Should I Write The Mcat/ How Much Does Mcgill Care About Ecs?

[Ellennn]

Hi guys, 

 

I finished my second year at McGill and was planning on studying and writing the MCAT this summer, until it hit me today... Should I even spend so much time and effort to do the MCAT if I have a good enough chance for McGill Med?

 

So the real question is, do I have a good enough chance for McGill Med?  

 

I'm an in-province student, my cGPA is currently 3.96, I would expect it to stay the same after my 3rd year, and it will certainly drop the 4th year because I'm doing some courses that are impossible to get A then. 

- I am a business major, with a minor in science, and my science pre-req GPA is close to 4.0 (only 1 course with 3.7, 4.0 for all the other pre-reqs)

- My ECs are very poor, I think. I have hospital volunteering (not significant hours), academic tutoring, the standard grade 8 piano, high school concert band, a few shadowing experience, and that's it?

- I have quite a lot of working experiences however, in many restaurants, I also worked as an Undergraduate TA for some business classes. I will have an internship at a public accounting firm next summer 

 

How much does McGill care about ECs if one has a high GPA?

 

 

Writing the MCAT will allow me to earn a spot in Ontario med schools, but it will be a significant commitment for the summer because I will have to re-learn everything (even tho I've learned a lot of the content from the science pre-reqs).

[medafter30]

Write the mcat! The ec and your personal essay matter the most once you pass the gpa cut off. What this means is higher gpa doesn't necessarily guarantee your interview but a lower gpa might hurt your chance of getting an interview. Hope this helps

[oshaku]

Write the MCAT and apply to Ontario schools. It's great if you get in to McGill, but what if you don't? Then you're going to be kicking yourself for not applying to more schools to increase your chances.

 

You may loose one summer by studying for the MCAT now, but it can save you a year in reapplying.

[bananasinpyjamas]

Even if your GPA is near perfect, so do most of the applicants who are invited for interviews. This year, the mode GPA for all interviewed IP applicants was 4, which means that most of the interviewees had 4.0s. So ECs are really important (your personal statement even more so). I would definitely suggest writing the MCAT so that you could apply all over Canada to increase your chances. No one really knows what McGill wants exactly, and it's hard to tell if you'll get an interview.

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[Ellennn]

This year, the mode GPA for all interviewed IP applicants was 4.0, which means that most people there had 4.0s.

Seriously??!

[bananasinpyjamas]

Seriously??!

 

Yeah :/

[tameimpala]

Mode was 4 (not 4.0) so probably all GPAs between 3.95 and 4.0 are combined.

[bananasinpyjamas]

Mode was 4 (not 4.0) so probably all GPAs between 3.95 and 4.0 are combined.

Ah thanks! 

[Username92]

NOPE don't waste your time with the MCAT if you are IP

 

The MCAT only serves to count as 10% of your post-interview performance, with the other 10% being your Science pre-req GPA and 80% the interview per say

 

Without the MCAT, it's 20% science pre-req GPA and 80% interview

 

Some users on this forum, including me this year, got in McGill with a sub 3.0/4.0 science pre-reqs (mine was under 3.0 with science grades from Cegep).

 

On the other hand, EC's are extremely important!!! Many people with 4.0 gpa don't get invited to interviews unfortunately.

 

Good luck!

[bananasinpyjamas]

I'd definitely suggest doing your MCATs if you are not fluent in French. If you are, you'll have the best chances to get in one of the Quebec schools, so writing the MCAT might not be worth it. If you're not French speaking though, then not doing it and relying on McGill only would definitely be a risk. Just my two cents.

[Sceptical]

Hey El, I usually tell medical school aspirants to apply broadly and apply often, no matter their stats. Writing the MCATs will only open more doors (of course, your personal finances and time commitment to other stuff will factor into this decision). I personally wrote the MCATs and got accepted at McGill but nowhere else (I applied to ON+QC schools). I submitted my MCAT scores in my McGill apps, and I suspect that played a factor in my acceptance.

