The thought of taking a seven and a half hour exam sends a chill down most spines. The thought of putting yourself through that more than once… Well it’s not a thought most people like to have. To retake the MCAT is a very big decision.
If you are reconsidering, I would definitely sit down with an advisor if you have one and get their opinion. Do some research online to see what other people say about their retake experience and why they retook it. You’ll find a bunch of Youtube videos on this topic as well.
This post is all about whether or not you should retake the MCAT.
Why I Decided to Retake the MCAT
My First Attempt at the MCAT:
I sat down for my first MCAT exam in June of 2018, a few months after graduating college. My study plan included studying part-time during the second semester of my senior year and then full-time for about six weeks following graduation. During the semester, I took a MCAT review course at a nearby university which was about 8 hours per week total. I utilized The Berkeley Review books and the AAMC online resources (question packs, practice exams, etc.) I completed seven full-length practice exams within the last eight weeks of preparation. While I was able to “break a 500” on the practice full length exams, my scores ranged greatly, anywhere from a 501 to a 510.
I wasn’t entirely upset with my final score. I felt that it was representative of the amount of studying I had done. To be honest, studying during the semester was really challenging for me. Full transparency, I don’t think I took it as seriously as I should have. After graduating, I took my first full-time job as a medical assistant at a high-volume clinic. Given that I didn’t have any significant clinical activities on my application besides some volunteering, I decided to push my application a year to gain more clinical experience and retake the MCAT.
My Second Attempt at the MCAT:
I spent the next nine months studying for about one to two hours before work most mornings and for about four to eight hours every Saturday and Sunday.
You’ll see a lot of people out there saying that you shouldn’t study longer than six months for the MCAT. Some people don’t even recommend longer than 3 months. Keep in mind I was also working 50-60 hour weeks during this time. I personally needed to spread the study time out in order to not feel overwhelmed and to allow space to give myself some time off here and there when I needed it. I did change my approach to studying and resources during this second time around. To see the list of resources I used to increase my score, read this post.
I ended up scoring better on my second try. I was definitely happy with the five point increase, especially given my impacted schedule and the transition I underwent of moving to a new area and starting a new job. This was a score I felt, given the other parts of my application, comfortable applying with for my first cycle.
RELATED POST: Do’s & Don’ts: Should You Take an MCAT Review Course?
So, if you’re trying to decide whether or not you should retake the MCAT, I would ask yourself these 7 questions:
1. Most Important: Do you feel like you honestly gave it your best shot?
So many premeds (including myself!) decide to take the MCAT when they don’t have the time to honestly prepare for it. Now that “right time” looks different for everyone. You know yourself best. If you can put your head down and study hard for the MCAT while keeping up with school and other responsibilities, that’s awesome. If you decide to finish up school first then take four months off to study full-time, that’s also awesome. Set yourself up for success by making plans that fit who you are. There is no one-size-fits-all timeline to become a physician. So be honest with yourself, think about how you prepared the first time and ask yourself, Did I really give it my very best shot?
Set yourself up for success by making plans that fit who you are. There is no one-size-fits-all timeline to become a physician.
2. How did your final score compare to your practice exams?
Your best diagnostic exams will be from the full-length practice exams created by the AAMC. So compare your final exam score to those of the AAMC full-lengths. Depending on when you took your practice exams will determine how much this question applies to you. If you are comparing scores from when you were “mostly studied” (your right answers were “truly right” aka because you knew the information and not because you guessed), and there was a very large difference, you may want to reconsider retaking it. If you scored a 510, 505, and 503 on your practice exams (in that order), then scored a 505 on the real exam, I would definitely be wary that the 510 was an outlier. In that case you would need more reasons to retake the MCAT.
3. Was there something situational going on during test day?
Were you sick? Distracted by personal matters? These situational things can definitely have an impact on how you perform especially given the amount of concentration needed to just complete the tasks involved in taking the MCAT.
4. Do you have enough time to retake the MCAT and ensure you will do better?
Again, timing is everything. If you’re being honest with yourself, will you make the time to study for the MCAT again? The answer to this needs to be yes if you want to retake the MCAT.
5. Were you missing a class that is tested on the MCAT?
Some premeds will take the MCAT after their junior year. This is usually the students who are trying to get in without a gap year as they will have to apply the summer between their junior and senior years. After the MCAT was revised in 2015, there are now more subjects test-takers are required to know. Some students will try to self study certain courses that they don’t have time to take prior to test day. This is usually, but not limited to, Biochemistry and Physics II. I personally don’t recommend this since they are both tough courses to master. If you do retake for this reason, take the course first this time around.
6. Will you make a significant jump in your score?
To actually make a difference with retaking your MCAT, you need to make a significant jump in your score. In my opinion, this is at least ten percentile points. Going from a 503 to a 504 or a 510 to 511, or 515 to 517 for that matter isn’t going to make that big of a difference. People get into medical school with sub-500 scores, however the data will show you this is a small amount. If you scored below a 500, I would most definitely consider retaking the MCAT. If you scored above a 505, I would be wary about retaking. You should definitely have a solid plan that you know will yield better results. Anything 510 and over, I would definitely advise against retaking the MCAT. The risk once you’re here (80th percentile) of doing worse outweighs the potential of doing better in my opinion.
To actually make a difference with retaking your MCAT, you need to make a significant jump in your score. In my opinion, this is at least ten percentile points.
7. If you were to retake the MCAT, do you know what you would do differently?
You have to plan. You need to know why you didn’t do your best and how you will change that. This last one is pretty simple! Whether it’s your study schedule or the resources you use, whatever it is, make sure you identify it and have a plan for your retake.
My general advice is: If you can clearly identify what impacted your performance and identify what change you will implement to increase your score at least ten percentile points, and you want to retake it, then retake the MCAT.
The reason retaking the MCAT is a big deal is because the only thing worse than a low MCAT score is an even lower one. You do not want to do worse than your original score. My general advice is: If you can clearly identify what impacted your performance and identify what change you will implement to increase your score at least ten percentile points, and you want to retake it, then retake the MCAT. Don’t do it because someone tells you to or because someone on the internet (like me!) gives you their advice. This needs to be your decision. You’re the one who will be putting in the hours, you’re the one who needs to be motivated. Like anything in the premed world, my advice stands the same: do what’s best for you.
This post was all about how to decide whether or not to retake the MCAT. I hope you have found this to be helpful in your journey to mastering the MCAT!
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