Calgary explains its 2015 MCAT Decision

[Leon]

I appreciate the transparency. What do people think about the decision?

 

http://mdadmissions.ucalgaryblogs.ca/2014/04/07/mcat-2015-redux/

[Falling]

Have other schools released their policy on this issue?

[Leon]

I think UBC has. I haven't heard of anyone else yet.

[jmatt1122]

Being in 2nd/3rd year UG right now would be really unfortunate. Having to consider forgoing a 3rd year med application to avoid wasting time taking the old test for 2nd years, and the uncertainty of having to immediately re-write after a failed cycle for current third years would be a real pain.

[NeuroPreMed]

I think the huge problem is, like Dr. Walker stated, no one knows how anything compares. Maybe they'll make decision A for the first cycle, and then change it to decision B for the second cycle?

[Larrivee]

I would've been pretty choked if I had to write that MCAT twice... I mean, the results are given as percentiles. Whether the tests are different or not you can still get an idea of where someone ranks relative to their peers. They used the old MCAT and they will use the new MCAT, so for those overall years I would vote that they just look at the percentiles and treat as equivalent.

[rmorelan]

have to admire transparency - and he is absolutely correct, there are no easy or correct answers for this one. No matter what you do someone has a valid complaint.

[IamIDP]

I think their decision was uncalled for. Most schools are planning to give older applicants a fair chance whereas Calgary is not. At the end I understand where they are coming from but I would have thought scraping the entire MCAT would have been a better idea than forcing applicants to rewrite the MCAT in 2015.

[Leon]

I think their decision was uncalled for. Most schools are planning to give older applicants a fair chance whereas Calgary is not. At the end I understand where they are coming from but I would have thought scraping the entire MCAT would have been a better idea than forcing applicants to rewrite the MCAT in 2015.

 

Their basis for not scrapping it, though, is their inability or difficulty in testing the attributes that the MCAT tests in some other standardized way.

[IamIDP]

Their basis for not scrapping it, though, is their inability or difficulty in testing the attributes that the MCAT tests in some other standardized way.

 

I find it funny how the US health care system is an utter joke and yet we are using their components of their health care system for qualifying our physicians into medical school. All Canadian schools besides Western look at VR specifically. Why not just have 1 test for it? Bio and Physical is useless since if the applicant has a competitive GPA they should be able to score well on those other 2 sections with adequate practice.

[TheBoss]

I find it funny how the US health care system is an utter joke and yet we are using their components of their health care system for qualifying our physicians into medical school. All Canadian schools besides Western look at VR specifically.

Haha you mean besides Western, Manitoba, UBC, Toronto, UofA, McGill, etc

Why not just have 1 test for it? Bio and Physical is useless since if the applicant has a competitive GPA they should be able to score well on those other 2 sections with adequate practice.

It's not uncommon for a student with a great GPA to be unable to a crack a great score on the MCAT, even with ample prep, due to easy uni programs or any number of reasons.

[Guest mmhs12345]

Sorry im confused.

Im writing my MCAT this summer. Im finishing first year in a couple weeks too.

So does that mean that I can't use this mcat score when applying to calgary at the end of second year?

[IamIDP]

Sorry im confused.

Im writing my MCAT this summer. Im finishing first year in a couple weeks too.

So does that mean that I can't use this mcat score when applying to calgary at the end of second year?

 

No you can't use the "old MCAT" (the MCAT you are writing this summer) to apply to Calgary. They even announced this on their website earlier this month. Other schools have yet to decide on how they will proceed with the new MCAT.

[rmorelan]

No you can't use the "old MCAT" (the MCAT you are writing this summer) to apply to Calgary. They even announced this on their website earlier this month. Other schools have yet to decide on how they will proceed with the new MCAT.

 

and it is quite possible others will follow the same pattern. Or give it another year but you still wouldn't be able to use it for down the road. It is a very tricky time to write the test really.

[Leon]

and it is quite possible others will follow the same pattern. Or give it another year but you still wouldn't be able to use it for down the road. It is a very tricky time to write the test really.

 

Yeah- as he said it happens only every quarter century or so. Must be so hard to make decisions like these- when a subset of applicants is bound to be screwed no matter what.

[IamIDP]

Yeah- as he said it happens only every quarter century or so. Must be so hard to make decisions like these- when a subset of applicants is bound to be screwed no matter what.

 

That would suck if most schools require the new MCAT. It would change the game significantly.

[Guest mmhs12345]

Should I even bother taking the MCAT this summer then?

I already signed up too and my friend and I are pretty confident that

we will do well. but it's going to suck if we have to retake it.

[Sarvish]

Should I even bother taking the MCAT this summer then?

I already signed up too and my friend and I are pretty confident that

we will do well. but it's going to suck if we have to retake it.

