FYI: MCAT Requirements for Can Med Schools

[10wattbulb]

In response to another post in the OMSAS thread, I've compiled a list of the Canadian med schools' MCAT requirements, and I thought of posting it in this section for your convenience and quick reference. Hopefully, it will help you guys get a feel for how well you want to do on the MCAT to get in your 'dream' med school (please always apply to 4+ med schools, not just one!). Go to my original post (http://www.premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?p=859994#post859994) to see the links to the different med school's websites for more MCAT info.

 

List of med schools that take your most recent MCAT scores:

 

U of T -> Only the most recent MCAT score will be considered in the application process. Cutoffs: 9/9/9, but allowed an 8 in one section as long as it's not the Bio section. (If you fall lower than that, application is not recommended).

 

McMaster -> The only score that will be considered will be the most recent score on the Verbal Reasoning portion of the MCAT. Need > 6 on VR (in truth, it's preferable to have 10+ to be competitive).

 

Western -> If the MCAT is written more than once, the most recent writing of the MCAT is used. Non-SWOMEN cutoffs (could vary from year to year): 11 - VR, 10 - BS, 9 - PS.

 

List of med schools that take your best MCAT scores (in most cases from one exam sitting):

 

UBC -> If you have written more than one MCAT, the eligible exam with the best score for our purposes will be used. Beginning in the 2013-14 cycle, applicants who have previously written the MCAT with scores of no less than 7 in Verbal Reasoning, Biological & Physical Sciences and no less than M in the Writing Sample will be able to use these scores for the next five years, in keeping with current policy.

 

U of A -> Applicants choose their best scores from one exam sitting. The Admissions Committee has a minimum requirement of seven (7) or better in all categories.

 

U of C -> If you have taken the test more than once, you must choose one set of scores which you would like us to use. (see Section 4.2.2). From the Applicant Manual. Note: if non-Albertan, you need a minimum VR score of 11.

 

U of S -> Scores must be obtained in one sitting prior to the application deadline and current within the last 5 years (earliest accepted scores for 2014 entry are 2009). Minimum MCAT requirements are accumulated score of 26 in the Biological Science, Physical Science, and Verbal Reasoning Sections (with no section below 8).

 

Manitoba -> Must have written the MCAT exam no earlier than April 2010 and no later than September 12, 2013. Minimum score of 7 on each of the sub-test sections must be achieved, in a single session.

 

Dal -> You indicate in Step 1 of the application which set of MCAT scores you want used for assessment. Scores must all be from the same test date. If from NS, PEI or NB, min MCAT = 24, but allowed one category score of 7. If from elsewhere in Canada, min MCAT = 30, but allowed one category score of 9.

 

Queen's -> Applications will be assessed based on the scores from the candidate's best test results. VR score cutoff believed to be at 10 (could vary from year to year).

 

...

 

Mun does its own thing with the MCAT -> The Admissions Committee will consider all writings of the MCAT and take into consideration improvement; students must submit all records of test scores. The MCAT should be written within the preceding five years of the date of application. No cutoffs but "the average MCAT scores of previous entering classes have been approximately 10's on each section and Q on the Writing Sample."

 

McGill also does its own thing -> MCAT score submission is optional! Applicants who do hold Canadian citizenship or permanent residency and the undergraduate degree used for the basis of admissions is recognized by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (see above) have the option to submit MCAT results with their application if they feel that these results will benefit their application (see Selection Criteria for more). N.B. ► Applicants who choose to submit their MCAT results must submit all results. There is no option to selectively submit certain sittings or portions of the MCAT results.

 

...

 

U of O and NOSM have NO MCAT requirements. That is, the MCAT will not be taken into consideration at all!

 

Please post below any additional info on MCAT scores you guys may want to share.

[FuturePT216]

Thanks for compiling this!

[covarubious]

Would make a great sticky

[FuturePT216]

Would make a great sticky

 

Agreed! Could one of the Mods maybe sticky this in the MCAT prep section

[ArchEnemy]

Excellent contribution to the community, 10wattbulb. Would love to meet you in person this fall

[10wattbulb]

It's always my pleasure to help I also learn new things in the process of compiling these stats.

