What is MCAT – All there is to know

Table of Contents:

• Introduction-what is MCAT
• How important is the MCAT exam?
• When should I take the MCAT exam?
• Pre-requisites Needed For the MCAT Exam
• Eligibility for the MCAT Exam
• How is the MCAT scored?
• How to prepare for your MCAT exams
• How to Create a Study Plan for the MCAT Exam
• How Do I Register For MCAT Exams
• MCAT Test Day
• Conclusion

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Introduction – what is MCAT?

MCAT is acronym meaning Medical College Admission Test. It is not just a formality for medical school admissions but more than that, it is a standardized computer-based examination that has multiple-choice options and is required for admission to med schools in Canada and the United States.

The development and administration of the MCAT is taken care of by test maker Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) for the provision of Medical schools with common measures for comparing applicants’ qualifications and preparedness for acceptance into a med school for the pursuit of a medical profession. The considerations made by the med school admissions committees in order accept an intending student is based on his/her MCAT score, along with the record in academicsand supporting materials. These considerations put in place is aimed at assessingthe student’s foundations towards the building of a successful career in the medical field.

What’s the idea from this? A high score on the MCAT leaves a direct, positive impact on the applicationfor your med school.

What Is on the MCAT?

The MCAT examination ascertains your content knowledge in General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, General Biology, Physics, Sociology, and Psychology— beyond that, it also puts critical analysis and reasoning skills to test.

This connotes that the requirement of MCAT is more than just an understanding of prior content. The MCAT is an assessment of critical reasoning skills that rewards students on their ability to put up the application of test content. The key to a great MCAT score is having the knowledge of how to give interpretation and solution to complex problems.

How important is the MCAT exam?

For students who are planning to go to medical school in Canada or USA, either allopathic or osteopathic, the only part of the medical school application that is standardized is the Medical College Admission Test. People go to different colleges and this colleges happen to have difficulties in courses which vary widely AND varying scales for the system of grading. To this regard, the MCAT helps medical schools compare applicants by using same metric no matter what one’s school, research, or personal experiences are.

The top three factors that were required for interview invites include: cumulative science GPA, cumulative GPA, and the MCAT. According to importance, the MCAT comes in third, scoring a 3.5, which can be given the interpretation as in between “important” and “very important.” Academic performance, including the MCAT, is the single most important factor in getting an invitation by medical schools for interviews. The MCAT is relevant in getting you an invite and deserves a lot of your time and energy.

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How is the MCAT SCORED?

The MCAT is made up of composed and coordinated sections. This means that examination is not given on subjectsindependently but include areas of concentration that functions in common. This is how these subjects will be encountered in the medical school.

Four test sections which could also be referred to as the Exam Syllabusmake up the integrated content on the MCAT and this constitutes the exam. The MCAT is scored based on these four test sections.

These sections include:

• Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems
• Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skill (CARS)
• Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems
• Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior

The score for each of the four sections of the MCAT ranges from 118 to 132, having the mean and median at 125. This means that the total score range is from 472 to 528, with the mean and median at 500.

For the Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems,the undergraduate courses that are reflected in this section of the MCAT comprehends introductory General Chemistry (30%), introductory Physics (25%), introductory Organic Chemistry (15%), and first-semester Biochemistry (25%). Introductory Biology (5%) is also comprehended in this section of the test.

Note:A periodic table is available during the MCAT, but a calculator is not.

Chem/Phys section of the MCAT is made up of 59 questions that the candidate is expected to answer. 15 of the questions are standalone, non-passage-related, discrete questions. Passages offered on the exam makes up the rest of the section questions and they require both information from the passage and outside content knowledge.

For the Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skill (CARS)section, the candidate is given an essential test on how well he/she is able to analyse arguments and find the underlying assumptions and inferences. The length of time for this section is 90 minutes, with 53 questions, all of which have connection to their respective passages.

In the Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems section, the undergraduate courses that are reflected here are introductory Biology (65%), introductory, General Chemistry (5%), introductory Organic Chemistry (5%), and first-semester Biochemistry (25%). In preparation for the exam, additional biology classes such as Cell Biology, Genetics, Anatomy and Physiology, or Microbiologyaren’t required though they can be helpful.

The Bio/Biochem section of the MCAT is made up of 59 questions, 15 are standalone, non-passage-related, diplomatic questions. The passages offered on the exam makes the rest of the section questions available, and information required to answer them is both from the passage and outside content knowledge. One is to be done with this section in 95 minutes.

The Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behaviour section is a necessary addition to the MCAT since it assesses the ability of the student to implement research and statistical principles within the realm of determination ofbehaviour and social culture with regards to health and health outcomes. Basically, candidates are required to integrate psychological, sociological, and biological basis of behaviours and relationships.

Of the 59 questions on the Psych/Soc section of the exam consists of 15 questions which are standalone, non-passage-related, diplomatic questions. The rest of the section questions come from passages offered on the exam, and information from the passage and outside content knowledge is both required. 95 minutes is allocated to this section.

When to take the MCAT?

The best time for the MCAT to be taken is the year before one intends to start med school. Furthermore, we recommend that you begin planning your test prep about three to five months before the date scheduled for your MCAT test because this is the best approach to take. The recommendation from Kaplan says that between 300 and 350 hours of total MCAT test prep is necessary.

How much does it cost to take the MCAT?

During AAMC’s regular registration window, the cost to take the MCAT is $310. This figure experiences an increment if one registers late or if one’sdate for the exam is rescheduled. Cancellation and international fees are also available that may pertain to some test takers.  The choice of the right MCAT test date is necessary—and test prep—for you, so you will just have to pay the fee once.

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When is the MCAT offered?

Per year, this test is administered approximately 25 times between the months of January and September. The release of scores is usually done about a month or just over a month from each test date. You can take a look into full list of 2017 MCAT test dates and score release dates here.

The registration for the MCAT can be done online via the AAMC. For MCAT registration, scheduling, or test location questions, the MCAT Program Office at 202-828-0690 is to be contacted.

Prerequisites needed for the MCAT exam

You would want to know who is eligible for taking MCAT exams, but the truth is, no one such specific eligibility criteria to appear for the MCAT exams does exist.

Your being required to be from a health-related educational background to be able to take the MCATs is the only eligibility, such health-related educational background as Bio, Biochemistry, etc. Well, here, belonging to a different stream of educational field, does not still disqualify one from appearing for the MCATs, provided such a fellow has the ability to take up more health-related subjects later on.

This is what this means: the graduation degree of a student would hold as proof for his/her eligibility criteria for the MCATs.

No formal MCAT prerequisitesexist. This is according to the MCAT Essentials for Testing Year 2016. Sequel to this, insufficient preparation ahead of the exam is not wise. In this section, we’ll give you a description of the informal MCAT prerequisites that students should aim to bring to completion.

Informal MCAT Prerequisites: Recommended Courses

In preparation for the MCAT, listed below are some of the courses that will help you get prepared in order to fulfil the requirements for general medical school admissions. They include:

Chemistry (Biochemistry, general chemistry, and organic chemistry): a total of four semesters equivalent of chemistry that is mandated to include general chemistry, organic chemistry, and biochemistry. The choice of how to divide the four semesters may be made by the student so long as the student takesa minimum of one semester of each. For example, the student could take two semesters of organic chemistry and one semester each of general chemistry and biochemistry. Laboratory components should be taken with General chemistry and organic chemistry.

In addition to the Chemistry, introductory biology, physics, psychology and sociology is required too.

Of course, these MCAT prerequisites are all informal— the admissions requirements for medical schools vary with each school. For example,most medical schools do not currently require the subjects that were introduced on the new MCAT (biochemistry, psychology, and sociology) aren’t currently required by. There is likely going to be a change in the future though. A test of these subjects is still carried out on the new MCAT and taking these classes is an avenue of helping one get prepared. However, the choice of the number of classes you want to take before your MCAT is yours to make. Generally, as one takes on classes, one gets more prepared for the exam.

Additional Courses That Can Help:

The consideration of taking more advanced biology classes is a means of taking additional classes aimed at helping with the MCAT. These include physiology, microbiology, genetics, cell biology, molecular biology, cancer biology, endocrinology, and lots more.

With a brief approach, your general biology classes will cover these topics. One has a much better understanding of the material, which will help with the MCAT while taking advanced classes. Aside biology, this is also the truth of the other subjects tested on the exam though is particularly effective for biology.

Besides these coursestermed formal, many other online resources exist to help a student prepare for MCAT exam like Magoosh’s MCAT prep. 

How to prepare for your MCAT

Going through the syllabus, will surely leave one with a gist of the look the exam is going to take and where he/she should focus a lot.

This enables one to ascertain which are his/her weaker sections and which are his/her stronger points, etc., in order to prepare accordingly.

Considering the preparation time required to completely understand and practice the various sections under this exam, you would have started quite early.

As a reminder, the more you practice for the exams, the better for you to score really high with flying colours, just as the saying goes, practice makes perfection.

