<p>Your advisor is wrong, and not just a little bit wrong. See post #10 here:</p>
<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=373702%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=373702</a></p>
<p>
[quote]
Yes, that would be a serious problem. Obviously a higher score on the MCAT is a serious help, too, so you have to weigh your risk.</p>
<p>If your MCAT score isn't in until mid-July, you have to realize that medical schools are giving out secondaries right away. I had nearly 20 secondaries on my plate -- most of them taken care of already -- by July 15, and interviews began flying promptly.</p>
<p>My first interview came on August 15. My first admission was decided by September 4, although they couldn't tell me until October 15. Some schools give away 2/3 of their spots on this very first day. Admissions committee officers will tell you routinely that standards are much lower for admissions early on in the process -- spots are less scarce, so marginal candidates aren't fighting over them. You can imagine that six weeks -- six weeks! -- worth of delay is a big, big deal in that context.</p>
<p>More importantly, I'm not sure how this works, but if they won't let you file AMCAS until you have at least one MCAT score, then that delay will also compound with a further processing delay. Processing takes about four days if you submit very early, and about four weeks if you wait until mid-July to start that process. So a six week delay becomes a ten week delay. This is a big, big deal.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>"I am taking them this August and I am pretty sure it's still ok since I asked my premed advisor."</p>
<p>Judy told you to take the MCAT in August?! I have a hard time believing that since she has said time and time again that that is considered late. This is the lady who, in April, went through the AMCAS application page by page using screenshots she had saved so that when it went online in May we'd know how to fill it out. Yes, your MCAT will still be valid for this application cycle technically but you would be at a disadvantage.</p>
<p>Is it okay? Sure. I took my MCAT in august in the year I applied, and sent my AMCAS in without knowing my score. </p>
<p>Would I recommend it? No. In retrospect, that decision, and not applying to more schools were the two biggest mistakes I made when applying to medical school. Obviously, it ended up not mattering, but that's only because I scored as well as I did.</p>
<p>writing score Question:</p>
<p>what's the highest letter score, and the lowest letter score?</p>
<p>J-T i think.
J=lowest
T=highest</p>
<p>bluedevilmike, i know you know a lot about pre-med and mcat stuff, so i would like to ask you some Q's.</p>
<p>1) the mcat is multiple choice, right?</p>
<p>2) if the latter is true, are there any FR Q's at all? ( besides the WS section)</p>
<p>3) is chemistry in the PS or BS section?</p>
<p>1.) With the exception of an essay which nobody cares about. So yes.</p>
<p>2.) No.</p>
<p>3.) General chemistry is PS. Organic chemistry is BS. Biochemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, and advanced inorganic chemistry do not appear.</p>
<p>MCAT Questions, yes for you Bluedevilmike!!! lol... naa for anyone</p>
<p>1) To what extent does the MCAT measure biology,chemistry, and physics?</p>
<p>2) Is material from AP Biology, AP Chemistry,and AP Physics on the MCAT, or are they measured to a basic level?</p>
<p>3) Suppose one performed exceedingly well in AP CHEM, AP BIO, AND AP PHYSICS, so can he start studying for the MCAT?</p>
<p>1.) They're all certainly on there.</p>
<p>2.) AP Biology isn't sufficient. AP Chem is about half of what you need. AP Physics is overkill.</p>
<p>3.) If your high school was really, really good -- as in, good enough that you had an hour and a half left over on the exams and still managed a 5 -- then you're about halfway done with your prereqs.</p>
<p>Bluedevilmike, so even though I received a 5 on both AP Biology and AP Chemistry as well as AP Physics, I cannot start preparing for the MCAT? And yes, I received a 800 on the SAT Subject test for chemistry,biology and physics, and I believe that I have a strong science background. If thats true, then what else does a college biology course teach you? I mean, if you can earn credit for a 5 on biology and omit the course in college. It doesn't make sense.. OHH, I know the fact that I have to take inorganic and orgganic chemistry.. but I talking abt the bio and physics on the MCAT..</p>
<p>SO FOR BIO AND PHYS ON THE MCAT, YOU CANNOT START STUDYING FOR EVEN THOUGH YOU RECEIVED A 5 ON AP BIO AND PHYS?/</p>
<p>If you already have the knowledge, then there is very little "studying" left to do outside of a couple of practice tests. No need to begin this early.</p>
<p>Ah, yes, you are the guy who wanted to know how to make $1 million/yr as a doctor. Somehow I have a hard time believing you scored 800 on 3 SAT II's. Troll.</p>
<p>AP Bio doesn't cover cell biology in enough detail for the MCATs, and animal physiology is very helpful as well. AP Biology covers about half of what you want.</p>
<p>BRM, BDM and NCG:
Did you guys all take general (introductory) biology or did you place out of it and begin with a higher level biology course? I ask because I want to know in how much depth biology is covered on the MCAT; did it require you to know a large portion of what you learned in general/introductory biology?</p>
<p>Because I also scored a 5 on the AP bio but went ahead and took general bio last year as a freshman anyway; we went into far more depth in the college course than we did in my high school AP bio class, and I assume it's similar in most high schools.</p>
<p>What I'm trying to get at is... does an average AP Bio class really prepare you well enough for the MCAT? Or for that matter, does AP Chem serve as a suitable substitute for Gen Chem? (I've heard that it doesn't). AP Physics?</p>
<p>edit: BDM just answered some of my question above, thanks</p>
<p>I took AP Chem at my high school, where I showed up 60 minutes late for the AP Exam, finished with an hour to spare, and scored a 5. My younger brother took the same course and is now preparing for the MCATs. He tells me that he is learning quite a bit of material from Kaplan.</p>
<p>I am about to quote you for the purpose of affirming what you've just said:
[quote]
we went into far more depth in the college course than we did in my high school AP bio
[/quote]
</p>
<p>And in any case, unlike AP Chem, AP Bio doesn't even claim to prepare you for the MCAT -- only, again, about half of what you need. And that's if your high school course is as in-depth as a good college course, which (as we've discussed), they rarely are.</p>
<p>"Because I also scored a 5 on the AP bio but went ahead and took general bio last year as a freshman anyway; we went into far more depth in the college course than we did in my high school AP bio class"</p>
<p>Retook Bio101 despite a 5 on the AP test. ^^^That's the reason.</p>
<p>Oh, I should mention that I didn't take AP Bio and therefore took general bio. Actually I found that even that wasn't very MCAT-relevant. The big ones are really cell biology, genetics, and animal phys, with small doses of microbiology, evolution, and developmental. AP Bio doesn't even pretend to cover those courses.</p>
<p>
[quote]
cell biology, genetics, and animal phys
[/quote]
Nice, I'm taking all those next semester.</p>
<p>On an unrelated note, which test prep company would you say is best, if any?</p>
<p>I only ever took Kaplan. As far as I was concerned there was not a single way in which they could be improved -- they were really spectacular.</p>
<p>Kaplan is good for the Biological and Physical sciences, but absolutely sucks for verbal; I would go with ExamKrackers for verbal prep...</p>