get into theory, does it matter if I make my target of 33-34 or if I improve but fall short and only make or break the 30 mark?

Here's my take on it:

If I were you, I would probably apply in June, and just indicate that you'll be retaking later on your AMCAS. I believe (could be wrong) that you will not be placed on hold, since you have an MCAT score. If any schools want to interview you/send you a screened secondary as you are, they will. When your new scores come out, schools will be updated and I believe they will take a new look at your application.

I think any improvement on a 29 would help you, as that is a bit low. Also, the difference between a 29 and a 30 or a 30 and a 31 is fairly significant due to the scale.

 

[sdguy2008]

hey longshanks,

i am in pretty much the exact same boat as you. got a 28, was averaging 33-34 on practice tests, so i'm gonna take it again. i'm trying to get an early july date, but the earliest i could get was july 17th. i called a couple schools about this, and they said that if you mark on amcas that you are taking an mcat from june-october, they will hold your application until the score comes in, even if you have an existing mcat score.

so, my plan of action is to apply, and hopefully i'll only just be submitting secondaries by the time i get my new score. then i'll update the schools about my new score. i'm not sure if this is the best way to go, but i'm really trying to stay with the apply early mantra.

i knew taking the test in april would possibly put my early application in jeopardy if i didnt score well, but that's life i guess.

 

[JJMrK]

they said that if you mark on amcas that you are taking an mcat from june-october, they will hold your application until the score comes in, even if you have an existing mcat score.

Ouch. That doesn't seem like good news. The ideal situation would be: schools look at you initially with one score, and then reevaluate when your new score comes back.

OP, you may want to do some searching or make a new thread about this in pre-allo. Will schools look at you twice, or just look at your new score later on?

 

[Longshanks]

Thanks for the responses. I appreciate it. Maybe I was just going through some self-doubt, we all have our ups and downs in this process and May was just an exhausting month for me. I understood that they put you on hold until the new score comes in, my advisor confirmed that one. Just my issue is, would finally having my application reviewed when the new score comes in first week of Sept be the nail in the coffin already? Maybe for a reach miracle, but I'm really pulling for a SUNY. Does scoring higher benefit me more than applying early with the score I have now? According to that graph of accepted students based on gpa range and mcat range it looks like it would significantly (from an acceptance rate 1 out of 3 for my group to 50-50 or slightly better according to that graph), but that doesn't take into account time of application and that is what's worrying me. Could it just be premed neuroticism? There are a few DO school's I'd proudly go to, and will only apply to those from that path, I just don't want to have the regret of 'wow I should've just done the next cycle so I could be "early"' if I don't get any SUNY acceptances or worse get turned down everywhere. 1 in 3 isn't so bad... but did those other 2 get completed later? lol

 

[quynhhuong]

I'm in a worse situation 🙁. My GPA is also at the lower end, first MCAT was 19N and planning to retake this August 5th. Should I apply to DO school in early June? Would my previous score give them doubts about me? English is my second language, I just learned it 8 years ago so BS and VR really got me. I'm studying extra hard and hoping for a 30Q this time.

 

[Nafis64]

I might be in the same situation, but honestly I think its best to submit and indicate you will be taking it again. I have yet to see the option, but I was told it exists somewhere, if someone can tell me where...

But, given that happens, your file will be right on top when the new scores do come in and its a lot better than submitting your primary in August. So I would not worry too much. I doubt you would want to be evaluated without your MCAT which is pretty much a big chunk along with your GPA. They look at your application as an overall picture and they cannot assume you are going to ace your MCAT the second time.

 

[Longshanks]

I might be in the same situation, but honestly I think its best to submit and indicate you will be taking it again. I have yet to see the option, but I was told it exists somewhere, if someone can tell me where...

But, given that happens, your file will be right on top when the new scores do come in and its a lot better than submitting your primary in August. So I would not worry too much. I doubt you would want to be evaluated without your MCAT which is pretty much a big chunk along with your GPA. They look at your application as an overall picture and they cannot assume you are going to ace your MCAT the second time.

Yes, its on the application. Just go to the standardized test section and on the right hand side there should be a link saying "next mcat". At least, that is what mine says now, but there is definitely an option to select an additional MCAT, as mine now says MCAT scores loaded Additional MCAT 8/6/2009.

Alright, I'm amped again. Let's do this fellas. Good luck, Nafis.

