I Delayed the MCAT 3 Times - Feeling “Ready” for the MCAT
It’s an age-old question that others ask you, and you ask yourself: when am I ready to take the MCAT? It’s hard to judge and even harder to commit to an answer. To give some perspective, I moved my exam back 3 times. That’s right, three times. I consider myself surprised I actually took it.
I had initially planned to take the exam in September of my junior year. However, that summer, I was also working full-time in a research lab and trying to balance research & MCAT studying…let’s say I didn’t know what I should’ve known.
A month before, I panicked and delayed the exam to January of the following year. Then, fall quarter had some heavy science classes, and MCAT studying got pushed to the bottom. Then I moved the exam to April. And in April, I (finally) took the exam. And boy, did it feel like a relief, and it turned out to be just the right timing.
So coming from someone who has spent more than her fair share questioning if I was ready, let’s talk about how I realized it was time.
My practice scores were within my goal score. This was one of the biggest tells for me. I had the aim of scoring in the high 510s, and my practice exams were scoring in that range. That told me I had seen almost all the concepts and at least knew them to some degree.
Piggybacking on that last sentence, I was no longer feeling too lost on my weakest section. For me, this was chemistry/physics. Before my first scheduled test date, I couldn’t tell you what half the physics questions were. I focused on that section afterward, and when it came to my third exam date, I could confidently recite the equations.
In the name of brutal honesty, some part of my pressure to take it in April was that I was planning to submit my application in June of that year. So I needed a MCAT score pretty soon and I couldn’t delay the exam any longer.
I finally gave enough time to studying and reviewing the concepts. As I mentioned before, I had too much going on when I first planned to take the exam. I thought I had enough time between research, classes, and extracurriculars to squeeze in MCAT studying. Clearly, I was wrong, so I made sure to take light classes before my April exam date. This way, I could give the topics a thorough review and make sure I understood them.
My biggest takeaway from this experience was that it’s okay to push the exam back. Everyone works at their own pace, and these are challenging concepts to master. I think it’s essential to put your best foot forward when taking this exam, so if you don’t feel solid on most of the material, it’s worth taking some time to review and solidify the topics. I’ve stressed this to prior students I’ve mentored, and I think it can be almost as important as knowing the material itself.
I also talked about this experience in my med school interviews: how I knew I wasn’t ready so I didn’t rush into something and took time to make sure I got it right. In medicine, rushing into a treatment plan before you know all the facts can have lasting effects, so in all aspects, it’s good to reflect on if you’re confident in your decision.
All in all, I took almost a whole year to study for this exam, but I learned some valuable lessons about studying & learning from the process. Those 4 points have carried into all of my med school exams and life deadlines as well! Hopefully, they’re helpful to you in any life context :)
PS. Please reach out with any questions you have! It’s a journey but worth it in the end!