The MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) is a standardized test that is used by applicants to graduate medical degree programs in the USA, Canada, Australia, and the Caribbean Islands. It is one of the hardest objective college entrance exams in the world, and is unique in that its different papers require test takers to have a strong grasp of different scientific concepts and their application, in addition to robust critical thinking skills and an appreciation of the social and psychological context of medical work.
The MCAT takes over seven hours to complete (with breaks). It has four sections, and is a computer based examination. It is offered 25 times a year, approximately every 11 days from January to September. It is conducted by the Association of American Medical Colleges.
| Exam Name | MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) |
| Governing Organization | Association of American Medical Colleges |
| Official Website | https://students-residents.aamc.org/taking-mcat-exam/taking-mcat-exam |
| Registration Date | Last Week of October, 2023 (for exam dates between March and June 2024) Last Week of February, 2024 (for exam dates between July and September 2024) |
| Registration Fee | $330 (basic registration fee) + $120 (variable fee for non-US exam location) |
| Mode of Exam | Computer Based Test |
| Accepted in | USA, Canada, Australia, Caribbean countries |
| Exam Frequency | 25 times per year |
| Exam Duration | 7.5 hours (counting breaks) |
| Total Questions | 230 |
Since the MCAT is offered only in a limited number of countries, with not more than 20 nations having authorized test providers, only the online mode of registration is allowed for international candidates. Most successful candidates take the MCAT one to two years before their projected start date in medical school. This ensures that they give themselves sufficient time for a second or third attempt in case the first does not go well, and also helps them concentrate on MCAT preparation at a time when they are not very busy with their undergraduate thesis or job searches. There is, of course, no magic rule, but test takers are encouraged to keep this trend in mind while planning their MCAT exam registration.
International applicants for the MCAT must either have completed a medical degree (e.g. MBBS) or be pursuing such a degree. In exceptional cases, permission may be granted to candidates enrolled in closely related courses, but this can only be done through explicit permission from the MCAT authorities. There are no other eligibility criteria e.g. age or nationality. If the candidate can travel to a valid test center and is of an age such that he/she has been granted admission to an undergraduate medical degree, the candidate can appear for the MCAT.
The MCAT computer based exam has a total of 230 multiple choice questions organized into 4 sections. It is not adaptive like the GRE or GMAT in that the difficulty of a question is not determined by the performance in previous questions.
| Sections | Time (Minutes) | Questions/Tasks |
| Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems | 95 | 59 |
| Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills | 90 | 53 |
| Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems | 95 | 59 |
| Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior | 95 | 59 |
| Total | 375 (not counting breaks) | 230 |
Applicants generally retake the MCAT in order to improve their score and give themselves a better chance of getting admit offers from all their target schools. However, there is also a risk involved, because all MCAT scores are shared with all the schools, so a low score might hurt the application rather than help it. In addition, the preparation process is long and grueling; a candidate should only decide to retake the MCAT if he/she has a clear strategy in mind, and expert advice on how to ensure that there is a score improvement.
In general, there is only one situation where retaking the MCAT makes universal sense: when the initial score is so low that it does not cross the cutoff for any of the target medical schools. In all other cases, retaking the exam is a function of preparedness, new strategy creation, and time available. A candidate can retake the MCAT up to three times a year, or seven times in his/her lifetime.
Each of the four sections of the MCAT tests a different skill, from scientific knowledge/application to logical reasoning/analytical thinking.
45% of the syllabus for this MCAT section draws from general and organic chemistry, and 25% from introductory undergraduate level physics. These fundamental scientific concepts are required to understand the physical and mechanical function of tissues and organ systems in the human body. Therefore, questions are heavily application based, and deal with the impact of other sciences on human biology.
This MCAT section tests the critical reasoning and reading comprehension skills of the test taker, in a manner similar to the GRE or GMAT. However, the topics are drawn from important issues in philosophy, ethics, and social welfare. Therefore, it is a very important component of the overall paper, because it ensures that future medical professionals are able to think critically about the most important issues facing humanity today.
The Biology and Biochemistry section of the MCAT tests both knowledge and application of fundamental undergraduate courses in these subjects. Of notable importance are cell and molecular biology and genetics. The concepts of biochemistry that are covered in the MCAT syllabus are elementary, and the knowledge required is that of the first year of biochemistry undergraduate courses. However, a deep level of understanding is required to apply the knowledge gained, and the questions are rarely based on direct regurgitation of facts. The sample MCAT papers are very useful in order to succeed in this section.
This unique section of the MCAT was included in order to build social and cultural sensitivity towards health issues in the medical professionals of tomorrow. The basic syllabus is related to the fundamental concepts of both psychology and sociology, and particularly their intersection with human biology, and the working of mental processes in the body. Research methods, statistics, and scientific reasoning will all be required to answer the questions in this section correctly. Approximately 75% of the questions are based on long passages given, while the remaining are standalone multiple choice questions.
