Requirements Changed?

[chiefy]

In the note that came with my online application, it said that students that did NOT write the MCAT will be considered. I have not yet written the MCAT, which means I'm okay, but now I'm wondering if they don't want me to. Have the requirements changed? Do the schools recommend NOT writing the MCAT? I have great grades, great research and extracurriculars, should I not write it, if Ireland is my first choice?

Here's an excerpt from the note:

US and Canadian students who will have (i) completed a bachelor's degree and (ii) college-level courses in biology and chemistry and either physics or mathematics by September 1, 2006 but will not have written the MCAT in or before April 2006 are eligible to apply for Fall 2006 entry to the:



Five-year medical degree courses at University College Dublin www.ucd.ie and Trinity College Dublin
Six-year medical degree course at The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland www.rcsi.ie

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[leorl]

If you really don't want to, then don't. But I would recommend not taking the lazy option out and doing them. It will give you more opportunity, and if you score well, you could get into a US program. The funny thing is, that you don't know if you will be accepted into an Irish program or not...so even if it's your first choice, you can't guarantee that you will be taken in. And then where would you be? If you had your MCAT score, you have a fall back option.

 

[chiefy]

Maybe, I was not clear in my original email, for Irish schools does it put you at a disadvantage in any way by taking the MCAT?

If you really don't want to, then don't. But I would recommend not taking the lazy option out and doing them. It will give you more opportunity, and if you score well, you could get into a US program. The funny thing is, that you don't know if you will be accepted into an Irish program or not...so even if it's your first choice, you can't guarantee that you will be taken in. And then where would you be? If you had your MCAT score, you have a fall back option.

 

[leorl]

No, it should not put you at a disadvantage by taking the MCAT. If just say you don't get as high a score as you want, or someone else has gotten a higher score - the schools that don't look at the MCAT score still won't look at it. Or they might, but if what you have on paper in terms of extracurriculars and experiences would have gotten you in anyway, over a person whose scores were higher, you should still be taken. I hope that makes sense. Having said that, perhaps you should ask AB directly about this.... because none of us are on admissions committees at these universities. This is just my perception of how things work here.