What is considerd a good MCATs score?

[MiturBinesderty]

I remember in high school getting anything over a 30 on the ACT was considerd a great achievement, and meant that you were getting into a very good college. Between 22 and 28 was considerd average. Anything under 20 was very bad .So how is it with the MCATs, I've already looked at the percentiles and they're meaningless to me, I'd rather hear it from actual people.

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[yellowpersuazio]

Percentiles should actually have more weight than what anyone has to say. I think anything above 90th percentile would be legitimate, and that's only if you have a good GPA to back it up.

 

[diosa428]

I remember in high school getting anything over a 30 on the ACT was considerd a great achievement, and meant that you were getting into a very good college. Between 22 and 28 was considerd average. Anything under 20 was very bad .So how is it with the MCATs, I've already looked at the percentiles and they're meaningless to me, I'd rather hear it from actual people.

I'd say 30 - 33 (assuming an even breakdown - nothing lower than a 9) will make you competitive for almost every school (as long as you also have a good gpa). 33+ is really good, less than 30 you can definitely still get in places, but probably not Harvard. Less than 26 is trouble. Obviously there are exceptions to this depending upon GPA, ECs, LORs, etc., but, in general, thats how it breaks down.

 

[Will Ferrell]

I remember in high school getting anything over a 30 on the ACT was considerd a great achievement, and meant that you were getting into a very good college. Between 22 and 28 was considerd average. Anything under 20 was very bad .So how is it with the MCATs, I've already looked at the percentiles and they're meaningless to me, I'd rather hear it from actual people.

I guess 28+. Most people applying allopathic with 28s are accepted and the higher the score, the better.

30+ is great and is an asset to most schools.

35+ MCATs will have any medical school read your application as long as your GPA is on par.

 

[Law2Doc]

I guess 28+. Most people applying allopathic with 28s are accepted and the higher the score, the better.

28 is often adequate for a lot of schools if your other credentials are solid, but since the average for matriculants is closer to a balanced 30, I think if someone asks what is considered "good" for med school, to be honest, the answer needs to be 30+.

 

[45408]

A good score, meaning that it will not likely be a weak point on your application, for most schools, would be a 30+. You can certainly get in with a 28, but it's going to be a sticking point for you.

 

[Dr. Little]

30-30+ is what you should really aim for if you want to be competitive

 

[zero2hero]

I concure, 30+ and you're solid. Though 33+ with a good GPA and you should be able to get interviews at some of the more competitive schools.

 

[omgwtfbbq?]

Don't guess 28. I have a 28 and a 3.9GPA, 4 years research, volunteer, etc etc. and no bites. gonna have to reapply next year if i don't get an acceptance tomorrow in the last wave from my state school. GO for a 30. heres the thing though, you can aim for whatever you like, but just because you aim for it doesn't mean you'll get it, so just study your butt off for the best possible score you can get. i was "aiming" for a 31 , was getting 34's on practice mcats, and then apparently had something akin to a mental panick attack. just study hard and do your best. theres no magic number

I guess 28+. Most people applying allopathic with 28s are accepted and the higher the score, the better.

30+ is great and is an asset to most schools.

35+ MCATs will have any medical school read your application as long as your GPA is on par.

 

[snobored18]

Most people here are saying 30+ but I think the best answer is a 10+ on each section...if you can hit 30 with all 10's that is solid and any points above that just make you more and more competive

 

[psipsina]

I got a 32. In two seperate instances a interviewer in a closed book interview asked if I would share my MCAT with them and when I told them they reacted like they were all super impressed. I guess due to overexposure to SDN and MDapplicants which seem to have a disproportionate amount of gunners on them I hadn't thought my score was that great. I would say anything over a 28 don't retake if you can't make a huge improvement, and anything over 30 be really happy with.

 

[Conqueror]

26-27 is generally the 50th percentile on the MCAT, so anything above 27 is "above average." That won't necessarily get you into med school though.

