When do most people write the MCAT?

[premed_d]

When do most people write the MCAT?

 

& from those with experience, are the MCAT questions harder than the questions you were faced with in first year undergrad science exams and second year orgo exams?

[sucotai]

i think most ppl write mcat in 2nd yr summer, so that u can start applying to some schools that summer and/or have more chance to rewrite in case the first mcat doesn't go well

 

and i think for life sci students BS shouldn't be hard, it's prolly the VR and PS that most life sci ppl worry about

[Recoil]

I would think most people write the MCAT early in the summer of 3rd year, but I know a bunch, including myself, who wrote it the summer of second year.

 

In my opinion, the actual difficulty of each question is usually easier than the ones I've seen in undergrad. This especially applies to all the organic chem that I've seen which is significantly easier than anything I've seen in orgo I and II.

It's just the sheer amount of different things that you have to know that amplifies the difficulty of this test.

[xi88]

When do most people write the MCAT?

 

& from those with experience, are the MCAT questions harder than the questions you were faced with in first year undergrad science exams and second year orgo exams?

 

I wrote it twice. January in 3rd year, and then August after my 3rd year (to increase VR mark). Undergrad exam questions were more memorize and regurgitate, whereas MCAT questions were more understand and apply. So in that sense, the MCAT questions are harder, as just straight memorization of facts and equations does not equate to a good mark.

[premed_d]

I wrote it twice. January in 3rd year, and then August after my 3rd year (to increase VR mark). Undergrad exam questions were more memorize and regurgitate, whereas MCAT questions were more understand and apply. So in that sense, the MCAT questions are harder, as just straight memorization of facts and equations does not equate to a good mark.

 

Agh yes understandable. Now my other question is.. first year did not go so well for me. My science marks were not at the level that I had hoped for. Do you think this will indicate that my mcat will probably not go well either and should I probably take one of the prep courses for the mcat?

I know I won't obviously get a direct response to that question but I'm just interested in your opinions.

[xi88]

Agh yes understandable. Now my other question is.. first year did not go so well for me. My science marks were not at the level that I had hoped for. Do you think this will indicate that my mcat will probably not go well either and should I probably take one of the prep courses for the mcat?

I know I won't obviously get a direct response to that question but I'm just interested in your opinions.

 

The MCAT science portions tests things that you would have learned in your first year courses + orgo. Therefore, if you got a poor mark in intro science courses, it might translate to a poor MCAT grade. However, it is not necessarily the case, as you can teach it to yourself. I didnt even take intro bio, and I did pretty decent on my MCATs.

 

As for prep courses, I didnt see the need to spend thousands of dollars for it, when I could teach it to myself through books. Therefore, I didnt take and prep courses. I bought the Examkrackers set as well as the Kaplan books, and just studied off of them. Examkrackers in my opinion are much better than Kaplan.

[shannn]

When they are ready and prepared.

[The Ace of Spades]

Most people write during the summer between third and fourth year, as they will be applying after fourth year. However, if you are a traditional applicant (i.e. majoring in a hard science) then it would be to your advantage to write in the summer after second year, as you should just be finishing up the last of the organic chemistry courses, and your first year science courses should still be relatively fresh in your brain. If you bomb the MCAT, you can then always take it the summer after and still apply for the same cycle you were planning to. If you do well though, you get to sit back while all your friends start to stress over the MCAT in their third year summer.

 

[rmorelan]

Most people write during the summer between third and fourth year, as they will be applying after fourth year. However, if you are a traditional applicant (i.e. majoring in a hard science) then it would be to your advantage to write in the summer after second year, as you should just be finishing up the last of the organic chemistry courses, and your first year science courses should still be relatively fresh in your brain. If you bomb the MCAT, you can then always take it the summer after and still apply for the same cycle you were planning to. If you do well though, you get to sit back while all your friends start to stress over the MCAT in their third year summer.

 

 

This is the approach I would recommend. The material will be fresher, you will have more time to rewrite if something goes wrong - and the mcat is the sort of test that things go wrong even for the most prepared - and your third year summer is potentially freer for more meaningful volunteer/work experience/dealing with the shear volume of work required to apply to all the schools.

 

You also know which schools are more likely to accept you with your mcat scores in hand, so you can save time/money by not applying to the wrong ones.

 

This all assumes you are ready to write it of course