5 Things to Do After You've Taken the MCAT
After completing the MCAT, premed students may wonder what to do with their newly free time. Though succeeding on the MCAT is a major step toward a medical school acceptance letter, your journey does not end with the exam. Below are five tasks prospective doctors should work on next.
1. Reflect on and celebrate the MCAT experience: First, set aside time to reflect on the intense experience of preparing and sitting for the MCAT. Take note of which study strategies worked especially well for you, as well as those that were not as fruitful.
MCAT prep often provides students with great insight on how they learn best. I personally learned best from practice questions, rather than reading over material multiple times.
You might also record which time management strategies worked best while you were busy balancing MCAT review with the rest of your life. Implement these techniques in your broader educational endeavors. After reflecting, celebrate and relax -- you have definitely earned it.
Learn about [ways to demonstrate integrity in medical school applications.]
2. Re-engage with extracurricular activities: Many students understandably scale back on extracurricular involvements while studying for the MCAT. Now that you have time to pursue your passions again, make it a priority to do so.
Whether you enjoy campus leadership, community service, fine arts, sports or other activities and clubs, ensure you pick up where you left off before your MCAT prep. Not only will extracurriculars help you lead a more balanced life, but they will also prove that you are well rounded to medical school admissions committees.
3. Begin researching target schools once you receive your score: Once you receive your MCAT score, you will have a much better idea of your admissions competitiveness for various medical schools across the country. Meet with your premed adviser and ask for his or her opinion on which programs suit your MCAT score, GPA and extracurricular activities.
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Medical School Admission Requirements is another excellent source to consult. This guide is published by the Association of American Medical Colleges and includes MCAT and GPA ranges for U.S. and Canadian medical schools.
Create a list of reach, target and safety programs that you might apply to. Then, explore each school's website to determine which programs are ideal in terms of geographic and academic qualities. It is also helpful to discuss ways to boost your interview chances with your academic advisers and mentors.
4. Consider pursuing research opportunities: Engaging in scholarly work during your college years is another important aspect of your medical school application. Admissions committees look favorably upon applicants who have devoted a considerable amount of time to producing original work worthy of presentation at a conference or publication in a scientific journal.
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Research professors at your institution who are leading studies that interest you, and reach out to them to determine how you can become involved. Keep in mind that your research experience does not necessarily have to focus on biology or medicine. Rather, select a field or topic that truly interests you.
5. Seek clinical experiences: Lastly, now that you have taken a major step toward medical school, you should confirm your interest in and passion for medicine by identifying a worthwhile clinical experience. Certain colleges and universities maintain premed interest groups that can connect students to shadowing experiences.
Alternatively, consider emailing faculty at your university's medical school, if it has one, or another local medical school to inquire about clinical shadowing opportunities. A third option is to research trips abroad to healthcare-poor nations that enable students to gain a firsthand taste of clinical medicine.
Anubodh "Sunny" Varshney is a professional MCAT tutor with Varsity Tutors. He earned his Bachelor of Science from Washington University in St. Louis and his M.D. from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He is a resident in internal medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