Here at Vanderbilt the pre-med advisor keeps track of the basic stats. I analyzed his list and found that, with a 27 MCAT and 3.5 GPA, 88% of students were accepted to at least one school, which are pretty good odds. So I feel that with a 27/3.5 at most other schools you'd still have very good chances.

CQ

 

[BigRedZippo]

Frankly, the MCAT is like many things in a competitive arena- the higher the better. I'd shoot for a 33. The competition at the top places is getting insane with some averages cresting (or soon to crest) a 36.

 

[Feebus]

Repeating...a 30 seems to be what will get most people in somewhere.

I must agree with snobored18 and say that a 10+ on each section is better than a "30" any other way.

Really, I post to say (though I know it's been debated many times before) that one of the most important thing you can do is to start saying "MCAT" instead of "MCATS"...that's all.

I remember in high school getting anything over a 30 on the ACT was considerd a great achievement, and meant that you were getting into a very good college. Between 22 and 28 was considerd average. Anything under 20 was very bad .So how is it with the MCATs, I've already looked at the percentiles and they're meaningless to me, I'd rather hear it from actual people.

 

[Vox Animo]

I got a 27/O with a 3.87 overall 3.93 science, 3 semesters research, 20+ hour a week of extracurriculars and some pretty original expereinces/volunteer and I didnt get interviewed at any md schools yet. I didnt get all my secondaries out till october though which really hurt me. also my break down wasnt the best 10V 9P 8B. It seems that 27 seems to be the lowest to apply with the md route, so if u score below thirty apply as soon as u can (june 1) and get the secondaries out within the next couple days. But if i could do it again i would sign up for a prep course and shoot for 30+. The average matriculant has 30-31, so don't worry too much, that means half the people that got in did not get above 30, just the wait will be more stressful.

That being said, I have been accepted to three schools (DO) and am going to one of them next year.

 

[dom1n1c]

I got a 24 on the MCAT. I got interviews at more than half a dozen and got accepted into 4 of them. I still have 2 more interviews to go. I have gotten in Howard, Indiana and Northwestern just to name afew. When I get accepted I always call and talked to the Dean of the school ask why. They usually say the same thing. They are looking for more than numbers. Your personal statement is very important. At some schools they read it to the committee four times ( Indiana). My GPA is great so I guess that made up the difference ( 3.8 overall-3.75 science). I also had a 4.0 in my Masters Program in Finance which they all commented about.More importantly, my volunteers experience spanned 4 years where I started a non- profit org for underprivileged kids. The point of all this is your MCAT is important but not that important.The only reason I did not apply to more Ivy League schools is that as a foriegn student you usually need $200 grand in the bank before they interview you ( crazy John Hopkins). They gave me an interview but I could not come up with the finances. The funny thing is I did not apply until September/ October. Thats late for most school. My friend got into NYU with a MCAT 23 and a 3.33 GPA but he was Military.Work on being a complete applicant.

If I could do it over again, I would have applied in June!!

 

[notdeadyet]

Ignore the "shoot for 30" or "shoot for 35" comments. This implies that your MCAT score is dependent on how hard you work at it. It's not.

Study hard and do everything in your power to get the best possible score you can. The actual number is going to depend partially on your work ethic, but also your intelligence and training.

Take a look at MSAR and whatnot to get an idea of what is the average MCAT and GPA at schools you are interested in and then remind yourself that they are only averages, not cutoffs or guarantees.

 

[NapeSpikes]

26-27 is generally the 50th percentile on the MCAT...
CQ

Not true. 24-ish is 50th percentile. 27 is about average for all actual applicants, not 50-percentile for mcat takers.

 

[SailCrazy]

~25 is avg for all test takers.
~27 is avg for all applicants.
~30 is avg for all matriculants.

One other minor & inconsequential point: it is the MCAT (no "s") - it is just one test. And please don't call it "the cat" or "the cats"!

I agree with others who said it is pointless to "shoot for" a particular number. You really have no idea before shortly before the actual exam (and after many practice tests) that you havce any idea how you'll do. Study hard and often, and do your best!

