The Official 3/23/13 MCAT Thread

[Redpancreas]

Figured I'd start this one out. I'll be registering for the MCAT first thing tomorrow. Who else is taking it on this date? How do you all plan on studying over the school year?

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[PreMedRookie]

36!!!!!

12/12/12

averaged a 31.5 on my aamc practice tests (6 tests) and my highest score was a 33..once.

My situation is similar. I averaged about a 29 and never broke 31. On the real thing I got a 33, 11/11/11!!! so thrilled! Congrats on the 36...that's awesome!

 

[asecondtolife]

11/10/11 = 32

I consistently scored between 34-36 on my practice tests and my VR was always 11+ so I'm disappointed.

I really really want to stay in California for personal/family issues -- should I retake? I'm not a UCSF hopeful or anything...looking more along the lines of Davis/LA/SD

 

[dtc29]

My situation is similar. I averaged about a 29 and never broke 31. On the real thing I got a 33, 11/11/11!!! so thrilled! Congrats on the 36...that's awesome!

congrats to you too!!!

 

[mdoneday1]

Long time reader, first time poster. 9 PS, 11 VR, 11 BS. Non-traditional student 10 years out of undergrad, so I am pretty pumped. Just want to go to a med school, anywhere in-state.

Congratulations to everyone else!

 

[tiredofschool]

Pretty frustrated and embarrassed with my score even though I was averaging a decent score on practice exams. Too upset with myself to put my score up here. So now this leaves me with many questions/concerns about retaking:

Is it too late to retake 5/30 (hoping a seat opens up near me)? Or even in June?

How am I supposed to restudy everything in this one month period? Redoing the practice exams again are for sure not going to accurately reflect anything.

I used TPR and EK to study initially. Not sure if I should add another to the rotation?

I don't even have anymore verbal passages to practice off of. Even if I went through old ones from ages ago, I'll probably remember some answers in the back of my head. Any suggestions on other good material to use? Used TPR and EK for verbal as well.

currently, there are no seats open near me for late may test dates. hoping a few pop up at the last minute. wishful thinking?

 

[dellian101]

i thought verbal was easy and got lower verbal than I ever did.

anyone ever rescore?

 

[grindtime1]

10 PS, 9 BS, 9 VR - 28 MCAT

Pathetic. Have already planned my retake for January 2014.

 

[Albein]

hi all. wanted to congratulate those who achieved the score they wanted and those who exceeded their averages. to those of you who didn't, i am sorry and am in the same boat as i am retaking this friday due to a dreadful 23 i got last year (dont mind talking about it because i should own up to it). i cannot afford to do poorly a second time. my average is a 29 which is where i think it should be in terms of DO schools (not sure the range for DO schools), but obviously I'm going to try and do my best and maybe be able to have a shot at some MDs. I was wondering if you guys had any tips to offer? thanks!

 

[gettheleadout]

If everything is 10 or above, does it matter if the scores are balanced?

Short answer: no.

Long answer: If you've scored well in all three sections, there's no reason to think it looks bad to have strengths reflected in your score. A 15/11/11 isn't unbalanced because 11's aren't bad scores. A 14/8/14 is unbalanced because an 8 is a bad score (and it doesn't help that it looks worse next to 14's.)

does this mean we shouldn't take the exam if we can't break 10 on VR? lol.
ive been at it for months and only got a 10 on 2 occasions on earlier AAMCs. Other than that, it's been a 7/8. I feel myself getting better, but it's not reflecting on the practice tests.

What it means is if you've taken the test three times and your verbal scores are going down as his are, then yes, I would very highly recommend not taking it a fourth time until you can consistently hit above your previous test scores in verbal.

 

[Entadus]

Somebody needs to slap me. It's hard to shake these feelings of disappointment.

Somebody tell me that a 36 is good enough

Those two 11's just look gross after averaging 40+ on AAMC's...

I am genuinely glad I improved over last time... but I did not expect anything below 38. I mean, 44 max to 36 on the real deal feels like such a big blow to my ego. Yikes

Especially seeing people score higher than they ever did on practice exams ... Good job and congratulations to you guys...

 

[Albein]

Short answer: no.

Long answer: If you've scored well in all three sections, there's no reason to think it looks bad to have strengths reflected in your score. A 15/11/11 isn't unbalanced because 11's aren't bad scores. A 14/8/14 is unbalanced because an 8 is a bad score (and it doesn't help that it looks worse next to 14's.)


What it means is if you've taken the test three times and your verbal scores are going down as his are, then yes, I would very highly recommend not taking it a fourth time until you can consistently hit above your previous test scores in verbal.