 

Sceptical

[loodogg]

Even if your GPA is near perfect, so do most of the applicants who are invited for interviews. This year, the mode GPA for all interviewed IP applicants was 4.0, which means that most people there had 4.0s. So ECs are really important (your personal statement even more so). I would definitely suggest writing the MCAT so that you could apply all over Canada to increase your chances. No one really knows what McGill wants exactly, and it's hard to tell if you'll get an interview.

That's not what it means.

[loodogg]

NOPE don't waste your time with the MCAT if you are IP

 

The MCAT only serves to count as 10% of your post-interview performance, with the other 10% being your Science pre-req GPA and 80% the interview per say

 

Without the MCAT, it's 20% science pre-req GPA and 80% interview

 

Some users on this forum, including me this year, got in McGill with a sub 3.0/4.0 science pre-reqs (mine was under 3.0 with science grades from Cegep).

 

On the other hand, EC's are extremely important!!! Many people with 4.0 gpa don't get invited to interviews unfortunately.

 

Good luck!

Do you know any OOP who got in with sub 3.0 preereq GPA? 

[Ellennn]

Hey El, I usually tell medical school aspirants to apply broadly and apply often, no matter their stats. Writing the MCATs will only open more doors (of course, your personal finances and time commitment to other stuff will factor into this decision). I personally wrote the MCATs and got accepted at McGill but nowhere else (I applied to ON+QC schools). I submitted my MCAT scores in my McGill apps, and I suspect that played a factor in my acceptance.

 

Sceptical

Hey thanks! 

I have decided to not write the MCAT this summer, I don't feel mentally ready to commit (not only to the rigorous study routine and the amount of content, but maybe just medicine in general). I will be busy with internship the summer after 3rd year, so if I don't get into McGill on the first try, and I would have to write the MCAT after I finish undergrad, and apply to Ontario an application cycle later... when I'm ready to commit? 

 

Really hoping that I'm making the right decision. 

[oshaku]

 

 

Hey thanks! 

I have decided to not write the MCAT this summer, I don't feel mentally ready to commit (not only to the rigorous study routine and the amount of content, but maybe just medicine in general). I will be busy with internship the summer after 3rd year, so if I don't get into McGill on the first try, and I would have to write the MCAT after I finish undergrad, and apply to Ontario an application cycle later... when I'm ready to commit? 

 

Really hoping that I'm making the right decision.  

 

Don't feel pressured to commit!  

 

You should be sure you want to do medicine before applying. I don't know about medicine, but in grad school, there were many people who started a PhD only to figure out in year 2 or year 3 that it wasn't what they wanted.  It puts people in a really hard position because withdrawing would mean 2-3 years wasted but continuing would mean 2-3 more years of misery. I started a PhD and quit after less than a year.  

 

When the acceptance letter is in your hand, it's easy to be swept up in the euphoria and agree to something that will make you unhappy.  The euphoria of the moment is how I got convinced to accept a PhD position twice (!) even though by the second time, I was pretty sure I didn't want to continue in academia. 

 

My lesson from that experience is to make absolutely sure about something before committing.  Now I know that if I have doubts at the application stage, it's only going to get worse with time. 

[Sceptical]

Okay, that's not a problem! You have plenty of time to decide. I only considered medicine during my grad studies (never crossed my mind during undergrad). Enjoy your undergrad, and take advantage of all the opportunities you get (incl. your internship) to meet people and explore what's out there. Cheers! Scep

 

Hey thanks! 

I have decided to not write the MCAT this summer, I don't feel mentally ready to commit (not only to the rigorous study routine and the amount of content, but maybe just medicine in general). I will be busy with internship the summer after 3rd year, so if I don't get into McGill on the first try, and I would have to write the MCAT after I finish undergrad, and apply to Ontario an application cycle later... when I'm ready to commit? 

 

Really hoping that I'm making the right decision.