 

[Pewl]

I got a 24 on the MCAT. I got interviews at more than half a dozen and got accepted into 4 of them. I still have 2 more interviews to go. I have gotten in Howard, Indiana and Northwestern just to name afew. When I get accepted I always call and talked to the Dean of the school ask why. They usually say the same thing. They are looking for more than numbers. Your personal statement is very important. At some schools they read it to the committee four times ( Indiana). My GPA is great so I guess that made up the difference ( 3.8 overall-3.75 science). I also had a 4.0 in my Masters Program in Finance which they all commented about.More importantly, my volunteers experience spanned 4 years where I started a non- profit org for underprivileged kids. The point of all this is your MCAT is important but not that important.The only reason I did not apply to more Ivy League schools is that as a foriegn student you usually need $200 grand in the bank before they interview you ( crazy John Hopkins). They gave me an interview but I could not come up with the finances. The funny thing is I did not apply until September/ October. Thats late for most school. My friend got into NYU with a MCAT 23 and a 3.33 GPA but he was Military.Work on being a complete applicant.

If I could do it over again, I would have applied in June!!

You have an amazing application story. I'm very happy for you. Although, your story also points how the lengths that one must go to in order overcome low numbers. Not everyone is willing to do everything you have done. It really helps just so much to have good numbers.

 

[Holistic]

Hey I scored a 28 and got into San Antonio in Texas. My GPA is also low, but it is misleading, I busted my balls the last two years and got a 3.9 in 53 hours in a second degree at UT austin. I also have a ton cool stuff on my resume, but a 28 can get you in, 30+ is ideal, but lots of people get in somewhere with less.

 

[happydays]

MCAT(with nothing under an 8) + ScienceGPA*10 = 60-64, a little dangerous
= 65-69, good
= 70-74, very good
= 75-79, extremely good
= 80+, stellar


Just a rough estimate.

 

[babloo]

I got a 27/O with a 3.87 overall 3.93 science, 3 semesters research, 20+ hour a week of extracurriculars and some pretty original expereinces/volunteer and I didnt get interviewed at any md schools yet. I didnt get all my secondaries out till october though which really hurt me. also my break down wasnt the best 10V 9P 8B. It seems that 27 seems to be the lowest to apply with the md route, so if u score below thirty apply as soon as u can (june 1) and get the secondaries out within the next couple days. But if i could do it again i would sign up for a prep course and shoot for 30+. The average matriculant has 30-31, so don't worry too much, that means half the people that got in did not get above 30, just the wait will be more stressful.

That being said, I have been accepted to three schools (DO) and am going to one of them next year.

Same here. I MD interview. Waiting........... BUT I have 2 DO's.
babloo

 

[SailCrazy]

Wow, that scale is pretty rough.

A person with a 4.0 (perfect GPA) and 40 on the MCAT (well into the the 99th percentile) barely eeks into your "stellar" category!?! (In my book that combination would be off the scale!) & a 3.8 science and 36 MCAT is just "very good"...

You certainly won't let anyone build their hopes up unnecessarily with your formula!

MCAT(with nothing under an 8) + ScienceGPA*10 = 60-64, a little dangerous
= 65-69, good
= 70-74, very good
= 75-79, extremely good
= 80+, stellar


Just a rough estimate.

 

[Rafa]

Wow, that scale is pretty rough.

A person with a 4.0 (perfect GPA) and 40 on the MCAT (well into the the 99th percentile) barely eeks into your "stellar" category!?! (In my book that combination would be off the scale!) & a 3.8 science and 36 MCAT is just "very good"...

You certainly won't let anyone build their hopes up unnecessarily with your formula!

It's also a bit off because it implies that your non-science GPA is inconsequential with regards to your statistical appearance. By this scale, a person with a 3.5 science and 2.1 non-science would fare better than one with a 3.0 science and a 4.0 non-science, since the scale given only considers science GPAs and MCAT scores. Somehow, that doesn't seem accurate.

 

[penguinophile]

Is it just me, or do you guys think that averages are going to shoot up in '07 when they offer MCAT a bunch per year? I mean, there will be plenty of people who didn't prepare enough that get the 22's and such, and then there will be people who have taken in the 3rd time in 6 months who can get a 36 easy. I see this step making comparisons very hard for adcoms over the next few years.