 

[JJMrK]

Thanks for the responses. I appreciate it. Maybe I was just going through some self-doubt, we all have our ups and downs in this process and May was just an exhausting month for me. I understood that they put you on hold until the new score comes in, my advisor confirmed that one. Just my issue is, would finally having my application reviewed when the new score comes in first week of Sept be the nail in the coffin already? Maybe for a reach miracle, but I'm really pulling for a SUNY. Does scoring higher benefit me more than applying early with the score I have now? According to that graph of accepted students based on gpa range and mcat range it looks like it would significantly (from an acceptance rate 1 out of 3 for my group to 50-50 or slightly better according to that graph), but that doesn't take into account time of application and that is what's worrying me. Could it just be premed neuroticism? There are a few DO school's I'd proudly go to, and will only apply to those from that path, I just don't want to have the regret of 'wow I should've just done the next cycle so I could be "early"' if I don't get any MD acceptances or worse get turned down everywhere. 1 in 3 isn't so bad... but did those other 2 get completed later? lol

I think the difference between a 29 and a 33 is probably worth the wait. That's a huge increase, especially in that region of the scale.

 

[JJMrK]

I might be in the same situation, but honestly I think its best to submit and indicate you will be taking it again. I have yet to see the option, but I was told it exists somewhere, if someone can tell me where...

But, given that happens, your file will be right on top when the new scores do come in and its a lot better than submitting your primary in August. So I would not worry too much. I doubt you would want to be evaluated without your MCAT which is pretty much a big chunk along with your GPA. They look at your application as an overall picture and they cannot assume you are going to ace your MCAT the second time.

It's on the "standardized tests" tab.

 

[JJMrK]

I'm in a worse situation 🙁. My GPA is also at the lower end, first MCAT was 19N and planning to retake this August 5th. Should I apply to DO school in early June? Would my previous score give them doubts about me? English is my second language, I just learned it 8 years ago so BS and VR really got me. I'm studying extra hard and hoping for a 30Q this time.

The pre-osteopathic forum has its own "Chances" sub-forum that you might find more helpful.

 

[CdnHopeful]

Yes, its on the application. Just go to the standardized test section and on the right hand side there should be a link saying "next mcat". At least, that is what mine says now, but there is definitely an option to select an additional MCAT, as mine now says MCAT scores loaded Additional MCAT 8/6/2009.

Alright, I'm amped again. Let's do this fellas. Good luck, Nafis.

So are you saying that we should submit our application with the LOWER MCAT to some schools and then submit again with future test score when we get it?

Will we be marked complete at the earlier schools that we submit to? Or will they still just sit and wait for our future MCAT scores??

 

[Longshanks]

So are you saying that we should submit our application with the LOWER MCAT to some schools and then submit again with future test score when we get it?

Will we be marked complete at the earlier schools that we submit to? Or will they still just sit and wait for our future MCAT scores??

I'm not suggesting anything. I came here asking questions lol.

But, I do know from what I've read and what my advisor has said is that our status would be "Hold for MCAT" until the future score comes in. I'm just going to apply broadly as I initially planned. The only way my school selection would change is if I went down.. and if I went down MD probably would be out of the picture honestly. Someone else suggested the one or few, and then more later tactic. I'm just going to put it out there and hope for the best, apply for SUNYs and other schools that are more friendly to my numbers or my experiences match their mission or environment.

 

[docdocgooose]

does anyone know if schools look at you/send you secondaries if you already have already entered an mcat score (april 24) but are also taking one later this summer (july 17)?

 

[Aladdin]

Hopefully, someone can help me out with this or have some knowledge on this topic. I'd rather not get into specific numbers, but PM me if they're necessary to you being constructive. I took the MCAT in April, not happy with my score, its not a bad score (maybe on SDN) but with my GPA being on the lower end of the application pool it doesn't help. I will be retaking on Aug 6th, but all of my AMCAS material is pretty much done, as my original goal was to submit in June, thinking/hoping I did well in April. If I submit it June, I've heard I would be on hold until the scores for August come back in early September. Would I be at a significant disadvantage due to this?

The options I'm thinking of would be to either submit how I originally planned, hopefully kill the MCAT this time in August, and all goes well. But, being on hold until September... some individuals will have been interviewing already at this point, correct? So would it be better off to submit after I take the MCAT again, or even more radically hold off applying until next year? Personally, and economically, I'd rather not hold off another year but if submitting in early June would really make that big of a difference, especially considering my numbers and original plan to go broad and early, I'd rather not waste a year of applying and not getting in, and having to apply again next year, with all the money involved in this process. Or would I not really be at such a big disadvantage and it would be worth it? The most bizarre option would be to just apply and don't retake so I'm still in the early group and pray for a miracle - I think this would be foolish but just throwing it out there to see if someone thinks otherwise.

Thanks everyone.
(If this thread doesn't really belong in "What are my chances?", can it be moved to the main pre-allo?)



Note: There is an old thread about this from 2002 but doesn't contain much info, or doesn't really answer my question

I was in a similar situation. Submitted app around June 10 or so. Took MCAT July 8. Got score Aug 10. Definitely delayed some of my apps and some schools even rejected me before getting my new score (needless to say my old one was pretty shatty). This isn't going to prevent you from getting accepted, but it will probably take a bit longer than someone who already has their score in.

