Medical College Admission Test
Encyclopedia
The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) is a computer-based
standardized examination for prospective medical students in the United States
and Canada
. It is designed to assess problem solving, critical thinking, written analysis, and writing skills in addition to knowledge of scientific concepts and principles. Prior to August 19, 2006, the exam was a paper-and-pencil test; since January 27, 2007, however, all administrations of the exam have been computer-based.
centers. The number of administrations may vary each year. Most people who take the MCAT are undergraduates in college in their Junior or Senior year of college before they apply to medical school. Ever since the exam's duration was shortened to 4.5–5 hours, the test may be offered either in the morning or in the afternoon. Some test dates have both morning and afternoon administrations.
The test consists of four sections, listed in the order in which they are administered on the day of the exam:
The Verbal Reasoning, Physical Sciences, and Biological Sciences sections are in multiple-choice format. The Writing sample consists of two short essays that are typed into the computer. The passages and questions are predetermined, and thus do not change in difficulty depending on the performance of the test taker (unlike, for example, the Graduate Record Examination
).
The Physical Sciences section assesses problem-solving ability in general chemistry and physics and the Biological Sciences section evaluates these abilities in the areas of biology and organic chemistry. The Verbal Reasoning section evaluates the ability to understand, evaluate, and apply information and arguments presented in prose style. The Biological Sciences section most directly correlates to success on the USMLE Step 1 exam, with a correlation coefficient of .553 vs .491 for Physical Sciences and .397 for Verbal Reasoning.
Predictably, MCAT composite scores also correlate with USMLE Step 1 success.
The Physical Sciences section is administered first (prior to the April 2003 MCAT, Verbal Reasoning was the first section of the exam). It is composed of 52 multiple-choice questions related to general chemistry
and physics
. The majority of the multiple-choice questions are divided into passage sets. Passage-based questions are implemented to evaluate "text comprehension, data analysis, ability to evaluate an argument, or apply knowledge from the passage to other contexts." Exam takers are allotted 70 minutes to complete this section of the exam.
The Verbal Reasoning section follows the Physical Sciences section and an optional 10 minute break. Exam takers have 60 minutes to answer 40 multiple-choice questions evaluating their comprehension, evaluation, and application of information gathered from written passages. Unlike the Physical and Biological Sciences sections, the Verbal Reasoning section is not supposed to require specific content knowledge in order to perform well.
Prior to the computerization of the MCAT there was a 60 minute lunch break after the Verbal Reasoning section followed by the Writing Sample. With the new Computer-Based Testing format the 60 minute lunch break has been substituted by an optional 10 minute break. The Writing Sample gives examinees 60 minutes to compose responses to two prompts (30 minutes for each prompt, separately timed); the prompts are predetermined and there are only two prompts to choose from. Each essay is graded on a scale of 1 to 6 points twice. The scores from individual essays are added together and then converted to a letter scale of J, the lowest, through T, the highest.
After the Writing Samples, there is an optional 10 minute break followed by the Biological Sciences section. Examinees have 70 minutes to answer 52 multiple-choice questions related to organic chemistry
and biology
.
The numerical scores from each multiple-choice section are added together to give a composite score. The score from the writing sample may also be appended to the composite score (e.g. 35S). The maximum composite score is 45T. According to the AAMC, the average 2008 MCAT score for U.S. medical school applicants was 28.1P, while for matriculants it was 30.9P. There is no penalty for incorrect multiple choice answers; thus, guessing is preferable to leaving an answer choice blank (which is not the case in many other standardized tests). Students preparing for the exam are encouraged to try to balance their subscores; physical, verbal, and biological scores of 12, 13, and 11 respectively may be looked upon more favorably than 14, 13, and 9, even though both combinations yield the same composite score.
The standard deviation
is 2.0-3 per section depending on the year and form of the exam.