 

[Mr. Tee]

Let's break it down into milestones:

30 - the biggest goal for most test takers
35 - when you don't want to worry if your score is "high enough" and want to apply to the top programs
40 - strictly for bragging rights

 

[jebus]

Is it just me, or do you guys think that averages are going to shoot up in '07 when they offer MCAT a bunch per year? I mean, there will be plenty of people who didn't prepare enough that get the 22's and such, and then there will be people who have taken in the 3rd time in 6 months who can get a 36 easy. I see this step making comparisons very hard for adcoms over the next few years.

pee-ophile, no, they re-center the mean to a ~24 now. I think they will do that in 2007, as well. If nothing else, I suspect the 2006 scale will be a lot easier - a lot of people will try to take the paper version when they are not quite ready simply to avoid the CBT. More unprepared students means an easier scale, no?
In 2007, it's hard to say. All I can say with certainty is that there will be continued strife, both domestic and abroad, and I'll probably still have trouble hitting the toilet with perfection.

 

[Rafa]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure they'll rescale the test to make it just like the old one. Look at the SATs - the new version isn't necessarily any easier than the old one (in fact, I'd imagine it's more tedious, since you have to write an essay in addition to math/verbal), but since they changed the scoring range (I think the top score now is a 2400), they re-centered the 'average' scores, etc. Since the MCAT is merely getting rid of one essay and converting to computers, the tests won't necessarily be any harder, unless you've never used a computer for an extended period of time. At any rate, scaling will be done, so it's the same as the old one. Now, it'll just take less time to take the test, and less time to get your scores back. Personally, I'm looking forward to April '07.

 

[DoctorPardi]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure they'll rescale the test to make it just like the old one. Look at the SATs - the new version isn't necessarily any easier than the old one (in fact, I'd imagine it's more tedious, since you have to write an essay in addition to math/verbal), but since they changed the scoring range (I think the top score now is a 2400), they re-centered the 'average' scores, etc. Since the MCAT is merely getting rid of one essay and converting to computers, the tests won't necessarily be any harder, unless you've never used a computer for an extended period of time. At any rate, scaling will be done, so it's the same as the old one. Now, it'll just take less time to take the test, and less time to get your scores back. Personally, I'm looking forward to April '07.

I am planning on taking the august 07 MCAT will it be likely that my scores will that allow for me to complete my application including my MCAT scores much quicker than the current paper test system?

The point I am getting at of course, is everyone agrees there is a disadvantage of applying in october vs applying june 1st, so if I could get take the MCAT in august and have my mcat scores and application complete befor august is over then I and several others wouldn't be at such a disadvantage.

 

[Rafa]

I am planning on taking the august 07 MCAT will it be likely that my scores will that allow for me to complete my application including my MCAT scores much quicker than the current paper test system?

The point I am getting at of course, is everyone agrees there is a disadvantage of applying in october vs applying june 1st, so if I could get take the MCAT in august and have my mcat scores and application complete befor august is over then I and several others wouldn't be at such a disadvantage.

Well, if I were you, I'd still apply as soon as possible - meaning in June, the moment school ends and you can start filling out the AMCAS and stuff. Unless schools won't send you secondaries until they see your August MCAT. But yeah, scores are supposed to be available within two weeks after the test is administered, once the new system kicks in. So you'll probably be able to receive secondaries from interested schools before October. However, is there a possibility of taking the test earlier than August, but after April? I heard the test will be administered up to 20 times a year. I imagine most of those times will be clustered around a few particular dates, but in either case, you might be able to take it in the summer. But I wouldn't worry too much about it now. No one really knows how they're going to get everything set up at the moment, and we won't know the details for sure until we see them in action next year. But yeah. I'd still apply as early as possible.

