Mcat And Gpa

[koreanboy123 1]

I've heard at many US schools and some Canadian schools that if you have a high GPA you can have a lower MCAT and still be competitive and if you have low GPA you need high MCAT. Recently got back MCAT results and they were pretty terrible. Based on what I've seen to be competitive at Canadian med schools you need 3.9+ GPA and a 85-90th+ percentile MCAT. Am I right in thinking this?

 

 

Although I have seen some people on these forums applying with less and others saying that their GPA or MCAT will make up for the other one...

[chronicconic 70]

Yes, you are correct. A high GPA can somewhat offset a low MCAT; conversely, a high MCAT can somewhat offset a low GPA. Keep in mind that the exact offset will depend on how a school weighs the GPA and MCAT.

[koreanboy123 1]

Yes, you are correct. A high GPA can somewhat offset a low MCAT; conversely, a high MCAT can somewhat offset a low GPA. Keep in mind that the exact offset will depend on how a school weighs the GPA and MCAT.

Lets take U of A as an example since we are on their school forum. How low could my MCAT be if my GPA was 3.9+ and still be competitive?

[GH0ST 493]

Lets take U of A as an example since we are on their school forum. How low could my MCAT be if my GPA was 3.9+ and still be competitive?

 

No matter how high or low your GPA, an MCAT lower than an equivalent of ~ 30 is near the bottom.

 

Assuming you're a 4th year applicant or older, the MCAT average has moved from ~32 - ~34

 

You still can get in with a lower than average MCAT + GPA, but it has to be offset by a strong record of ECs + stellar interviews. Even then your odds are not something an experienced gambler would bet on.

 

Even my situation was less than ideal and I had to fight tooth and nail to get in.

 

- G

[chronicconic 70]

Lets take U of A as an example since we are on their school forum. How low could my MCAT be if my GPA was 3.9+ and still be competitive?

There is no magic number. The only thing this claim really means is that a "high GPA can help offset a low MCAT". Last year, the average academic profile of accepted degree-holders was a 3.90 GPA / 11.05 average MCAT.

[stuj7 2]

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[Friendly Magpie 181]

The MCAT is worth 13% and GPA is worth 27%, so although a lower GPA can be somewhat offset by a high MCAT, it's better if it's the other way around. Personal activities are "worth more" but scores are often low.

 

Prior to the 2015 MCAT, if a person got a score of 30 on the old MCAT, they got 8.67/13 and if a person had 45, they would get all 13 points. I have no idea how they'll calculate it now. I'm guessing that they'll just take the range of possible scores and then see where you're at on that range. Obviously people with less than 124 in any section will be eliminated of course (it was 7 before).

 

GPA is KING at U of A, but the meds office doesn't tell anyone how points are allocated. Obviously a 4.0 will net a person all 27 points. However, there is a rumour that they use the following formula for IP students (again, this is just speculation): ((GPA - 3.3)/0.7) * 27. If you're OOP, replace the 3.3 with the minimum GPA you need as an OOP applicant.

 

I have no idea how they score the personal activities. Scores are often low as I mentioned above. Even though they are worth 30%, I have never heard of anyone getting anywhere near 30 points. 

 

I hope that everyone is having a great Thanksgiving weekend!! 

[freewheeler 548]

Does anyone know how U of A calculates GPA? Is their scale like Calgary, where A/A+ both = 4.0?

[Friendly Magpie 181]

Does anyone know how U of A calculates GPA? Is their scale like Calgary, where A/A+ both = 4.0?

 

Both A and A+ are 4.0 at U of A. 

[science1000 13]

Does Calgary and Alberta use the formula to calculate your GPA? My Calgary GPA is 0.02 higher than my Alberta one.

[Friendly Magpie 181]

Does Calgary and Alberta use the formula to calculate your GPA? My Calgary GPA is 0.02 higher than my Alberta one.

I do know that U of A will truncate after the second decimal point. For example, if you have 3.899, U of A will make your GPA 3.89 instead of 3.90 (Diane from admissions told me this).

 

I don't know where the other 0.01 would come from though.

[doc123 17]

Does Calgary and Alberta use the formula to calculate your GPA? My Calgary GPA is 0.02 higher than my Alberta one.

Is your Alberta GPA displayed on your application? Mine is still a blank.

[science1000 13]

Yes its on the application, it just got updated today or within the past few days. Beartracks says my transcript was received Sept 25.

[ow1234 20]

They sent this in the e-mail after the deadline passed:

Your calculated cumulative GPA (CGPA) will be displayed in your Secondary Medicine Application once your transcripts have been evaluated by the Registrar’s Office.  Your calculated CGPA might not appear until early January. If your CGPA does not appear by early January, please contact our office at that time. 

[freewheeler 548]

What kind of MCAT and GPA do you think would be competitive for U of A as an OOP applicant?

 

~3.90/510

 

~3.95/515

 

~3.98/520

 

~4.00/528 (lol)

 

Just wondering what everyone's thoughts are. Since I've heard that the ECs are marked pretty harshly, not sure how high grades/mcat would have to be to attenuate for that, especially for those OOP.

[Friendly Magpie 181]

What kind of MCAT and GPA do you think would be competitive for U of A as an OOP applicant?

 

~3.90/510

 

~3.95/515

 

~3.98/520

 

~4.00/528 (lol)

 

Just wondering what everyone's thoughts are. Since I've heard that the ECs are marked pretty harshly, not sure how high grades/mcat would have to be to attenuate for that, especially for those OOP.

 

Nobody knows with the MCAT, since the 2015 exam is new. I'd check the "Accepted/Waitlisted/Rejected" threads and the "Interview Invites" threads and that should give you an idea. 

 

I hope that helps. 

[3change 38]

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