The chart below lists the scaled scores along with their percentiles for 82,004 test takers in 2010:
! Scaled Score (45–31) !! Percentile !! Scaled Score (30–16) !! Percentile !! Scaled Score (15–3) !! Percentile
|- align="center"
| 45 > 99.9–99.9
30
74.6–79.8
15
| 44 99.9–99.9
29
69.1–74.5
14
| 43 99.9–99.9
28
63.1–69.0
13
| 42 99.9–99.9
27
56.8–63.0
12
| 41 99.9–99.9
26
50.6–56.7
11
| 40 99.6–99.8
25
44.5–50.5
10
| 39 99.2–99.5
24
38.6–44.4
9
| 38 98.5–99.1
23
33.1–38.5
8
| 37 97.5–98.4
22
28.0–33.0
7
| 36 96.1–97.4
21
23.6–27.9
6
| 35 94.2–96.0
20
19.6–23.5
5
| 34 91.7–94.1
19
16.2–19.5
4
| 33 88.5–91.6
18
13.2–16.1
3
| 32 84.5–88.4
17
| 31 79.9–84.4
16
8.2–10.4
From 1946–48, the test was called the "Professional School Aptitude Test" before finally changing its name to the "Medical College Admission Test" when the developer of the test, the Graduate Record Office (under contract with the AAMC
) merged with the newly-formed Educational Testing Service
(ETS). In 1960, the AAMC transferred its contract over to The Psychological Corporation
, which was then in charge of maintaining and developing the test.
On July 18, 2005, the AAMC announced that it would offer the paper-and-pencil version of the MCAT only through August 2006. A subset of testing sites offered a computer-based version of the full-length exam throughout 2005 and 2006. The present, shorter, computer-based version of the test debuted in January 2007. The exam is now offered numerous times annually, and scored more quickly.
(GMAT)), the MCAT may be voided on the day of the exam if the exam taker is not satisfied with his or her performance. It can be voided at any time during the exam, or during a five-minute window that begins immediately after the end of the last section. The decision to void can only be based on the test taker's self-assessment, as no scoring information is available at the time—it takes 30–35 days for scores to be returned.
The AAMC prohibits the use of calculators, timers, or other electronic devices during the
exam. Cellular phones are also strictly prohibited from testing rooms and individuals found to possess them are noted by name in a security report submitted to the AAMC. The only item that may be brought into the testing room is the candidate's photo ID. If a jacket or sweater is worn, it may not be removed in the testing room.
It is no longer a rule that students must receive permission from the AAMC if they wish to take the MCAT more than three times in total. The limit with the computerized MCAT is three times per year, with no lifetime limit. An examinee can register for only one test date at a time, and must wait two days after testing before registering for a new test date.
Scaled MCAT exam results are made available to examinees approximately thirty days after the test via the AAMC's MCAT Testing History (THx) Web application. Examinees do not receive a copy of their scores in the mail. Nor are examinees given their raw scores. MCAT THx is also used to transmit scores to medical schools, application services and other organizations (at no cost).
itself also offers a select few tests for purchase at their website www.e-mcat.com and one free sample test on their main website at www.aamc.org/mcat.
Some students taking the MCAT use a test prep company. Students who do not use these courses often rely on material from university text books, MCAT preparation books, sample tests, and free web resources.Taking undergraduate courses like Physics, General Chemistry, biology, organic chemistry, and English can help in preparation for MCAT.
Computer-based testing
A Computer-Based Assessment , also known as Computer-Based Testing , e-assessment, computerized testing and computer-administered testing, is a method of administering tests in which the responses are electronically recorded, assessed, or both. As the name implies, Computer-Based Assessment makes...
standardized examination for prospective medical students in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It is designed to assess problem solving, critical thinking, written analysis, and writing skills in addition to knowledge of scientific concepts and principles. Prior to August 19, 2006, the exam was a paper-and-pencil test; since January 27, 2007, however, all administrations of the exam have been computer-based.