 

[Longshanks]

I was in a similar situation. Submitted app around June 10 or so. Took MCAT July 8. Got score Aug 10. Definitely delayed some of my apps and some schools even rejected me before getting my new score (needless to say my old one was pretty shatty). This isn't going to prevent you from getting accepted, but it will probably take a bit longer than someone who already has their score in.

I'm not worried about the process taking longer, I'm more so worried of the pool shrinking before they let me swim. So I'm weighing between submitting and retaking, or just submitting with the 28 and lowish gpa and hope for the best so that I don't lose any time opportunity from being on 'hold' until early Sept. due to the retake. Aug 10th, isn't so late to get a first look considering some people are saying they don't start reviewing until July anyhow. I could've taken a July 2nd exam out of town, but travelling, and not studying for over a month, I wanted to have more time to work out the kinks and make sure this is it. I appreciate the input. One moment I'm all about the retake.. the next I want to roll the dice without it. One of the things that worries me is especially for the SUNYs, a half of them have an October 15th deadline to be complete, so if I don't get reviewed until September will I even get a secondary?

 

[Longshanks]

does anyone know if schools look at you/send you secondaries if you already have already entered an mcat score (april 24) but are also taking one later this summer (july 17)?

Apparently osteopathic schools do.. but for the MD programs I'm not sure. This would be an interesting answer to know.

 

[student1799]

I was in a similar position to you, in fact worse: I retook on Aug 15th and still got a disappointing score (31 total but 7 in PS, due to nerves), and I added a bunch of schools to my app on October 10th, when I realized my MCAT would kill me at my original schools. I managed to get in at 2 places (both schools where I applied late), and was WL'd at 4 others which I've withdrawn from. So you can get away with this if you have no other choice.
As someone else said earlier, schools won't consider your app until your second MCAT score comes in. Believe me, it's better this way, because they'll only look at your app once, and if they evaluated you on the old score you could be rejected. Something similar happened to me: I retook the MCAT again in Jan and did much better (33, with 12 in PS), but by the time the score came out on 3/3, many schools had already rejected me, and none of the rest would even look at the new score. (I know the schools say they don't take Jan scores, but I was hoping they'd make an exception. They didn't.)

If you are SURE that you can do better on your second MCAT, you can speed up your app by submitting everything else--your AMCAS primary, LORs and secondaries--right at the beginning. That way you can get verified quickly, and will be marked complete as soon as your Aug score comes in. Being complete in Sep isn't super-super-early, but it shouldn't kill you at the vast majority of schools.

The only risk of this approach is that your Aug MCAT isn't better than the first one. In that case, you can go ahead and apply or withdraw your apps. But if your AMCAS has already been verified when you withdraw, you'll still be considered a reapplicant anyway.

 

[student1799]

Apparently osteopathic schools do.. but for the MD programs I'm not sure. This would be an interesting answer to know.

You start getting secondaries even before your AMCAS primary is verified. I hit the "Submit" button on AMCAS and got my first secondary a couple of days later.

 

[Longshanks]

I was in a similar position to you, in fact worse: I retook on Aug 15th and still got a disappointing score (31 total but 7 in PS, due to nerves), and I added a bunch of schools to my app on October 10th, when I realized my MCAT would kill me at my original schools. I managed to get in at 2 places (both schools where I applied late), and was WL'd at 4 others which I've withdrawn from. So you can get away with this if you have no other choice.
As someone else said earlier, schools won't consider your app until your second MCAT score comes in. Believe me, it's better this way, because they'll only look at your app once, and if they evaluated you on the old score you could be rejected. Something similar happened to me: I retook the MCAT again in Jan and did much better (33, with 12 in PS), but by the time the score came out on 3/3, many schools had already rejected me, and none of the rest would even look at the new score. (I know the schools say they don't take Jan scores, but I was hoping they'd make an exception. They didn't.)

If you are SURE that you can do better on your second MCAT, you can speed up your app by submitting everything else--your AMCAS primary, LORs and secondaries--right at the beginning. That way you can get verified quickly, and will be marked complete as soon as your Aug score comes in. Being complete in Sep isn't super-super-early, but it shouldn't kill you at the vast majority of schools.

The only risk of this approach is that your Aug MCAT isn't better than the first one. In that case, you can go ahead and apply or withdraw your apps. But if your AMCAS has already been verified when you withdraw, you'll still be considered a reapplicant anyway.

Thanks for the post and advice. A 31 isn't bad at all. What range was your GPA in though, as I'm below the accepted average?

