Standardized Tests
MEDICAL COLLEGE ADMISSION TEST (MCAT)
The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) is required by most medical schools. It is approximately seven-and-a-half hours long (seat time) and very demanding, both in terms of the level of preparation required to be successful and the very strictly controlled, timed testing conditions. It is offered multiple times during the year, between January and September, at Prometric testing sites throughout the country. For resources that spell out the organization, content, scoring, purpose of the test, testing conditions, and a downloadable PDF version of the MCAT Essentials, please go click here.
A detailed and comprehensive resource, the Official Guide to the MCAT® Exam (MCAT2015), Fourth Edition, is available in the Career Center library for your use. This volume may also be purchased for about $30 from the AAMC:
Be sure that you are prepared for this exam. It is expensive ($300+ to register, and you will be charged an additional fee for any changes you make later, such as place or date). Currently, there are several practice tests, and a “sample” test that may be taken multiple times. At best, you will prepare extensively, either by using either a rigorous self-preparation program (on your own or with a couple of fellow students, utilizing print or free on-line resources provided through the AAMC. College/university on-line courses on specific subjects can provide a very thorough review of a course you may have taken a couple of years ago. You may consider one of the commercial preparation programs offered by ExamKrackers, Berkeley Review, Kaplan, Princeton Review, MCAT-Prep.com, Altius MCAT Prep, and many others. (Commercial preparation programs can cost approximately $1,800 to $2,500 or more, with on-line versions somewhat less expensive.) The U World MCAT Exam Bank can be very helpful as well. Deciding to take a commercial prep course depends on your learning style and what you need to do to feel confidently prepared; many Wesleyan students and alum have been very successful in preparing on their own. The AAMC Fee Assistance Program (FAP) is available to assist applicants who may not have the financial resources to easily register for the MCAT. Some of the benefits of the program include free AAMC MCAT prep resources and the cost of the AMCAS application for up to 15 medical schools (a value of over $800). Find more information about the eligibility criteria and the benefits of the Fee Assistance Program on the AAMC website.
We strongly recommend taking a spring MCAT before the beginning of the admissions cycle, so that you will have your scores in hand (30 days after test day) before the 1st of July and before you submit your secondary applications. Once you have received your results from a spring MCAT, it will be easier for you to decide whether to go ahead with your application or wait until the next application cycle and a better set of scores. Since most medical schools have rolling admissions, the majority of interview slots are filled by early applicants. Applications submitted in July or August and scores from a late summer or fall MCAT administration can put your application significantly behind the competition and makes you a “high-risk” applicant.
The MCAT will require some knowledge of statistics and biochemistry, physics and chemistry, critical analysis and reasoning skills, social, psychological and biological foundations of behavior (we recommend taking a couple of courses in the social sciences during your time at Wesleyan such as: sociology, anthropology, psychology, social psychology, developmental psychology) in order to learn more about those disciplinary perspectives, but there is no particular course offered at Wesleyan that will necessarily prepare you for the specific content of this new section. The most up-to-date, information about the MCAT may be found at AAMC webpages.