The MCAT today
The exam is offered 25 or more times per year at PrometricPrometric
Prometric is a U.S. company in the test administration industry. Prometric operates a test center network composed of over 10,000 sites in 160 countries...
centers. The number of administrations may vary each year. Most people who take the MCAT are undergraduates in college in their Junior or Senior year of college before they apply to medical school. Ever since the exam's duration was shortened to 4.5–5 hours, the test may be offered either in the morning or in the afternoon. Some test dates have both morning and afternoon administrations.
The test consists of four sections, listed in the order in which they are administered on the day of the exam:
- Physical Sciences (PS)
- Verbal Reasoning (VR)
- Writing Sample (WS)
- Biological Sciences (BS)
The Verbal Reasoning, Physical Sciences, and Biological Sciences sections are in multiple-choice format. The Writing sample consists of two short essays that are typed into the computer. The passages and questions are predetermined, and thus do not change in difficulty depending on the performance of the test taker (unlike, for example, the Graduate Record Examination
Graduate Record Examination
The Graduate Record Examinations is a standardized test that is an admissions requirement for many graduate schools in the United States, in other English-speaking countries and for English-taught graduate and business programs world-wide...
).
The Physical Sciences section assesses problem-solving ability in general chemistry and physics and the Biological Sciences section evaluates these abilities in the areas of biology and organic chemistry. The Verbal Reasoning section evaluates the ability to understand, evaluate, and apply information and arguments presented in prose style. The Biological Sciences section most directly correlates to success on the USMLE Step 1 exam, with a correlation coefficient of .553 vs .491 for Physical Sciences and .397 for Verbal Reasoning.
Predictably, MCAT composite scores also correlate with USMLE Step 1 success.
Administration
| Section | Questions | Minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Physical Sciences | 52 | 70 |
| Verbal Reasoning | 40 | 60 |
| Writing Sample | 2 | 60 |
| Biological Sciences | 52 | 70 |
The Physical Sciences section is administered first (prior to the April 2003 MCAT, Verbal Reasoning was the first section of the exam). It is composed of 52 multiple-choice questions related to general chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
and physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
. The majority of the multiple-choice questions are divided into passage sets. Passage-based questions are implemented to evaluate "text comprehension, data analysis, ability to evaluate an argument, or apply knowledge from the passage to other contexts." Exam takers are allotted 70 minutes to complete this section of the exam.
The Verbal Reasoning section follows the Physical Sciences section and an optional 10 minute break. Exam takers have 60 minutes to answer 40 multiple-choice questions evaluating their comprehension, evaluation, and application of information gathered from written passages. Unlike the Physical and Biological Sciences sections, the Verbal Reasoning section is not supposed to require specific content knowledge in order to perform well.
Prior to the computerization of the MCAT there was a 60 minute lunch break after the Verbal Reasoning section followed by the Writing Sample. With the new Computer-Based Testing format the 60 minute lunch break has been substituted by an optional 10 minute break. The Writing Sample gives examinees 60 minutes to compose responses to two prompts (30 minutes for each prompt, separately timed); the prompts are predetermined and there are only two prompts to choose from. Each essay is graded on a scale of 1 to 6 points twice. The scores from individual essays are added together and then converted to a letter scale of J, the lowest, through T, the highest.
After the Writing Samples, there is an optional 10 minute break followed by the Biological Sciences section. Examinees have 70 minutes to answer 52 multiple-choice questions related to organic chemistry
Organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and preparation of carbon-based compounds, hydrocarbons, and their derivatives...
and biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
.