I'm considered another plan of action as well, after talking to some people on the forum, and it might make for a stronger application but it would add some personal life/economic stress:

Forget about applying this year. Focus on doing well on the MCAT, since I've always had other junk going on disrupting my focus, move it to September and give myself three full months from now. Hopefully do well on it. Before the next cycle starts, I would have finished my master's, hopefully get a publication or two (my PI is pretty confident we can do this) and accumulated more volunteer experience/hours. In the end that may result in a better LOR from my PI, who's also going to let us go on rounds with him when he's back on service so that would be an extra shadowing experience, and a better evaulation from my advisor. I would have everything completed then and just submit when the process starts up again. The downside to this though is I will be 24 when applying, and 25 when matriculating if accepted - which isn't a big deal. However, once I finish my master's I'll lose my health insurance, so I'll need to find a job that will only take me for a year while still providing benefits.

Is that a better course of action or should I just apply this year, with my numbers on the low end of the pool, though I do have some good ECs (a few of which aren't your 'stereotypical pre med' so I hope those stand out positively)? That way there isn't the issue of losing my health insurance.

I just don't want this to come off as a fear of applying, or develop this pattern of getting ready to apply and then not, as obviously I didn't apply during undergrad since I knew I'd be a poor applicant at the time. I just want to give myself the best chance, and not have any regrets in this process - if I give it my best shot, then I can't feel bad even if I have to go through it again. I'm very open to DO (where I understand my numbers are more competitive), but for financial reasons I'd much much rather get into an in-state traditional MD program. With either application route I take, I'll end up applying to both and my decision will primarily be based on cost/location.

 

[student1799]

I'm considered another plan of action as well [...]:

Forget about applying this year. [...] The downside to this though is I will be 24 when applying, and 25 when matriculating if accepted - which isn't a big deal. [...]

ROFLMAO. Dude, I just got in at the age of 46. Ergo, 25 is not too old.

The rest of your plans sounds very reasonable, as long as you follow through with it. If you are very confident that you'll have a much stronger app if you wait a year, then wait. I would have done this myself if I wasn't so old, but my age clearly changed the whole picture. Very few people my age even apply to med school, much less get in, and once you get beyond the mid-40s you can run into some pretty strong age discrimination. In your own case, of course, that won't be a factor at all.

But, as you yourself say, make sure this isn't just an excuse to delay applying because you're scared of the app process. Yes, it sucks, but it's not going to suck any less just because you postponed it.

If you postpone for a good reason and build up your credentials, the OUTCOME could be a lot better, but the PROCESS will still be horrible. So just take a deep breath and jump off the diving board with the rest of us. 🙂

 

[Longshanks]

ROFLMAO. Dude, I just got in at the age of 46. Ergo, 25 is not too old.

The rest of your plans sounds very reasonable, as long as you follow through with it. If you are very confident that you'll have a much stronger app if you wait a year, then wait. I would have done this myself if I wasn't so old, but my age clearly changed the whole picture. Very few people my age even apply to med school, much less get in, and once you get beyond the mid-40s you can run into some pretty strong age discrimination. In your own case, of course, that won't be a factor at all.

But, as you yourself say, make sure this isn't just an excuse to delay applying because you're scared of the app process. Yes, it sucks, but it's not going to suck any less just because you postponed it.

If you postpone for a good reason and build up your credentials, the OUTCOME could be a lot better, but the PROCESS will still be horrible. So just take a deep breath and jump off the diving board with the rest of us. 🙂

The age thing doesn't bother me, that's all psychological - and like I said 25 isn't big a deal. I'm just worried about the health insurance issue, or being a burden on my parents. Maybe you'll understand this image, but I come from working class neighborhood in nyc and always told myself I would never be like those guidos living at home and mooching off their parents until they're 30. The only psychological thing that bugs me will be my friends, or former roommates will just be finishing up school by the time I get admitted, whatever. It'd be really funny if I was working under them some day.

 

[student1799]

Maybe you'll understand this image, but I come from working class neighborhood in nyc

Same here! I grew up in the Bronx surrounded by cops, firemen, garbagemen and secretaries. They're very nice, hard-working people, but I knew from the time I was very young that I wanted to do more with my life than that, and I have. It's been a pretty powerful motivator for me, actually.

On the other hand, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. You may not want to end up in the same kind of life as your peers, but that doesn't mean that you can't do ANYTHING they do. Half the world is living with their parents in today's economy, and some of them are well over 30, so you shouldn't have any shame about doing so for a couple of years after college. This is completely normal. (Pay them a small amount of rent if it makes you feel any better.)

The important thing is where you're going with your life. If you're staying at home an extra year in order to open up a much better life for yourself, that's not "mooching," so don't be an idiot. (Wassamattayou?)

It'd be really funny if I was working under them some day.

Ultimately, it'll be the other way around.



Good luck with everything. New York FTW!