 

If you're just finishing first year, I'd wait. The 2nd year life sci courses will help quite a bit and you'd be applying with many people taking the new MCAT which may or may not put you at a disadvantage, since no one really knows how other schools are treating it yet. Also, if you need to retake, you'd be studying for a different test.

 

The only disadvantage I can think of is that you'd be going into the 2015 test without having many practice tests.

[IamIDP]

Should I even bother taking the MCAT this summer then?

I already signed up too and my friend and I are pretty confident that

we will do well. but it's going to suck if we have to retake it.

 

How are you confident you are going to do well? A 4.0 GPA doesn't guarantee you'll get a high MCAT score. Heck you don't even have biochemistry, genetics, organic chemistry, molecular biology which makes up 90% of the biological science section. Only thing in your favour is Chem + Physics....but then again nearly everyone writing the MCAT has taken them. But I guess it wouldn't hurt trying.

[Guest mmhs12345]

nonono Do not worry about the fact that I dont have much knowledge under my belt. That is not my issue. I am already aware of that and am prepared to study the material- that is fine with me.

 

My issue is- im finishing first year. And I want to do the mcat this september and get it out of the way so that second year summer I can hopefully get an nserc position and maybe take a summer school course.

But if I do not take the mcat this summer, im going to take summer school this summer and then take the mcat next summer with a nserc hopefully but that will cut into study time so I won't get the most out of the studying experience.

 

SOO, my question is, is it even worth taking the mcat this summer if med schools will not even accept it 2-3 years down the road?

[amichel]

nonono Do not worry about the fact that I dont have much knowledge under my belt. That is not my issue. I am already aware of that and am prepared to study the material- that is fine with me.

 

My issue is- im finishing first year. And I want to do the mcat this september and get it out of the way so that second year summer I can hopefully get an nserc position and maybe take a summer school course.

But if I do not take the mcat this summer, im going to take summer school this summer and then take the mcat next summer with a nserc hopefully but that will cut into study time so I won't get the most out of the studying experience.

 

SOO, my question is, is it even worth taking the mcat this summer if med schools will not even accept it 2-3 years down the road?

 

No, probably not worth it, unfortunately for you.

[medigeek]

I find it funny how the US health care system is an utter joke and yet we are using their components of their health care system for qualifying our physicians into medical school. All Canadian schools besides Western look at VR specifically. Why not just have 1 test for it? Bio and Physical is useless since if the applicant has a competitive GPA they should be able to score well on those other 2 sections with adequate practice.

 

Well... it's medical school not law school.

 

The US also has the best doctors and hospitals worldwide along with the best medical schools/clinical research output. Rich people don't spend 300,000$ and travel halfway around the globe to have their surgery done in downtown Toronto or Vancouver, they go to one of the top US hospitals.

[Sarvish]

nonono Do not worry about the fact that I dont have much knowledge under my belt. That is not my issue. I am already aware of that and am prepared to study the material- that is fine with me.

 

My issue is- im finishing first year. And I want to do the mcat this september and get it out of the way so that second year summer I can hopefully get an nserc position and maybe take a summer school course.

But if I do not take the mcat this summer, im going to take summer school this summer and then take the mcat next summer with a nserc hopefully but that will cut into study time so I won't get the most out of the studying experience.

 

SOO, my question is, is it even worth taking the mcat this summer if med schools will not even accept it 2-3 years down the road?

 

Most people I know did research and the MCAT in the same summer. A good chunk of the material is review from your 2nd year courses, I just had to learn organic chem on my own because I didn't learn much in my first year course. Also, having the security to take the same test a second time is worth postponing it. I scored about 2 points below my average in both BS and PS due to nerves or some other unknown reason. Luckily it wasn't low enough that I think I need to retake but having to study for an entirely new test on a retake would be awful.

 

Taking the MCAT too early would also mean your scores expiring somewhere around your 4th year anyway meaning you would have to rewrite anyway if you don't get in during your 4th year.

 

I'd also warn you to not fall into a false sense of security, a lot of people breeze through 1st year since it's mainly review of high school material. 2nd year is where people struggle since it's all new material, neurophysiology destroyed me and many other 2nd years because I had never seen anything like it before.

[bighopes100]

I have tremendous respect for Dr.W and how transparent he is, but his reasoning doesn't make sense to me.

 

There seems to be so many other ways to handle this situation in a manner that will probably please more people. For example, why not allow both MCATs but make it part of the subjective aspect of the score only? Or they could just realize that the test is marked based on percentiles and again consider both scores. Seems like UCal is just trying to be different.

[Vidhya]

If I was still applying I don't think it would bother me too much that they are requiring everyone to take the new MCAT. I decided to write the MCAT more than once in two consecutive years and I didn't find it that bad. I just did what I had to do to improve my application. Administratively I think it is much simpler for them and with the ever increasing applicant pool I don't think they are too worried if they lose a few applicants. Admission changes are always a pain, particularly when you have been preparing for years based on old criteria (personal experience) but in the end you just have to roll with the punches.