I've only taken the exam once, I meant on practice AAMCs I've done mostly 8s and can't seem to improve with the exception of one or two AAMC practice exams.

Edit: completely misread your reply further proving my inefficiency in verbal :/

 

[osprey099]

Somebody needs to slap me. It's hard to shake these feelings of disappointment.

Somebody tell me that a 36 is good enough

Those two 11's just look gross after averaging 40+ on AAMC's...

I am genuinely glad I improved over last time... but I did not expect anything below 38. I mean, 44 max to 36 on the real deal feels like such a big blow to my ego. Yikes

Especially seeing people score higher than they ever did on practice exams ... Good job and congratulations to you guys...

36 is fine dude. If you end up not getting accepted, a 36 (instead of a 38+ that you wanted) is not gonna be the culprit, even for top 20s.

 

[PreMedRookie]

Pretty frustrated and embarrassed with my score even though I was averaging a decent score on practice exams. Too upset with myself to put my score up here. So now this leaves me with many questions/concerns about retaking:

Is it too late to retake 5/30 (hoping a seat opens up near me)? Or even in June?

How am I supposed to restudy everything in this one month period? Redoing the practice exams again are for sure not going to accurately reflect anything.

I used TPR and EK to study initially. Not sure if I should add another to the rotation?

I don't even have anymore verbal passages to practice off of. Even if I went through old ones from ages ago, I'll probably remember some answers in the back of my head. Any suggestions on other good material to use? Used TPR and EK for verbal as well.

currently, there are no seats open near me for late may test dates. hoping a few pop up at the last minute. wishful thinking?

I would wait at least a good month to retake it. Have you been studying for a retake since taking the test in March? If not, don't rush the retake. Waiting until late June vs. early June won't make a huge difference in your application but has the potential to make a big difference in your score.

As for material...I have no idea, I hate the book I used and would not recommend it.

 

[Postictal Raiden]

Somebody needs to slap me. It's hard to shake these feelings of disappointment.

Somebody tell me that a 36 is good enough

Those two 11's just look gross after averaging 40+ on AAMC's...

I am genuinely glad I improved over last time... but I did not expect anything below 38. I mean, 44 max to 36 on the real deal feels like such a big blow to my ego. Yikes

Especially seeing people score higher than they ever did on practice exams ... Good job and congratulations to you guys...

Obviously.

 

[Entadus]

I'm sorry man, but I still think you have much better chances this year.

+1

36 is a great score!

I would be willing to do almost anything to have a 36

I honestly wish I could vouch for you, but sadly that's not the way it works.

36 is fine dude. If you end up not getting accepted, a 36 (instead of a 38+ that you wanted) is not gonna be the culprit, even for top 20s.

Thanks guys. I am not going to retake (obviously). Going to apply, full steam ahead. Hoping for a good cycle!!

 

[Status Sciaticus]

Somebody needs to slap me. It's hard to shake these feelings of disappointment.

Somebody tell me that a 36 is good enough

Those two 11's just look gross after averaging 40+ on AAMC's...

I am genuinely glad I improved over last time... but I did not expect anything below 38. I mean, 44 max to 36 on the real deal feels like such a big blow to my ego. Yikes

Especially seeing people score higher than they ever did on practice exams ... Good job and congratulations to you guys...

not sure if srs... or fishing for attention..

 

[dirty630]

39!

My average was a 36 on practice tests (I scored 36 for 8-11) so I'm thrilled with this! This is close to the happiest I've ever been.

 

[Dirty Harry]

Congratulations to all who received a great score. For those who did not, you can do it!!!! Also, a 36 should not be a disappointment. If you are aiming for anything higher I think you need to realize that is a super competitive score. Heck, I want that score. What matters is your personal statement and your experiences afterwards. Lots of people would exchange their souls with the devil for such a score. Even if you got a 40s on your practice test, test day anxiety might have been a factor as well as difficulty of the test. Please, a 36 should not even be asked if that is a great score or not.

 

[MTHFR]

For those with 35+ scores, what were your study habits, and did you use TBR, TPR, Kaplan, EK, self-study with undergraduate books, or any other variation? Any disclosure is much appreciated.

 

[PreMedRookie]

39!

My average was a 36 on practice tests (I scored 36 for 8-11) so I'm thrilled with this! This is close to the happiest I've ever been.

Congrats!! I am seriously so relaxed now...I've never been this chill going into finals week now that scores are out

 

[dirty630]

For those with 35+ scores, what were your study habits, and did you use TBR, TPR, Kaplan, EK, self-study with undergraduate books, or any other variation? Any disclosure is much appreciated.

