Worth applying in August?

[thezilchplatypus]

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Hey guys, my current MCAT is scheduled for July 22nd. Knowing that it takes one month to receive my score, is it worth applying in late August? or would it be best to wait until the following year to apply?

 

[bengirlxD]

I'm not an adcom or anything but I have been reading a lot of SDN posts and what you really want to do is apply as early as you can in the cycle. August is kind of cutting it close so I don't think it might be the best idea to apply that late

 

[thezilchplatypus]

What do you think about me submitting my application as soon as possible, and then updating it when my mcat score comes in. Would that be worth it?

 

[lmn]

What do you think about me submitting my application as soon as possible, and then updating it when my mcat score comes in. Would that be worth it?

How are you going to pick a good school list without knowing one of the most important pieces of information going in? Plus most of the schools aren't even going too look at your application until you update it without your score. I would just wait the additional year, it's not worth messing up your application list and risking having to be a reapplicant the following year.

 

[thezilchplatypus]

thanks for all your responses. What if I was applying D.O? Would that change anyones view of applying in late August.

 

[aalamruad]

I am not so sure I would make it that absolute. If you are a strong candidate, and you have all your ducks in a row with a submitted AMCAS, verified with 1 school, LORs all set, and pre-writing secondaries then perhaps. However, doing all that will take away time and effort from prepping and doing well on the MCAT which needs a good score to apply. So it would be contraindicated to try to do all that. I am also not a fan of suggesting anyone consider applying without first knowing your MCAT score. I will have to agree with @LizzyM , the Grand Dame of SDN, who considers May MCATs the latest one should take for any current cycle.

Gonna have to disagree with that last piece of advice (not for OP's case specifically, but just in general). There's a June 2nd MCAT offered, and the AMCAS app can't be submitted until June 7th this year, so if both take about a month to go through (a month for the MCAT to be scored, a month for your app to be verified), then sitting for that test date won't delay your app at all. Worst case scenario is that you waste a small bit of money submitting an app to only 1 school, and then reapply next year with a stronger MCAT, best case scenario is that you get accepted to med school with a solid MCAT score and don't have to reapply again or figure out what to do with an extra unplanned and unwanted gap year. Similarly, the June 18th MCAT only puts you behind like 11 days, which seems negligible. Caveat obviously being that it's not wise to rush the MCAT if you're not ready for it and can't fit enough time in studying for it on top of preparing an application, but if someone's not bright enough to realize that they need to take more time studying for the MCAT out of a futile hope of irresponsibly rushing an app, they've probably got bigger problems than a single poor score.

Edit: @LizzyM thoughts?

 

[Cookiess]

In my opinion, a July 22nd MCAT test date is pretty late. You would pretty much have to be on top of everything else application wise in order for the late test date to not hurt you. Meaning you would have to submit your primary AMCAS application, with at least one medical school designated, sometime in early July to ensure your application would be verified by the time your MCAT score is released August 22nd. That means you'll have to get your personal statement, activities description, and LOR requests all done between now until early July on top of studying for the MCAT.

Then after you take the MCAT on July 22nd, you would start pre-writing secondaries. You would designate the rest of your schools on August 22nd/23rd based on your MCAT scores, and turn around secondaries fairly quickly to ensure your application would be complete as early as possible.

I would probably just focus on doing well on the MCAT and wait to apply next year. You want to apply once and when you can put forth the strongest application possible. If you're set on applying this year, then you would have to be on top of everything from now until your MCAT to ensure the late test date doesn't hinder you too much. Otherwise, I would wait until next year to apply.

 

[tantacles]

In my opinion, a July 22nd MCAT test date is pretty late. You would pretty much have to be on top of everything else application wise in order for the late test date to not hurt you. Meaning you would have to submit your primary AMCAS application, with at least one medical school designated, sometime in early July to ensure your application would be verified by the time your MCAT score is released August 22nd. That means you'll have to get your personal statement, activities description, and LOR requests all done between now until early July on top of studying for the MCAT.

Then after you take the MCAT on July 22nd, you would start pre-writing secondaries. You would designate the rest of your schools on August 22nd/23rd based on your MCAT scores, and turn around secondaries fairly quickly to ensure your application would be complete as early as possible.

I would probably just focus on doing well on the MCAT and wait to apply next year. You want to apply once and when you can put forth the strongest application possible. If you're set on applying this year, then you would have to be on top of everything from now until your MCAT to ensure the late test date doesn't hinder you too much. Otherwise, I would wait until next year to apply.

Here's your correct advice. If you're going to do it, submit your application and all transcripts with just ONE school selected initially. This will get your application verified. Once you get your mcat back, you can choose ON THAT DAY to add more schools or, if your mcat is not satisfactory, to wait until next yet to do a full application cycle so that you can retake. This ensures that you are viewed as a reapplication at only one school if your mcat goes poorly.


Large dogs

 

[ChrisMack390]

thanks for all your responses. What if I was applying D.O? Would that change anyones view of applying in late August.

Yes, the DO cycle runs later than the MD one.

 

[tantacles]

But my point to this strategy, it puts significant energies to do an AMCAS and prewriting secondaries that are speculative, when the applicant could be using that time prep for a lat eMCAT. That is the issue I have with this method and why I am not a big fan of it. This often is planned by an applicant who is completing a full spring term rushing to complete prereqs and even squeezing some in the summer. Applicants do have prioritize by doing well on MCAT and in courses over energy on speculative AMCAS and secondaries

It does. But if you're going to take your mcat in July and apply this year, it's really the only way to do it.


Large dogs