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How
is the MCAT* scored?
The MCAT is scored for
each of the four sections individually. The sections consisting of
multiple choice questions are first scored right or wrong resulting in a
raw score. Note that wrong answers are worth the same as unanswered
questions so ALWAYS ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS even if you are not sure of
certain answers. The raw score is then converted to a scaled score ranging
from 1 (lowest) to 15 (highest). The scores are scaled to ensure that the
same proportion of individual marks within each section (i.e. 1-15) are
given year to year.
The essay is scored by
two readers on a scale of 1 (lowest) to 6 (highest). The combined scores
from the two essays (2 to 12 out of 12) are then converted to a scale
ranging from J (lowest) to T (highest):
| J |
K |
L |
M |
N |
O |
P |
Q |
R |
S |
T |
| 2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
1
2 |
The scores for each
section and a cumulative score (i.e. a maximum of 45T) are reported to
you, the schools you designate and, with your permission, to your
undergraduate advisor.
Every MCAT includes a small number of questions which will
not be scored. These questions are either used to calibrate the exam or
were found to be either too ambiguous or too difficult to be counted. So
if you see a question that you think is off the wall, unanswerable or
inappropriate, it could well be one of these questions so never panic!
How many times can I write the MCAT*?
According to the Association of American Medical
Colleges, you may write the exam essentially as often as you wish.
Subsequently, the medical school to which you would apply may do any one
of the following:
(i) evaluate the
most recent score;
(ii) evaluate only the highest individual and/or set of scores;
(iii) evaluate an average of the sets of scores;
(iv) consider all scores equally and note the improvements.
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