I used EK. I would read six or so chapters over a few days then listen to their Audio Osmosis recordings. After reading and listening, I would take multiple chapter exams in one sitting. For verbal, I used EK101. The questions weren't great but the practice helped.

 

[Annelid7]

Why haven't I gotten my $30 Amazon gift card yet? That's the only reason I took the MCAT.

 

[annabelle17]

Why haven't I gotten my $30 Amazon gift card yet? That's the only reason I took the MCAT.

HAHAHahaha love this
Hope you get your gift card AND got a good score!

 

[Jimsy]

Why haven't I gotten my $30 Amazon gift card yet? That's the only reason I took the MCAT.

I haven't gotten mine too..it was probably too obvious that I didn't put in a good effort since I finished it in 3 min

 

[Annelid7]

I haven't gotten mine too..it was probably too obvious that I didn't put in a good effort since I finished it in 3 min

Hahaha agreed. I'd say that constitutes a good faith effort.

 

[Jesus1]

Crushed the exam.

Solved tons of practice problems with TBR and TPH.Used EK Audio Osmosis extensively and tutored most of the premedical sciences for my first 2 years of college.Also used Khan Academy,Wikipremed,Flashcards,mcat-review.org and youtube videos. Chad's videos were also a huge help.Focused on understanding concepts in depth for PS,continually listened to EK Audio Osmosis for BS and tried to read with full concentration on VR along with making sure I had proof from the passage before I answered questions.I feel that learning material from multiple sources of information really helped (you see many things from the perspectives of others)
As a Christian,I also committed the exam into God's hands.
All the best to those waiting for their scores and those taking it in the upcoming months.
Glad to be done

 

[Captain Sisko]

Hey guys,

Biochem exam went pretty well. I felt ok on it, as soon as I got my starbucks in hand thoughts of the MCAT went out of my mind entirely and I was able to focus. Thanks for the well wishes!

So here's what I got.

15 PS / 10 VR / 13 BS = 38. F.ck yeah.

All time high for PS- never scored a 15 but I came close a couple times. All time low for VR- I think all of my aamc's were 11's or higher, with a 13 on AAMC11. BS was about where I thought it'd be based on practices. More than happy. I think I hit roughly my modern AAMC averages (8-11). Stats don't lie, thankfully.

Went out to dinner with the fiancee- she doesn't remember her individual breakdown, but she got a 38 when she took it back in 2003, so neither of us feels one-upped.

Glad to see some good scores on here. NED, you're going to be a doc, MD or DO you'll get there. Entadus, no worries. It'd have been nice to hit a 40 but you know what we're >90% and still incredibly competitive. We're good man.

I hope I'll see some of you all on the interview trail!

I had a couple beers with dinner, but I've a staff meeting tomorrow at 8 am sharp (I'm in the east, and it's 11 now). Celebrate with cigars and whiskey sometime this weekend.

Sisko out

 

[theoryofmind]

Sigh* 8PS 13VR 9BS

should i retake? I averaged 10/10/10 on practice tests so pretty disappointed right now

 

[GomerPyle]

Thanks guys. I am not going to retake (obviously). Going to apply, full steam ahead. Hoping for a good cycle!!

Seriously, retaking a 36 makes you look like you are full of yourself and a complete idiot. Even if you score better, I don't know if medical schools would take that in a good way or a bad way. If you can't get into medical school with a 36, than there is definitely something wrong with your application...MCAT should be the least of your worries.

 

[gettheleadout]

Seriously, retaking a 36 makes you look like you are full of yourself and a complete idiot. Even if you score better, I don't know if medical schools would take that in a good way or a bad way.

For the record, I disagree with this.

 

[osprey099]

15 PS / 10 VR / 13 BS = 38. F.ck yeah.

Nice! That is an amazing score. I hope I can come close to a 38 with almost the same breakdown on Friday.

 

[wolfie77]

Alright so it went well guys. When do schools do the earliest interviews?

 

[gettheleadout]

Alright so it went well guys. When do schools do the earliest interviews?

Usually won't see interviews earlier than August. Invites come from early July on.

 

[AlabamaPop]

Seriously, retaking a 36 makes you look like you are full of yourself and a complete idiot. Even if you score better, I don't know if medical schools would take that in a good way or a bad way. If you can't get into medical school with a 36, than there is definitely something wrong with your application...MCAT should be the least of your worries.

I STRONGLY agree. In my personal opinion, a 36 which can make you an excellent candidate provided your GPA is at least 3.5+.