• The beginning of your preparation should be by making a good personal timetable, right from the time one wakes up to allocating proper time for each section that will make up the entire day.
• You are to ensure that you have plenty of time at hand.
• One of the good ways to start with your preps is by reading extensively from the given reference books. Many books are available from the various Princeton, Kaplan, Exam Cracker, etc. publications, and yourprep can start with them.
• Ensure that your access to the previous years’ exams question papers as well is not restricted, this is aimed at helping the student with tremendous practice.
• Also, ensure that you have some time allocated for some recreational activities in your break time. Also, plenty of rest in between and a good night’s sleep every day while preparing for the exams is necessary.
• Additional professional assistance
• We highly recommend that you take an expert guidance while preparing for the exams. The guidance from an expert ensures that you putup all the necessary efforts in the right direction.
• Also, an expert helps an applicant to take note of the best shortcuts, tips, and tricks, etc. that would help him/herhave a better score and have speed to be faster with the solutions than they do by themselves.

How long should I study for the MCAT?

Undoubtably, most students who perform well on the MCAT spend quality time between 200 and 300 hours preparing for the exam. The start date of your prep will be determined by your test date and by what other work and academic commitments that you have—usually 3 to 6 months before your exam. View upcoming MCAT test dates, so you can start making a study schedule.

Before the MCAT, the following is required:

1. Adjustment of your sleeping schedule is required so that an applicant going to bed and getting up in the morning at the same times as on the day before and morning of the MCAT. Your priority should be getting a reasonable amount of sleep during the last few nights before the test.

2. Applicants should take a trip to the test center at least a day or two before their actual test date so that they can easily find the building and room on test day. This also allows one to gauge traffic and see if there is the need for money for parking or any other unexpected expenses. Knowing this type of information ahead of time will greatly reduce your stress on the day of your test.

3. Ahead of time, check your test center’s policy on cell phones. Some center’s do not even give room for it to be kept inyour locker, where your other personal items are kept.

4. Don’t engage in any heavy studying the day before the test. You need to note that this isn’t one of the test you can cram for! Relaxation and rest is your goal at this point. The purpose of this is so that you can go into test day in a goodcondition physically and mentally.

5. Eat well. The avoidance of excessive caffeine and sugar is necessary. Ideally, in the weeks preceding the actual test, you should have a little bit more experiment with foods and practice tests to see which foods give you the most endurance. Steady blood sugar levels during the test should be aimed for: sports drinks, peanut-butter crackers, trail mix, etc. good snacks should be made for your breaks and lunch.

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How to create an MCAT Study Plan

“What’s the best way to prepare for the MCAT exam?” if this isn’t your question yet, we want to let you know that there will come a time when it would become the question you will desperately be in need of answers to. One way to prepare ahead of your MCAT exam is to develop a study plan.

Being too busy is an understatement. Work obligations, extracurricular activities, friends, and family can be a lot to handle hence balancing a full course-load. Little wonder students want to know the best way to prepare that when it comes time to take the MCAT exam.

Hearing that preparing for the MCAT exam takes time and dedication won’t be a surprise. In fact, based on those applicants who responded to the 2016 MCAT Post-Questionnaire (PMQ), on average, examinees prepared for 20 hours per week for about three months. However, there isn’t a unique approach to preparing for the exam. What works for another might not be what works well for you.

In starting, creating a study plan is the first step.

A study plan is a great tool aimed at helping you organize, identify areas of focus, and stay on track.  In a bid to get you started, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has developed a free guide that gives you the framework to develop your own plan using free and low-cost resources made available to you. The steps required to create an MCAT study plan are enumerated below:

• 1. Making findings about everything you can about the exam
• 2. To deduce where you stand: How much do you know?
• 3. Preparation using free and low-cost resources to help you
• 4. The creation of your study plan
• 5. Studying and practicing
• 6. Committing oneself to a final rehearsal or practice

Checklists, suggested resources, and advice is included in each step and is aimed at helping you craft a plan that will help you succeed on test day. As one adopts or modifies his/herown schedule, this guide also includes sample worksheets.

In working through this guide, thoughts might start coming to you, “this is a lot of planning” But just like a football team trains for a big game or work on a school project, you rarely find a situation where one dives in head first without any preparation. Similarly,some work up front is required of a solid study plan. The clarity of roadmapthat will help you discover strengths, weaknesses, and concerns, as well as identify strategies and resources to use at every stage of your preparation sets in when one takes the time.

Anxious and overwhelming feelings is bound to come up at some point in the process of preparation for the exam. So, don’t forget that the MCAT exam is just one milestone on your path to medical school and represents just one piece of information that admissions officers use to evaluate you and your application. So, keep putting in the necessary stuff.

