Guest JAMIRA Posted April 14, 2003 Report Share Posted April 14, 2003 I was hoping some of you could give me some advice based on your experiences with the MCAT. So here is my dilemma: I really want to go to Mac - definitely my first choice. However, I have already applied there twice unsuccessfully and the more I look into Western, the more it is becoming a close second. However, what I need to apply to Western is to write the MCAT (and do well of course!) and one more full-time year of undergrad (i've already graduated but 3 of the 4 years are not considered full-time). I was pretty gung ho about writing the MCAT in August and going back to school next year, until I spoke to my employer last week who expects me to stay at my current full-time job for one more year. This wasn't really a surprise since I was hired based on my verbal agreement to stay for two years as long as I did not get into med school. So, that's fine - I made my bed, I now have the joy of sleeping in it. But, my question is, should I still write the MCAT this summer, given that I am working full-time? Or, should I concentrate on other things that I really enjoy doing and that will help my Mac application, and save the MCAT for next summer, at which time I can leave my job and concentrate completely on that? No matter what, I can't apply to Western until September 2004 anyways - I guess the only advantage of writing the MCAT this summer would be to get it out of the way, or if I did really poorly, I would have another shot next year before applying to Western. Given that I haven't really looked at any chem or physics for 3 to 4 years, do you think I could even do well on the MCAT while working full-time ( in addition to volunteering and other activities I would like to stay involved in)? I guess the answer seems kind of obvious now that I have laid it all out, but I still wouldn't mind some advice. Thanks ~Jamira Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peachy Posted April 14, 2003 Report Share Posted April 14, 2003 Hi Jamira, I wrote the MCATs while working fulltime and doing various other things, and without some of the prerequisite courses. I did fine (well enough for any Ontario school, anyays). I'm good at test-taking, which is key for the MCATs. I suggest that you take a day to write a practice test (there are several free online - esp. on the Princeton Review and Kaplan websites) and see how you do - that will give you a good sense of how much work you will need to get your scores to the Western level. You should then check out what Western's policy is for retakes. If they only look at your most recent or your best score, then you have nothing to lose in trying to make the cutoffs this summer. Except, of course, for a summer of fun The thing about the MCAT is that it really depends on you. If you're the kind of person who can walk in and ace a standardized test, then it's not going to matter very much whether you have recently reviewed the material. If you're somebody who cringes at the thought of multiple choice, then you probably want to wait until you have real time to devote to it. But regardless, it's nicest to have it out of the way as soon as possible Good luck! peachy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ollie Posted April 14, 2003 Report Share Posted April 14, 2003 I'm currently preparing for the April MCAT (less than 2 weeks to go!). I'm also a full-time grad student, and I'm doing some volunteering. Other than that, my life has revolved around the MCAT since January. I finished my undergrad in 2000, so it has been a good 6 years since I've done physics, and 5 since chemistry. I've been doing pretty well on my practice tests, so I'm pretty confident that I'm going to do OK on the real thing. I put off writing the MCAT for so long, and now that I'm actually doing it, it's not that bad (just don't expect to have a life!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fox Posted April 14, 2003 Report Share Posted April 14, 2003 I would strongly recommend writing the MCAT this summer because many people have to write it more than once. Such was the case for myself. I actually wrote it three times (embarrassing as it may be, but I'm in now, so who cares). The first two times I did really well on three sections and screwed up one. The first two times when I screwed up one section, I screwed up due to things beyond my control (ie. once they took my watch away and there was no clock and once I had the flu). So, if you write in the summer and do really well, then, great, you're set. But if you wait until next summer and if you don't get the required marks for interviews at Western (or the other schools) then you won't be able to apply. (The other option is write next April and re-write in August if the need be). I hadn't taken physics for seven years or chem for four, so it was a daunting task, but I only studied for less than two months (and it was verbal I initially screwed up), so it really isn't THAT much studying. I was still in school full-time, working three jobs, volunteering, playing sports etc. And one more thing, if you have to write it more than once (let's hope not, but realistically lots of people do), then it is much easier to study for the second time and everything comes back a lot easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mandm Posted April 15, 2003 Report Share Posted April 15, 2003 Hey Jamira! What's this?! Having doubts? I would recommend really asking yourself how much of yourself you want to devote to this endeavor. Fox et al. gave you some good advice re: feasibility. Clearly you can be a successful applicant even with ( or perhaps b/c of ) a busy schedule. (Fox: Congratulations on your admission, btw. I did an MSc and undergrad at UA and loved it.) My advice is to really REALLY ask yourself if you want a summer or if you want to study. Either one is OK. The key is not to do this half way and have neither the MCAT nor the summer at the end of August... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JAMIRA Posted April 17, 2003 Report Share Posted April 17, 2003 Thanks for the great advice everyone. I really don't mind "giving up" my summer. In fact, I tend to get very bored in the summer and in the past, I've always taken courses to keep me busy (even though that got me into quite a mess in terms of course load ... that's another story). I am more than willing to devote every hour that I am not working/volunteering/sleeping to studying for the MCAT, but the question is, given that I am working full-time, will that be enough? Based on some of your experiences, it sounds like it will be more than enough. BTW Ollie, best of luck on your upcoming MCAT. It sounds like you're confident and well-prepared! And mandm, best of luck to you in August and happy studying ~Jam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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