Spring or Summer??????

I already posted something like this on MomMD, so for those of you who are also involved w/ that website and came across my post, I apologize for being so redundant. I just wanna get as much input as I can, as I am STILL struggling with the decision.
I’m pretty much set on taking the April MCAT’s, thanks to some very informative individuals who took the time to give me their $.02 smile.gif . JUST in case, I may have to take the August ones. There are some factors that may force me to do so…(school load, financial aid, childcare, time, etc). I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make the spring MCAT work for me.
How detrimental do you think it is to take the summer MCAT? How much do my chances of getting into medical school decrease b/c of this? Are there any of you who would actually suggest me taking the August ones? Please let me know, any input would be appreciated! Thanks smile.gif
Annie cool.gif

There is a minor statistical advantage to taking the April MCAT. However, no where substantial enough to merit taking the MCAT before you are ready. Remember, once you’ve taken it, your scores are part of your permanent record. So, do not take it lightly and do not take it for “practice”, as I have seen several folks advocate!
Long & short of it - take it when you know that you are ready, even if that means adding a year to your application process. Most older folks feel that an additional year is the worst possible outcome…no, it is far from the truth. Not getting in cause you took the MCAT too early and screwed the pooch is!

You can minimize the disadvantage of the August MCAT by doing everything else you need for your application long before August. Get your AMCAS/AACOMAS applications in shortly after the season opens in June, get those LORs written and sent, do secondaries for all schools that send them to you.
That way, they’ve already got a lot of data on you and they’re just waiting for one data point, your MCAT score, to decide to invite you for an interview. While some schools won’t even look at your application until it’s complete, other schools may have given your application a once-over and gotten a favorable opinion of you (e.g. “As long as she has an MCAT > some mysterious number we want her for an interview”).
One thing you can’t do with an August MCAT, that you can do with an April MCAT, is “wait and see.” That is, you can’t wait til you get your scores and THEN decide whether or not you are going to apply - well, you CAN but it’s not a very good idea because it would be so late.
We had a guy on OPM a few years ago who had an extremely successful application year, with many acceptances, with an August MCAT. He had gotten all his other stuff in well before August and he got interview invites within a week of the MCAT scores being released. It’s based on his experience that I speculate that some schools do look at your application even before the MCAT scores are attached - no way do they work so fast that they get back to you within a week in october otherwise!
You do your best with the situation you’ve got, you work hard to identify the variables that are under your control, and you take those steps that maximize your possibilities. Bottom line, I agree with Dave, you absolutely do NOT take the MCAT until you are sure you’re ready to do well.

Dave and Mary,
Thanks for your reply. That makes sense…I need to stay on top of the game to compensate taking the MCAT in the summer. You can definitely consider me impatient. Up until now (I still feel a bit this way), I was so determined to get into medical school straight out of undergrad. Meaning, I didn’t want to waste any more time. It sounds silly I know, but I guess alot of it has to do with the fact that I spent the last FOUR years of my life at a community college, and now, I’m finally transferring. The thought of taking the MCAT in April just seems so exciting. BUT, I agree…It’s better to take it later than to screw my dream over. I want to take it in April, very badly actually, but…having the whole summer to concentrate on MCAT studies alone sounds very tempting. Sitting here before my desktop, I realize, so many of the odds are against the April exam…
Thanks again for your replies. smile.gif
Annie

QUOTE (Mary Renard @ Aug 29 2002, 11:36 PM)
You can minimize the disadvantage of the August MCAT by doing everything *else* you need for your application long before August. Get your AMCAS/AACOMAS applications in shortly after the season opens in June, get those LORs written and sent, do secondaries for all schools that send them to you.
That way, they've already got a lot of data on you and they're just waiting for one data point, your MCAT score, to decide to invite you for an interview. While some schools won't even look at your application until it's complete, other schools may have given your application a once-over and gotten a favorable opinion of you (e.g. "As long as she has an MCAT > *some mysterious number* we want her for an interview").
One thing you *can't* do with an August MCAT, that you *can* do with an April MCAT, is "wait and see." That is, you can't wait til you get your scores and THEN decide whether or not you are going to apply - well, you CAN but it's not a very good idea because it would be so late.
We had a guy on OPM a few years ago who had an extremely successful application year, with many acceptances, with an August MCAT. He had gotten all his other stuff in well before August and he got interview invites within a week of the MCAT scores being released. It's based on his experience that I speculate that some schools do look at your application even before the MCAT scores are attached - no way do they work so fast that they get back to you within a week in october otherwise!
You do your best with the situation you've got, you work hard to identify the variables that are under your control, and you take those steps that maximize your possibilities. Bottom line, I agree with Dave, you absolutely do NOT take the MCAT until you are sure you're ready to do well.

Hi there,
I am going to add my total agreement with what Mary has said above. I had only one shot at the MCAT and that had to be in August. I had decided late, January that I was even going to apply for medical school. Since I had to take my qualifying exams for graduate school, I was stuck with being able to take only the August MCAT. I did get everything in very early so that I could devote plenty of time to study for my comprehensive exam and the MCAT. It turned out that both tests were complementary and I did well on both.
I am sure that the admissions committees look at your applications before your August scores come in. I even had an invitation to interview before my MCAT scores were in. Go figure??? I had been told that since the August MCAT scores don't get in before October 15th that my application would be considered with the latter applicants but an interview invitation came offering me an interview slot for October 1st. So the bottom line is get everything done as soon as possible and get your MCAT studying done too. Taking the MCAT in August might be a liability if your GPA is on the lower side but the worst that can happen is that your application goes into the pile that says " Invite for interview contingent upon MCAT scores" and you interview in November, December or January and you still get in. biggrin.gif
Good luck!
Natalie

Natalie,
Thanks for you input! My gpa at this point seems a bit iffy, and I don’t know if I’ll be able to afford it slipping. Hopefully, I’ll keep it up and it will compensate for the latter exam…
I really love the idea of having all summer long to study for the MCATs alone, without having to worry about academic courses as well. As I do really want to take the exam in April, I honestly don’t know how I’ll be able to juggle a full-time load in school, preparing for the MCAT, and most importantly my beautiful daughter. I don’t think I’d be a very pleasant individual (or mommy for that matter) under that kind of stress… rolleyes.gif
As the others mentioned in earlier posts, I now believe that it would be wise to take the MCAT when I’m most relaxed and confident that I would be able to do well. I guess it’s not such a good idea to risk anything.
Once again, thanks for you reply!
Take care,
Annie