From my personal opinion (and not saying the retaker is exactly like this) people who have enough high stats but still want to go crazy over a point higher or not, is because they are putting too much emphasis on the numbers and not enough emphasis on the "well-rounded" or "human" aspect of being an applicant.

There are plenty of...as Goro puts it...AUTOMATONS that just wanna spit out high numbers robotically and neglect to strengthen their non-academic areas, such as people skills, having a life outside of book, or extracurriculars.

You got a 3.5? Keep it. You have a 36? Keep it. Now let's work on the following:

1. How are your extracurriculars? Did you cover all the bases? Leadership, community service, clinical experience, shadowing perhaps?

2. How well-rounded are you? Are you socially-awkward? Are you able to communicate clearly and is approachable? Are you outgoing? Can you connect with people? Do you have productive hobbies you enjoy? How are your interviewing skills?

You're not going to get into med school if 1 and ESPECIALLY 2 aren't good enough. Stats isn't everything.

For the record, I disagree with this.

I disagree with you Lead, for my opinion above.

 

[sworzeh]

For the record, I disagree with this.

People who would retake a 36 are too perfectionistic. If I was an adcom, I wouldn't prefer them.

 

[osprey099]

For the record, I disagree with this.

I cannot see any reason why someone would retake a 36.. If it was <35, then I can understand but if its >=35, there's really no reason to retake it. That valuable time spent on another MCAT could be used to strengthen other parts of the app.

 

[carboxylase]

He said he wasn't going to retake, so we can end that discussion now.

 

[GomerPyle]

He said he wasn't going to retake, so we can end that discussion now.

Whoops...thought he said he was going to retake. Never mind! Good score!

 

[gettheleadout]

Onco and sworzeh, you two are making some unfounded assumptions about any given person that chooses to retake a 36.

Osprey, it's a matter of personal opinion on whether you think the score reflects your aptitude or not. I can understand your perspective that it's not worth it, but value is relative.

 

[tchoudha]

So, I was averaging above 30's in my practice exams but on my real exam it was nothing close to what I was averaging; can't even mention my score. I have NO idea what happened. What do you guys recommend? Should I retake by the end of May or early June. I am in a shock atm. I have not touched the books since 03/23/13. I have used BR, EK, PR, Wikipremed, GS and Freelance. I have used BR exams, all AAMC practice exams, GS exams, PR Workbook and various others exams that I could find. I am not sure what to do at this point. PLEASE if someone can help me. I know that I am not a great test taker but honestly I did not expect as low of a score as I received. Thanks in advance.

 

[milski]

Onco and sworzeh, you two are making some unfounded assumptions about any given person that chooses to retake a 36.

Osprey, it's a matter of personal opinion on whether you think the score reflects your aptitude or not. I can understand your perspective that it's not worth it, but value is relative.

I can agree that it's unlikely that retaking a 36 will change your chances for getting an acceptance but that's not the only reason to take the test again. I'd argue that someone who was consistently scoring more than 36 on practice tests should not need much additional preparation or any at all to take the test again a month later, so it becomes a matter of having a free half a day and $300 to spare.

AAMC has some data on that in the MCAT guide book. In 2009, 2010 and 2011 78 people from the 36-38 bucket and 6 from 39-45 retook the test. 51% from the former and 33% from the latter improved their score. Best improvement for the 36-38 group was 7 or more points but the 39-45 managed only a single extra point. All these are people retaking in the same year, retakes in following years were not accounted for.

 

[N7chell]

VR13/PS10/BS12 = 35!

Horray! I got exactly what I was aiming for. I was a little disappointed with my PS score, but VERY pleasantly surprised by my VR =]. This is my 2nd re-take and VR was definitely my weakest section (always averaged ~10). This time around I mainly used TPR for practice. After doing so many passages, I started picking up on their tricks and realized that I can just see which answer is "correct" by AAMC standards. The key for VR, I think, is to practice (a lot), understand why you picked the answers that you did, and understand why those reasons are right/wrong.

Anyways, I can finally say goodbye to everything MCAT! Congrats to those who met/exceeded their goals and good luck to those who are retaking!

 

[Redpancreas]

So, I was averaging above 30's in my practice exams but on my real exam it was nothing close to what I was averaging; can't even mention my score. I have NO idea what happened. What do you guys recommend? Should I retake by the end of May or early June. I am in a shock atm. I have not touched the books since 03/23/13. I have used BR, EK, PR, Wikipremed, GS and Freelance. I have used BR exams, all AAMC practice exams, GS exams, PR Workbook and various others exams that I could find. I am not sure what to do at this point. PLEASE if someone can help me. I know that I am not a great test taker but honestly I did not expect as low of a score as I received. Thanks in advance.

