Writing the MCAT a bit late

[Pomme]

Hello!

I applied to 1 med school this cycle and received an interview (yay!). I'm waiting for the results in May, but I thought maybe I should start prepping for the MCAT in case things don't work out this year. I was thinking of writing the test (for the first time ever) in August (the very last date I possibly can) so I can apply again in fall 2020 to schools that require the MCAT.

Is it a good idea to write it the very last test date? Or should I write it a bit earlier like early to mid August? 

Thanks. 

[KitKatCo]

Congrats on the interview! Fingers crossed for this year

It depends on the schools you would reapply to, I suppose. Sometimes the application deadline is the day of the MCAT score release and the school straight up tells you to call them to make sure your results get in. I think it's a little risky to go for the last possible day, just in case something goes terribly wrong. That being said I'm sure plenty of people in this forum did it on the last day possible and had no issues getting their scores released. I feel like this would cause undue stress you could avoid by simply writing sooner. 

I suspect that with the MCAT cancellations, spots will go even quicker this year so best book sooner rather than later. Last year, I tried booking mine in May for July/August and no spots were left in my city. I ended up going on a vacation to see my grandma and write the MCAT.

[MedicineLCS]

The problem with writing as late as you possibly can is that you will need to have completed all the footwork for your applications BEFORE knowing what your score will be. You could potentially put in hours of work, have people write reference letters and forms, volunteer to be verifiers, etc... All for nothing if you get a poor MCAT or subsection back. 

Personally, I would recommend writing with enough time to rewrite in the same summer (if you're writing right before applying), but this is going to be a bit tough this year. 

[Pomme]

9 minutes ago, pnpclear said:

Congrats on the interview! Fingers crossed for this year

It depends on the schools you would reapply to, I suppose. Sometimes the application deadline is the day of the MCAT score release and the school straight up tells you to call them to make sure your results get in. I think it's a little risky to go for the last possible day, just in case something goes terribly wrong. That being said I'm sure plenty of people in this forum did it on the last day possible and had no issues getting their scores released. I feel like this would cause undue stress you could avoid by simply writing sooner. 

I suspect that with the MCAT cancellations, spots will go even quicker this year so best book sooner rather than later. Last year, I tried booking mine in May for July/August and no spots were left in my city. I ended up going on a vacation to see my grandma and write the MCAT.

Thank you! I'm worried about having last minute issues too. Registration is actually closed for now:/ Opens May 7th which is gonna be so baddd. Everyone will probably try to book on that day. I'm applying to Ottawa, Western, Queens, and UBC (maybe). 

[Pomme]

8 minutes ago, MedicineLCS said:

The problem with writing as late as you possibly can is that you will need to have completed all the footwork for your applications BEFORE knowing what your score will be. You could potentially put in hours of work, have people write reference letter, volunteer to be verifiers, etc... All for nothing if you get a poor MCAT or subsection back. 

Personally, I would recommend writing with enough time to rewrite in the same summer (if you're writing right before applying), but this is going to be a bit tough this year. 

Yeah, that's true. I was going to make the sacrifice of building up all 4 applications and just wait until I get the score back and go from there. I'm re-applying either way to Ottawa (no MCAT needed). I plan on studying for 3 months starting from May and I feel like the latest I could write it is mid August so I can be my score back mid September. I don't think I'll be able to write it twice this summer:/ 

Imo, mid August is better than late August right? 

[motherofdragons]

I'd echo others' thoughts and write it a bit earlier so you can see your scores and re-write if need be. I wrote it on the last day accepted by schools and received my score the day I had to submit applications. Ended up not submitting my application to two schools at the last minute because my CARS was not high enough to meet their cutoffs. Thankfully I did have a previous average CARS score from my first MCAT attempt and ended up applying to two other schools. 

[Pomme]

10 hours ago, motherofdragons said:

I'd echo others' thoughts and write it a bit earlier so you can see your scores and re-write if need be. I wrote it on the last day accepted by schools and received my score the day I had to submit applications. Ended up not submitting my application to two schools at the last minute because my CARS was not high enough to meet their cutoffs. Thankfully I did have a previous average CARS score from my first MCAT attempt and ended up applying to two other schools. 

Can I register for two Mcat dates at once? 
 

I havent taken any physics since high school and will be studying for 2 months if I wanna write it in July.... how does that sound? 

[motherofdragons]

5 hours ago, WishingforMD said:

Can I register for two Mcat dates at once? 
 

I havent taken any physics since high school and will be studying for 2 months if I wanna write it in July.... how does that sound? 

I don't think you can register for two at the same time. You'd have to write it first and then re-register after you get your scores. 

 

I can't speak much to your second question because it depends how familiar you are with the content, how fast you can learn new content etc. There isn't a tonne of physics questions but you still need to know quite a bit of the concepts. It also depends on how familiar you are with the chemistry, biochem and biology sections.

[Pomme]

1 hour ago, motherofdragons said:

I don't think you can register for two at the same time. You'd have to write it first and then re-register after you get your scores. 

 

I can't speak much to your second question because it depends how familiar you are with the content, how fast you can learn new content etc. There isn't a tonne of physics questions but you still need to know quite a bit of the concepts. It also depends on how familiar you are with the chemistry, biochem and biology sections.

Ah ok, I see. Thanks for the info! I have a pretty strong science background (except for physics). 

[Psych]

One thing to note- if you're applying in Ontario, you can still write up to the end of September, so August is not the last possible date. So imo August is not too late! September would be cutting it close, but August still gives you time. The schools don't need your MCAT scores until November 1st. If you write in September you won't get to see your scores before you submit, but last year all of the August dates (up to August 31) got their scores before the October 1st application deadline

[Pomme]

19 hours ago, Psych said:

One thing to note- if you're applying in Ontario, you can still write up to the end of September, so August is not the last possible date. I wrote mine on August 29th (2019) and applied for that cycle with no problems. So imo August is not too late! September would be cutting it close, but August still gives you time. The schools don't need your MCAT scores until November 1st. For reference, I got mine at the end of September so not only did the scores come in way ahead of the deadline, but I also got to see them before I sent in my application (due October 1st). If you write in September you won't get to see your scores before you submit, but last year all of the August dates (up to August 31) got their scores before the October 1st application deadline

Ok, sounds great! I was going to apply to UBC which asks for the score earlier (like October or September, don't remember) but I think I might just stick to Ontario schools this cycle.