<p>I can say to take the MCAT when you are ready - although it’s better to take it in April if you want to start m ed school the following fall, if you take it before you are ready, you will have that lower score on your record, and you can only take the MCAT 3 times over a period of several years (I believe - I know it’s 3 times, don’t know how many years you have to wait before taking it again). If you take it in August, you may need to take a year off and get a job in a medically-related field (which will also improve your chances of admission, most likely), but if you will do better on it taking it in August, then wait until AUgust. That is the advice I have received from countless med students and premeds who’ve already taken the MCAT</p>
<p>Just be careful about this. Some of these post-bad programs, just like certain standard premed programs, artificially boost their placement rates by only providing committee rec letters to those students they think will get in. If you don’t have this rec letter, you can’t apply. It’s pretty easy to get a 100% placement rate when you simply don’t let your weaker students apply in the first place.</p>
<p>Actually, most med schools require General Bio, General Chem, Organic Chem and Physics. Not all schools required calculus, or advanced math. Some require just 1 semester of math or calculus.</p>
<p>I have recently decided to overcome my fear of failure and I have decided to pursue a career in medicine. Do you have any encouraging advice and/or information as I start my new journey?</p>
<p>A little background info for ya, I graduated from UCONN in 2000 and I have been a restaurant manager for the past four years. Needless to say, this will be a challenging transition for me! Help.</p>
<p>He’s probably talking about the Regents scholarship. Ironically, UCLA invited me to apply for it and then proceeded to reject me a few weeks later.</p>
<p>As someone who’s been through it, there is no “official” limit on how many times you can take the MCAT, but the truth of the matter is that - just as with any standardized test - the more times you take it, the stranger it starts to look. Most people tell you to stop at three, so Beth’s advice there is solid. Bottom line, you don’t want to take a six hour test (eight when I took it) more than once anyway unless you’re sure you’ll improve considerably the next time around.</p>
<p>I will say, however, that as a premedical student, we are warned that only in emergency circumstances should we take the August MCAT, with “emergencies” being things like car crashes on the way to the April one, not an anticipated poor score. If you don’t feel you are prepared for the April MCAT, you should delay a year, not jeopardize your chances through the rolling process. Frankly, if you can take it the August BEFORE your junior year, that is the best time to do it.</p>
<p>You should also be aware that many med schools require English courses. One very strange med school (I forget which one) actually asks for (“strongly urges”) computer science. UCLA, for obvious reasons, uses similar language with regard to Spanish skills. It varies from school to school - the AAMC sells a book (the “MSAR”) that has this information for all schools.</p>
<p>Hey I’m a junior in Erie, PA and I’m looking for some advice. Alright I’m going to have a 3.6 at the end of my high school junior year. I know that it’s not even compared to some of your 3.9-4.0’s, but I didn’t do that well my freshman year because I had a hard time with the transititon from Middle School to High School. Now I’m taking all AP/Honors class’s and I work my butt off to get the best grades as possible. I’m considering persuing a pre-med or biology major. I’m not the smartest kid ever but here’s my question… Can a kid like me who is not a “genius” do well in a pre-med/biology major, if I work day in and day out??? I’m not one who is just trying to be a doctor to earn a high salary, I genuinely want to help the ill.</p>
<p>Another question, what would you request me taking??? Pre-med or a Chemistry/Biology major???</p>
<p>Also how many hours a week does one in a pre-med major have to study? Is their any leisure time?</p>
<p>Another question why is pre-med have a reputation for being one of the hardest major’s? What’s so hard about it??? </p>
<p>Please I need some help!!! As you can see I’m verrrry confused!</p>
<p>Your first point of confusion is easy enough to clear up.</p>
<p>With some exceptions, “premed” is not a major at all. It’s simply a set of classes that you take while you’re in college. You will get a major in something else. Chem/Bio are very common, but not by any means mandatory. Premed is something like ten courses - it’s about as many classes as a major, but it is not actually a major.</p>
<p>Certainly not everybody who goes to medical school has to be a “genius”, depending on how you mean the term. Still, a track record of half-A’s and half-B’s in high school might be worrisome. Are you getting mostly B’s in sciences? Is your high school not that good? Is your improvement from your freshman year not that dramatic? A “Yes” to any of these questions would be especially worrisome.</p>
<p>How much do you study? Unfortunately there’s no answer for this. Some students study more than others; some undergrad schools require more time than others. There’s just no way to know. A genius at Harvard probably doesn’t need to study more than fifty hours a semester; a kid at Berkeley who had trouble getting in there probably has to study constantly.</p>
<p>Premed is difficult for a few reasons. First, the science involved is pretty intense. Biochemistry, biology, physics, organic chemistry… these are all subjects that give kids fits, especially given the state of high school education in America.</p>
<p>Second, premeds need very good grades. Even if the classes were equally difficult, premeds would have to work harder, because being in the upper echelon matters more.</p>
<p>Third, even when the subject matter is equally difficult, premed classes are GRADED harder. As a percentage, fewer kids walk out of Organic with an A than walk out of an English class with an A.</p>
<p>Hey I’m a junior in Erie, PA and I’m looking for some advice. Alright I’m going to have a 3.6 at the end of my high school junior year. I know that it’s not even compared to some of your 3.9-4.0’s, but I didn’t do that well my freshman year because I had a hard time with the transititon from Middle School to High School. Now I’m taking all AP/Honors class’s and I work my butt off to get the best grades as possible. I’m considering persuing a pre-med or biology major. I’m not the smartest kid ever but here’s my question… Can a kid like me who is not a “genius” do well in a pre-med/biology major, if I work day in and day out??? I’m not one who is just trying to be a doctor to earn a high salary, I genuinely want to help the ill.</p>
<p>Another question, what would you request me taking??? Pre-med or a Chemistry/Biology major???</p>
<p>Also how many hours a week does one in a pre-med major have to study? Is their any leisure time?</p>
<p>Another question why is pre-med have a reputation for being one of the hardest major’s? What’s so hard about it??? </p>
<p>Please I need some help!!! As you can see I’m verrrry confused!</p>
<p>You could also major in econ, or sociology, or art history. Just be sure that it’s a field you’re truly passionate about, and which you honestly think will make you a better doctor.</p>
<p>I am new to this forum and found it in my search for tips on a succesful application to a competitive med school. I just want to know realistically what are my chances to get accepted in schools such as Columbia or Hopkins or should I downscope my Med school list. I am somewhat befuddeled with the process.</p>
<p>I am currently a Freshman in a small tech school in NJ called Stevens as it gave me a very pleasing financial aid package. I am contemplating the idea of transferring to a liberal arts college such as Swarthmore or Columbia. My SAT scores were very weak as I received 650 in Math and 550 in English. I received 550 on Writing 690 on Math 1 and 600 in Chemistry in the SAT II exams. Moreover, I don’t intend on transferring until the end of my sophomore year.</p>
<p>In addition, my intended major is Biomedical Engineering and I currently have a GPA of about 3.79.</p>
<p>I am considering the possibility of transferring because the school is somewhat weak statistically and traditionally in sending students to Med school , and I also want to enter a more prestigious school. However, I also want to save money that is why I intend on transferring in the end of my sophomore year. I also intend on volunteering in hospitals and doing some research in the summer. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated and apologize for such the long post.</p>