 

P.S. If anyone has anything else to add to my stats list, please post.

 

Example: I know that for an OOP candidate applying to Manitoba, you need a very high MCAT score with VR counted X 2, but what are the rumoured cutoffs?

[medhopeful64]

This is awesome - needs to be stickied!

[markov79]

please note that the MCAT info below is taken from the applicant bulletin from last year (ie the deadline for applications was oct 2012).

 

as far as I can find, Manitoba's MCAT formula is as follows:

 

0.2(PS score) + 0.2(WS score) + 0.3(BS score) + 0.3(VR score) = xx.x

 

ws is scored by UMan as M=7, N=8, ..., T=14. applicants need a minimum of 7 in each section (and an M in WS).

 

taken from their applicant info bulletin:

For example, an applicant with MCAT® scores of VR=10, PS=9, BS=8 and WS=Q

in a single sitting will have an operative MCAT® of [...] 9.4.

 

there's also a thread speculating about how the removal of the WS will affect score (?). in any case, that's what they have posted, as far as i could tell.

 

(see section 6 of the info bulletin for more info, ie. the MCAT section). again, this may have changed over the past year.

 

as for the average mcat stuff, here are their available stats for the class of 2016 .

 

OOP MCAT and AGPA stats are found on the third page, top table. you can see that the "average" (mean?) score of an applicant to whom an offer was extended was 12.1. so obviously a balanced 36R would have been just less than average. from there, one can kind of make groups of plausible scores. for every drop in BS (as compared to 12/12/12/R), there should be a rise in VR, same for PS/WS. obviously it doesn't have to be exactly like that, but you get the point. again, this is the average/mean score. there are people with lower scores OOP being admitted, although for some reason manitoba relies heavily on the MCAT in their pre-interview stages. finally, out of fear of steering someone wrong, i'll mention again that these are stats/sources from the last application cycle, not the one currently happening.

 

stats for the class of 2014 and 2015 can be found at: http://umanitoba.ca/faculties/medicine/admissions/report_2004.html

 

hth!

[Birdy]

It is worth pointing out that Calgary has said they will likely only accept pre-2015 MCAT results for one year after the new test is released, so if you write in 2014 and wish to apply in 2016 again, you will likely have to rewrite.

 

From the applicant manual:

The Admissions Committee has not yet come to a firm decision regarding the role that the new MCAT will play in our application process, although it will continue to be required of applicants. It is anticipated that with the release of the new MCAT, we will allow a one year grace period before no longer accepting the old MCAT scores

 

So far, I have seen nothing from other schools, though I anticipate most will stick to their five year rules and may either look only at certain sections, may take an average of the scores of the 3-4 sections, or may have separate assessment methods come 2015 for the two different types of test.

[ds594]

Hey guys

So from this post I can see that the majority of med schools in Canada just look at your most recent or best mark, but do they look at your bad mcat score at all? Do they know if you wrote it twice, or didnt do well in the first? Would it impact your chance of admittance if you had a bad MCAT score in the past?

 

I'm writing in a few weeks and haven't been doing the greatest in verbal. Not sure if I should void it if I feel I did bad on verbal lol.

 

Thanks!

[summergirl]

It is worth pointing out that Calgary has said they will likely only accept pre-2015 MCAT results for one year after the new test is released, so if you write in 2014 and wish to apply in 2016 again, you will likely have to rewrite.

 

From the applicant manual:

 

 

So far, I have seen nothing from other schools, though I anticipate most will stick to their five year rules and may either look only at certain sections, may take an average of the scores of the 3-4 sections, or may have separate assessment methods come 2015 for the two different types of test.

 

You have GOT to be kidding me! :eek:

[IamIDP]

This is a bit unclear, what if you score a 6 on the VR on your first time? Can you still apply to:

 

U of S

Manitoba

Dal?