where to apply

[mdboy]

Hi Everyone,
I got a 27 on my MCATs with a & on verbal. I am planning on taking the August MCATs and hoping to improve my score by 5-6 points. I took the Kaplan course and I just got some Berkeley review material. How should I study for the August test? Also, when and where should I apply? I also have a 3.66 from Berkeley.

thanks for your help

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[SMW]

Welcome to SDN! Practice, practice, practice. Read, read, read. Did you take the Kaplan course before or after that 7 (I'm assuming) score? I'm sure lots of folks will have more specific advice for you on this. Verbal was my strength, so didn't pay that much attention to it.

You should apply as soon as possible to LOTS of lower and/or unranked schools and a few reaches. You want your files at all the schools, including secondaries, to be complete by the time they receive your August scores (some time in mid OCtober).

Good luck!!

 

[mdboy]

I took the Kaplan course and then took the test. What schools would you recommend? I am CA resident but I know that UCs are very hard to get in.

thanks for your help

 

[lola]

you should think about adding some lower tier schools to your list. schools to consider:

finch chicago med school
new york medical college
albany
university of vermont
saint louis university
mcp hahneman

also, you should add some mid-tier schools. since you went to berkeley and did quite well, you might have more luck with these than some of the lower tier schools. find these by looking at msar or toward the bottom of u.s. world news top 50 rankings. be sure to apply to usc... i think it favors cali residents a little and has slightly lower average stats than the uc's.

i'm a cali resident and have applied to 25 schools -- 3 lower tier, 5 or so mid tier, the uc's, and some top 20 schools.

 

[Patiently Waiting]

Adding a couple of more schools to the list.. One note: these are not necessarily EASY to get in (maybe harder cuz many applicants consider them as backups and apply, so the schools get an average of 7000-10000 applications each year)

***********************
Albany
Boston University
Finch Chicago Med School
Mcp Hahneman
New York Medical College
Saint Louis University
Tulane (?)
Tufts
University of Vermont

 

[SMW]

Adding George Washington, although I had no luck there myself, Jefferson and USC (Keck).

Hey SDNers, how 'bout giving mdboy some advice on how to study for verbal?

***********************
Albany
Boston University
Finch Chicago Med School
George Washington
Jefferson
MCP Hahneman
New York Medical College
Saint Louis University
Tulane (?)
Tufts
USC (Keck)
University of Vermont

 

[Patiently Waiting]

LOTS OF PRACTICE AND PRACTICE. Be sure to time yourself...cuz this exam is not just about how well you can read, but how fast.

 

[mdboy]

thanks for your help.
I just one of the Berkeley review verbal and I got a 10-11. I was suprised, what do you guys think about TBR verbal, how accurate is it? Some people also told me about examkrackers. Do you guys any books out there which would have similar level of difficulty as real MCAT verbal?

 

[Patiently Waiting]

I thought the Berkeley review verbal passages were a bit too easy. got my score 2 points lower on the real MCAT, but it could have been due to sleep deprivation the night before that had adversely affected my performance on the MCAT day. I did a couple of the Hyperlearning (it's now called Kaplan??) verbal practices and found them a bit more challenging and more reflective of the real exam. Check them out. The office is only a block away from the Berkeley Review.