When should I take the MCAT?

One will be better off once one sits for the MCAT earlier. With advancement in the admission season, the increment in the field of applicants became more crowded. Even if everything for one’s application is completed early close consideration will not be given to your candidacy by the vast majority of medical schools until they have a copy of one’s MCAT scores. This indeed shows how important MCAT is.

If a student sits for the MCAT at the spring of his/her junior year (once that fellow has brought his/her pre-requirements to completion), there will be the availability of time to retake the MCAT in the summer or following fall, if need be.

This question is such a big one. It implies much for one’s application, but a lot of students don’t have enough thought about this.

The simple answer to this is, before the time you want to start medical school, take the MCAT in April or May of that calendar year. So as an instance, if your plan is to become a first-year medical student in August 2025, then sit for the MCAT in April or May of 2024.

When Will I Get my Score Back?

Examinees are to understand that their MCAT score takes a month to get back on average. So, one is to bear in mind that lateness to taking the exam can delay his/her application another month after when the last was taken. Before a lot of schools look into your application any bit, they will wait until your MCAT score is back. So, to avoid this, avoid lateness!

2020 MCAT TEST DATES AND SCORE RELEASE DATES

For MCAT registration, scheduling, or test location questions, the MCAT Program Office is to be contacted at:

aamc.org/mcat

2020 MCAT Test Date (The start time for all exams is 8 a.m.)

Score Release Date is to commence onFriday, January 17, 2020 and end on Tuesday, October 13, 2020

MCAT Test Day

Having your exam day around the corner could either be a relief if you have prepared well or a daunting period if you haven’t. In having your exam day just around the corner after many months of studying, practicing, and reviewing, we’ve got the steps you have to take towards having the best possible test day experience.

1. Before the exam day, check your appointment.

This is necessary because changes occur occasionally. To that regard, ensure thatyou have the current address to your testing center.

• Read the MCAT Essentials.

To have a successful experience during your MCAT exam, reading the MCAT essentials is very necessary as the document provides critical information about MCAT policies and procedures. This document is to be read at the time of registration for the MCAT. Agreement to the terms listed in the Essentials is reached by registering for the MCAT exam.

• Practice with Exam Features.

There’s uniqueness in every testing platform and the knowledge on how to move through the exam, have answers selected, highlight passages, and strikeout answers is crucial. Understanding the various features and functions of the MCAT Exam beforean examinee arrives on test day will help him/her feel more prepared.

• Learn about the check-in and process in advance.

This provides one a detailed overview of how the process will work at the test center. The prior knowledge of this will help you have a better understanding of what to expect on test day.

• Read “Honoring Your Examinee Agreement.”

You are required to read and indicate your acceptance of your Examinee Agreement through the Test-Day Certification Statement before you start providing answers to the questions on test day. Ensure you have an understanding of why it is important and what you are signing in to by way of agreement when you take the exam.

• Read through the “Guidelines for Discussing the MCAT Exam.”

Don’t be in a haste during your discussion, just be smart at it knowing that you have to be time conscious too.

• Be sure you have a valid ID that you can present on test day.

If the necessary criteria are not met by your identity card, you will not be allowed to test.Ensuring that your first and last name on your ID match the name you entered during registration is the way to avoid such. For cases where they do not match, there is the possibility of changing your registration in the MCAT Registration system up until the Bronze Zone Deadline.

• Plans is to made for the examinee to arrive at the testing center 30 minutes before the exam start time.

Checking of examinees by test administrators will commence in 30 minutes before the exam start time. The time zone of the test center is to be checked and it is to be ensured that the review of campus map(s) is carried out if your test center is located at a college or university.

• Bring food and drink.

The MCAT exam will last for about 7 and half hours if one uses all of the allotted time for each section and optional breaks, which involves an inclusion of the 30-minute mid-exam break. For this long duration, one cannot leave the testing center, so we recommend that you to bring food and drink given the long testing day.

1. Report any issues to the Test Administrators (TAs).

TAs on staff will be available in each test center to assist you. Though unlikely, if you happen to experience a technical problem, kindly raise your hand and ensure that a center problem report is submitted by the TA. If you believe that there’s inference from the test center conditions with your performance on the exam, and wish to have the AAMC research what occurred, you are to review Reporting a Test Day Incident in the MCAT Essentials for instructions.

Conclusion

The Medical College Admission Test remains not just a formality for medical school admissions but more than that as we have made known to you. We’ve got answers to your questions such as what MCAT is all about, how important the exam is, how to prepare for the exam and lots more. So, are you planning to register for an MCAT exam, you’ve got all info you need here!