Hi all, quick summary:
Attending a tier 1 college, will be applying in state (Texas) with a 3.52-3.56 GPA.
Excellent EC's (published biomed research with BCM/UTH, public health research abroad, v. strong letters of rec, held a job all throughout college, shadowed same physician team since high school, good on campus involvement, professor recently spoke to me about applying for a Fulbright, etc.). Can send more info on ec's/job if necessary.
Took my first MCAT a year ago (early 2012), scored a 29. Thought it would be wise to re-take, in order to offset my average GPA. Studied very hard May-August, was averaging around a 34 before taking it again. When my August score came back, it was a 26. Needless to say, very disappointed/drained. Particularly because I thought test day went incredibly well. Even got the exam re-graded, but of course, no change.
It seems as though my only option at this point is to retake the test and get the score that is truly indicative of my aptitude. I have been studying for it for the past month and will continue to do so, but going through these threads has me a bit disheartened. Will the 3 attempts render my application weak? Even if the 3rd score is closer to where I'm scoring on practice tests (33-35 range)?
Appreciate the help in advance.
Attending a tier 1 college, will be applying in state (Texas) with a 3.52-3.56 GPA.
Excellent EC's (published biomed research with BCM/UTH, public health research abroad, v. strong letters of rec, held a job all throughout college, shadowed same physician team since high school, good on campus involvement, professor recently spoke to me about applying for a Fulbright, etc.). Can send more info on ec's/job if necessary.
Took my first MCAT a year ago (early 2012), scored a 29. Thought it would be wise to re-take, in order to offset my average GPA. Studied very hard May-August, was averaging around a 34 before taking it again. When my August score came back, it was a 26. Needless to say, very disappointed/drained. Particularly because I thought test day went incredibly well. Even got the exam re-graded, but of course, no change.
It seems as though my only option at this point is to retake the test and get the score that is truly indicative of my aptitude. I have been studying for it for the past month and will continue to do so, but going through these threads has me a bit disheartened. Will the 3 attempts render my application weak? Even if the 3rd score is closer to where I'm scoring on practice tests (33-35 range)?
Appreciate the help in advance.