Indian candidates who wish to attempt the MCAT must pay careful attention to the exam dates and test centers, as there are no exam venues within the country. Hence, the scheduling must be done well in advance so as to ensure availability.
The MCAT is held 25 times a year. However, these dates are not uniformly distributed across all months; most of them occur in the first nine months of the year. The remaining three months are devoted to analyzing the efficacy of the test and strengthening its format for the next year.
Most MCAT Test Centers are located in North America; international applicants will often find that there is no exam venue in their country, and will have to travel to a nearby nation to give the test. This further increases the cost of each MCAT attempt; in addition to the $120 international location fee surcharge, candidates must also often pay a few hundred dollars to travel to the test city.
For example, India has no MCAT test centers. Residents of India who wish to attempt the examination usually choose to travel to Singapore or Thailand, where the nearest Asian test centers are located. Every MCAT score obtained within the previous 20 years is reported to each college to which the candidate wishes to apply. Therefore, if a test taker reaches the end of the MCAT test session and is convinced that his/her score will not be impressive, it is recommended that the VOID option is chosen, because this will ensure that the score is not sent to any college. However, the VOID option counts as one of the seven lifetime attempts of the MCAT. Therefore, if the candidate is on his/her seventh attempt, the VOID option should only be chosen if the expected score is lower than all other recent scores.
The exam fee for most MCAT applicants includes a basic registration fee (common to all candidates) and an international exam fee (only applicable to those who wish to appear for the exam in a country outside North America).
| Service | MCAT Exam Fees |
| Registration Fee (for test takers in the US and Canada) | $330 |
| International Test Center Fee | $120 |
| Discounted Registration Fee (for US candidates under the fee assistance program) | $135 |
| Cancel Registration (60+ days before test date) | $165 (50%) |
| Rescheduling Date or Venue (60+ days in advance) | $50 |
| Cancel Registration (30 - 59 days before test date) | $165 (50%) |
| Rescheduling Date or Venue (30 - 59 days in advance) | $100 |
| Cancel Registration (10 - 29 days before test date) | $330 (100%) |
| Rescheduling Date or Venue (10 - 29 days in advance) | $200 |
Unlike many other standardized tests, the sample papers appearing on the MCAT website are crucial to the decision of whether to attempt the MCAT or not. Given the high difficulty of the examination, candidates are recommended to attempt the free mock tests on the site, and plan their preparation and test date only after evaluating their overall performance, and identifying the gaps that need to be filled before they are ready to score 510+ in their first MCAT attempt.
Students who have completed an undergraduate degree in medicine or a closely allied scientific field (e.g. Biochemistry), who wish to pursue postgraduate studies in medicine in the United States, Canada, Australia, or the Caribbean, will need to attempt the MCAT in order to be eligible to apply to medical schools in those countries.
Each of the four sections of the MCAT carries equal weightage. The lowest possible score in any section is 118, and the highest possible score is 132. Therefore, the overall lowest score is 472, while a perfect MCAT performance corresponds to an overall score of 528.
There are two main factors that go into the choice of MCAT date. First, the test taker should note down the application deadlines for all the Universities in which he/she is interested. It is recommended that the MCAT is taken at least two months before the earliest of these deadlines, so that there is ample time to submit the score and retake the test, if necessary. Next, the candidate should also consider his/her readiness to perform well. If the performance in the MCAT mock test is strong, there is no reason to delay the exam. It is held approximately every 18 days, so applicants should always check available dates during the peak summer season.
MCAT allows test takers two ten minute breaks, and one half hour break. These can only be taken at specified times, and the time is not additive. For example, if a candidate chooses not to take the first ten minute break, it is canceled, and he/she goes straight into the next exam session. The ten minutes are not added to either of the other breaks. It is important that applicants rehearse their ideal schedule of exam breaks while taking sample tests, so that they understand what will work for them during the final examination.
There is no universal MCAT cutoff; the target score can be estimated by looking at the average performance of the previous year's incoming class. The Medical School Admissions Requirements online database allows students to check the combination of average successful previous GPA and MCAT score, and candidates should compile these numbers for all schools of interest, and then aim for the highest MCAT score in the set.
MCAT has a well deserved reputation as being one of the hardest objective type standardized tests in the world. The fact that the entire test (with breaks) takes over seven hours, combined with the breadth of subjects tested (from Physics to Biology to Psychology) ensures that candidates must spend adequate time on both revising their knowledge of subjects they have already learned, and learning new skills that might not have been a part of their undergraduate curricula.
Most successful candidates spend between 500 and 1,000 hours on MCAT preparation, which translates to 6 to 12 months of part time study, or 3 months of intensive full time preparation, depending on how many months are left before the ideal test date.