 

[DoctorPardi]

Well, if I were you, I'd still apply as soon as possible - meaning in June, the moment school ends and you can start filling out the AMCAS and stuff. Unless schools won't send you secondaries until they see your August MCAT. But yeah, scores are supposed to be available within two weeks after the test is administered, once the new system kicks in. So you'll probably be able to receive secondaries from interested schools before October. However, is there a possibility of taking the test earlier than August, but after April? I heard the test will be administered up to 20 times a year. I imagine most of those times will be clustered around a few particular dates, but in either case, you might be able to take it in the summer. But I wouldn't worry too much about it now. No one really knows how they're going to get everything set up at the moment, and we won't know the details for sure until we see them in action next year. But yeah. I'd still apply as early as possible.

Well I am simply taking too many classes to feel confident about making A's and studying as much as I'd like for the MCAT in April. So my options are wait a year or take the august MCAT after studying all summer with nothing else to do. So hearing your commentary on the computer tests gave me hope that I wouldn't be at such a disadvantage as august mcaters are now.

Also I am not sure exactly how AMCAS works, but if I can go ahead and send my transcript, and fill out all of the application except my mcat score I will do that june 1st for certain.

 

[Shredder]

30 and youre safe at low tier, perhaps 33 at mid tier and 35 for upper tier. below 28 raises a red flag

 

[RxnMan]

It also depends on the program. MD/PhD programs can have average matriculating MCATs in the 33-35 range.

By the way, look up how the test is scored:
MCAT Scoring Manual, and you'll see that 24 (8/8/8) is set as the average. All other scores are relative to that mean. Subscores are one equipercentile apart (to account for slightly different tests), and stanard error is +/- one point in every category. This also provides GPA/MCAT, MCAT/USMLE score, etc., correlation data for Shredder. To shred.

 

[45408]

Is it just me, or do you guys think that averages are going to shoot up in '07 when they offer MCAT a bunch per year? I mean, there will be plenty of people who didn't prepare enough that get the 22's and such, and then there will be people who have taken in the 3rd time in 6 months who can get a 36 easy. I see this step making comparisons very hard for adcoms over the next few years.

Eh, those three scores (good, bad and ugly) will still be averaged. You should only take the test once.

 

[Apparition]

Eh, those three scores (good, bad and ugly) will still be averaged. You should only take the test once.

Not true for most schools.

 

[Conqueror]

Not true. 24-ish is 50th percentile. 27 is about average for all actual applicants, not 50-percentile for mcat takers.

http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/examineedata/table0405.pdf
http://www.aamc.org/data/facts/2005/2005mcatgpa.htm

That was my series (29). Note that 25-26 is average. Average applicant MCAT in 2005 was 27.5P and average GPA was 3.37BCMP/3.48OA. Average matriculant MCAT in 2005 was 30.2P and average GPA was 3.56BCMP/3.63OA.

CQ

 

[NehsNairb]

i think it's important to take ethnicity into consideration

they really should break down average MCAT scores for matriculants based on ethnicity because for an URM a score of 33 would be fantastic, but for an asian applicant that would be barely competitive for a top tier school

i'm not trying to be a racist or anything, just simply stating the facts so no need to get out the flamethrowers

 

[happydays]

MCAT(with nothing under an 8) + ScienceGPA*10 = 60-64, a little dangerous
= 65-69, good
= 70-74, very good
= 75-79, extremely good
= 80+, stellar


Just a rough estimate.

Ok, add "chance of getting into med school" after each tier. That's what I mean, not if it's only "very good" to get a 36 and 3.8. (so, if you have a 74, you have a "very good chance of getting into med school.")

 

[Shredder]

It also depends on the program. MD/PhD programs can have average matriculating MCATs in the 33-35 range.

By the way, look up how the test is scored:
MCAT Scoring Manual, and you'll see that 24 (8/8/8) is set as the average. All other scores are relative to that mean. Subscores are one equipercentile apart (to account for slightly different tests), and stanard error is +/- one point in every category. This also provides GPA/MCAT, MCAT/USMLE score, etc., correlation data for Shredder. To shred.

those are some good stats. mcat is a well crafted test. i do wonder if mcat and usmle scores are both simply correlated (relatively strongly) to iq though. SAT is definitely