Scoring
Scores for the three multiple-choice sections range from 1 to 15. Scores for the writing section range alphabetically from J (lowest) to T (highest). The writing section is graded by a human reader and a computerized scoring system. Each essay is scored twice - once by the human reader and once by the computer - and the total writing sample score is the sum of the four individual scores. The total raw score is then converted to an alphabetic scale ranging from J (the lowest) to T (the highest).The numerical scores from each multiple-choice section are added together to give a composite score. The score from the writing sample may also be appended to the composite score (e.g. 35S). The maximum composite score is 45T. According to the AAMC, the average 2008 MCAT score for U.S. medical school applicants was 28.1P, while for matriculants it was 30.9P. There is no penalty for incorrect multiple choice answers; thus, guessing is preferable to leaving an answer choice blank (which is not the case in many other standardized tests). Students preparing for the exam are encouraged to try to balance their subscores; physical, verbal, and biological scores of 12, 13, and 11 respectively may be looked upon more favorably than 14, 13, and 9, even though both combinations yield the same composite score.
The standard deviation
Standard deviation
Standard deviation is a widely used measure of variability or diversity used in statistics and probability theory. It shows how much variation or "dispersion" there is from the average...
is 2.0-3 per section depending on the year and form of the exam.
2010 Test Percentiles
The average scaled score in 2010 was 25.0 with a standard deviation of 6.4.The chart below lists the scaled scores along with their percentiles for 82,004 test takers in 2010:
|- align="center"
| 45 >
| 44
| 43
| 42
| 41
| 40
| 39
| 38
| 37
| 36
| 35
| 34
| 33
| 32
| 31
The Moss Test: 1928–46
In the 1920s, dropout rates in US medical schools soared from 5% to 50%, leading to the development of a test that would measure readiness for medical school. Physician F.A. Moss and his colleagues developed the "Scholastic Aptitude Test for Medical Students" consisting of true-false and multiple choice questions divided into 6-8 subtests. Topics tested included visual memory, memory for content, scientific vocabulary, scientific definitions, understanding of printed material, premedical information, and logical reasoning. The score scale varied from different test forms. Though it had been criticized at the time for testing only memorization ability and thus only readiness for the first two years of medical school, later scholars denied this. In addition to stricter medical school admission procedures and higher educational standards, the national dropout rate among freshman medical students decreased from 20% in 1925 to 1930 to 7% in 1946.A simpler test: 1946–62
Advancements in test measurement technology, including machine scoring of tests, and changed views regarding test scores and medical school readiness reflected the evolution of the test in this period. The test underwent three major changes. It now had only four sub tests, including verbal ability, quantitative ability, science achievement, and understanding modern society. Questions were all in multiple-choice format. Each subtest was given a single score, and the total score was derived from the sum of the scores from the subtests. The total score ranged from 200–800. The individual scores helped medical school admission committees to differentiate the individual abilities among their candidates. Admission committees, however, did not consider the "understanding modern society" section to be of great importance, even though it was created to reward those with broad liberal arts skills, which included knowledge of history, government, economics, and sociology. Committees placed greater emphasis on scores on the scientific achievement section as it was a better prediction of performance in medical school.From 1946–48, the test was called the "Professional School Aptitude Test" before finally changing its name to the "Medical College Admission Test" when the developer of the test, the Graduate Record Office (under contract with the AAMC
Association of American Medical Colleges
The Association of American Medical Colleges is a non-profit organization based in Washington, DC and established in 1876. It administers the Medical College Admission Test...
) merged with the newly-formed Educational Testing Service
Educational Testing Service
Educational Testing Service , founded in 1947, is the world's largest private nonprofit educational testing and assessment organization...
(ETS). In 1960, the AAMC transferred its contract over to The Psychological Corporation
Harcourt Assessment
Harcourt Assessment was a company that published and distributed educational and psychological assessment tools and therapy resources and provided educational assessment and data management services for national, state, district and local assessments...
, which was then in charge of maintaining and developing the test.
