<p>Hi, I’m a 50ish physician, so take my thoughts with a grain of salt, they are a bit out of date!</p>
<p>1) ACT and MCAT - the ACT is probably a better predictor of MCAT than SAT overall, because it is a content test. Although, the SAT does measure logical thinking, which is always helpful in test-taking.</p>
<p>2) Old ACT scores - I think I made about a 30 on the ACT, but the scores have been recentered since then, and I think an old 30 is somewhere around a 34 now? Anyone know?</p>
<p>3) “Bad test-takers” will have a hard time in med school, no matter how hard they study. Frankly they may not make the best doctors, especially MDs that have to make rapid decisions. It is hard to explain, but the ability to think logically, orderly and with a certain amount of intuition (which is often the logical orderly arrangement of facts just going on subconsciously in the background) in a high pressure situation is a really useful skill for a doc to have. Think of the ER doc with the unconscious gunshot wound patient.</p>
<p>4) English - there is an essay on the MCAT now, if I’m not mistaken, and even back in the day I took extra English classes. I had clepped all but one semester of English required for my major, but the med school admissions folks felt that actually taking an Emglish composition class was important - I took advanced Eng Compos. Those of you thinking you may get out of it, should check with the advisors.</p>
<p>5) Importance of organic - no other class is a better predictor of success in med school. the skills that help you do well in organic hold you in good stead in med school. Very few courses offer the combination of memorizing, lab work and then critical thinking (synthesis).</p>