Man this is brutal! Someone help this guy/girl out!

Have you used the Self-Assessments? Buy all of those. Get some more PR exams? Try to find some more BR exams?

Redo the BR passages you DIDN'T DO. You might want to consider redoing AAMCs (not as like practice exams but just for practice, especially verbal).

I noticed you didn't touch Kaplan (understandable-I prefer TBR and TPR to Kaplan) but you might want to use that.

As for verbal your going to want to start with the self assessment as your best practice-problem is that it's not that many passages. (Review it well)I don't know what to say for other resources...if you've used TPRH and EK 101...Have you used ALL the TPR materials? If you take their class the online database has like 200 passages and they're all good quality.

 

[aerogers]

yes I did everything. I do easy passages first then spend extra time on the harder ones last.
I had timing down. Was able to finish with three to four minutes remaining.
I was getting 9s on practice with a couple 11s, 10s, 8s and a few 7s

what can I do now?

First practice test Verbal I ever did, I got a 5.

Someone on here mentioned a book called "Breakthrough Rapid Reading" by Kump. It bumped my VR score from that 5 to consistent 11's and 12's on practice tests.

Unfortunately I only got a 9 VR on the real deal, but it was a cheap buy and might be worth looking into. Helps you to read faster and comprehend more; two strategies that definitely help while tackling this beast!

Best of luck to you!

 

[Chalupa Batman]

First practice test Verbal I ever did, I got a 5.

Someone on here mentioned a book called "Breakthrough Rapid Reading" by Kump. It bumped my VR score from that 5 to consistent 11's and 12's on practice tests.

Unfortunately I only got a 9 VR on the real deal, but it was a cheap buy and might be worth looking into. Helps you to read faster and comprehend more; two strategies that definitely help while tackling this beast!

Best of luck to you!

Thanks!

What are some of the tricks/tips in the book. I am scheduled to retake in 3 weeks.. I know its not enough time to improve but I got 7s on my last two real MCATs and was scoring around a 9 on the tons of practice passages I was doing. I really think it was a fluke, I was nervous during the test and probably misread a lot of stuff.

 

[DNA]

Only on SDN will you see people weep and moan about getting a 36, despite it being 90+ percentile. This is primarily why the SDN pre-med community get's a bad rep. Even if you scored lower than your average, be proud of that accomplishment. Not many can achieve that, and most people would be ecstatic if the had the same score.

Congratulations to everyone who did well, and to those who didn't, don't give up hope.

 

[MTHFR]

VR13/PS10/BS12 = 35!

Horray! I got exactly what I was aiming for. I was a little disappointed with my PS score, but VERY pleasantly surprised by my VR =]. This is my 2nd re-take and VR was definitely my weakest section (always averaged ~10). This time around I mainly used TPR for practice. After doing so many passages, I started picking up on their tricks and realized that I can just see which answer is "correct" by AAMC standards. The key for VR, I think, is to practice (a lot), understand why you picked the answers that you did, and understand why those reasons are right/wrong.

Anyways, I can finally say goodbye to everything MCAT! Congrats to those who met/exceeded their goals and good luck to those who are retaking!

Congrats! Good luck!

 

[MTHFR]

The MCAT has evolved into a test where the practice material, does not prepare you for the test, the peole who get 32-45 you have a natural gift or your parents exposed you to high quality education early on, thank them.

I actually agree with this. It comes down to doing thousands of practice questions, hundreds of practice passages, and multiple, multiple tests for those not naturally gifted. Speed reading helps as well. Someone please prove this theory wrong.

 

[osprey099]

The MCAT has evolved into a test where the practice material, does not prepare you for the test, the peole who get 32-45 you have a natural gift or your parents exposed you to high quality education early on, thank them.

I agree with this as well but I would say this only applies to 35+ scorers. I believe <=34 can be achieved solely from hard work. For 35+, you probably need "natural" gift developed through childhood that results in a certain style of approaching and analyzing questions + luck on top of hard work.

 

[sworzeh]

I agree with this as well but I would say this only applies to 35+ scorers. I believe <=34 can be achieved solely from hard work. For 35+, you probably need "natural" gift developed through childhood that results in a certain style of approaching and analyzing questions + luck on top of hard work.

As a 34, this statement sounds reasonable. By no means am I "gifted" by pre-med standards, but I studied hard for the test.