Status quo: 1962–77
From 1962–77, the MCAT retained much of its previous format, though the "understanding modern society" section was renamed as "general information" due to its expanded content. Handbooks at the time criticized the test as only a measure of intellectual achievement and not of personal characteristics expected of physicians. Responding to this criticism, admission committees took different approaches in measuring personal characteristics among their applicants.Phase Four: 1977–91
During phase four, the MCAT underwent several changes. The "general information" section was eliminated and a broader range of knowledge was tested. At this point, topics tested included scientific knowledge, science problems, reading skills analysis, and quantitative skills analysis. Individual scores were reported for biology, chemistry, and physics rather than a composite science score, thus six different scores for the whole test were reported. The score scale changed to 1–15 as opposed to 200–800 from previous versions of the test. Cultural and social bias was minimized. Though the AAMC claimed the new version intended to evaluate "information gathering and analysis, discerning and formulating relationships, and other problem-solving skills," no research supported this claim.New changes: 1992–present
In 1992 the test changed again, and assumed its current form. Though the test was still divided into four subtests, they were renamed as the verbal reasoning, biological sciences, physical sciences, and writing sample sections. Questions retained the multiple-choice format, though the majority of the questions are divided into passage sets. Passage-based questions were implemented to evaluate "text comprehension, data analysis, ability to evaluate an argument, or apply knowledge from the passage to other contexts." A new scoring scale was also implemented. The total composite score, which ranges from 3–45, is based on the individual scores of the verbal reasoning, biological sciences, and physical sciences, which each have a score range of 1–15. The writing sample, which consists of two essays to be written within 30 minutes for each, is graded on a letter scale from J-T.On July 18, 2005, the AAMC announced that it would offer the paper-and-pencil version of the MCAT only through August 2006. A subset of testing sites offered a computer-based version of the full-length exam throughout 2005 and 2006. The present, shorter, computer-based version of the test debuted in January 2007. The exam is now offered numerous times annually, and scored more quickly.
Policies
Like some other professional exams (e.g. the Graduate Management Admission TestGraduate Management Admission Test
The Graduate Management Admission Test is a computer-adaptive standardized test in mathematics and the English language for measuring aptitude to succeed academically in graduate business studies. Business schools use the test as a criterion for admission into graduate business administration...
(GMAT)), the MCAT may be voided on the day of the exam if the exam taker is not satisfied with his or her performance. It can be voided at any time during the exam, or during a five-minute window that begins immediately after the end of the last section. The decision to void can only be based on the test taker's self-assessment, as no scoring information is available at the time—it takes 30–35 days for scores to be returned.
The AAMC prohibits the use of calculators, timers, or other electronic devices during the
exam. Cellular phones are also strictly prohibited from testing rooms and individuals found to possess them are noted by name in a security report submitted to the AAMC. The only item that may be brought into the testing room is the candidate's photo ID. If a jacket or sweater is worn, it may not be removed in the testing room.
It is no longer a rule that students must receive permission from the AAMC if they wish to take the MCAT more than three times in total. The limit with the computerized MCAT is three times per year, with no lifetime limit. An examinee can register for only one test date at a time, and must wait two days after testing before registering for a new test date.
Scaled MCAT exam results are made available to examinees approximately thirty days after the test via the AAMC's MCAT Testing History (THx) Web application. Examinees do not receive a copy of their scores in the mail. Nor are examinees given their raw scores. MCAT THx is also used to transmit scores to medical schools, application services and other organizations (at no cost).
Preparation
Like most standardized tests, there are a variety of preparatory materials and courses available. The AAMCAssociation of American Medical Colleges
The Association of American Medical Colleges is a non-profit organization based in Washington, DC and established in 1876. It administers the Medical College Admission Test...
itself also offers a select few tests for purchase at their website www.e-mcat.com and one free sample test on their main website at www.aamc.org/mcat.
Some students taking the MCAT use a test prep company. Students who do not use these courses often rely on material from university text books, MCAT preparation books, sample tests, and free web resources.Taking undergraduate courses like Physics, General Chemistry, biology, organic chemistry, and English can help in preparation for MCAT.