The MCAT does two important things for medical school admission committees:

1. Provide a standardized measure to compare applicants from different academic backgrounds.
2. Assess the critical thinking and reasoning skills used in the practice of medicine.

The MCAT has four sections:

1. Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems (Physical Sciences).
2. Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems (Biological Sciences).
3. Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior (Behavioral Sciences).
4. Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills (CARS).

The names of the three Science sections include “Biological” to illustrate the overall emphasis on testing concepts in a (usually human) biological context.

The Science sections are interdisciplinary with subjects weaved together as opposed to tested independently. Questions in the Physical Sciences section, for example, bounce around between Chemistry (30%), Physics (25%), Biochemistry (25%), Organic Chemistry (15%), and Biology (5%).

No prior knowledge is required for the CARS section.

80% of MCAT questions (185 of 230) are based on short passages of text that vary widely in topic, format, and complexity. Each passage is followed by 4-6 questions about the content of the passage. The questions require you to apply your Science knowledge to decipher and work with new information in the passage.

The three Science sections each allow 95 minutes to complete 10 passages, 44 passage-based questions and 15 freestanding questions. That’s 1 minute 36 seconds per question including reading the passages.

The CARS section allows 90 minutes to complete 9 passages and 53 passage-based questions. That’s 1 minute 41 seconds per question including reading the (much longer) passages.

Questions are organized in random order of difficulty and weighted equally. There is no penalty for wrong answers so there’s no downside to guessing.

MCAT scores are a significant factor in the admission decisions of most medical schools in Canada and the USA. Most importantly, the majority of medical schools have cut-offs – minimum scores for consideration – and if you score below the cut-off in any of the four test sections, your application is simply dropped.

If you get past the cut-offs, MCAT scores may be used to decide who gets an interview, and, after that, to decide who gets an offer of admission. But these decisions do not depend solely on MCAT scores. Medical schools are looking for the complete package, and relatively low MCAT scores (if they are above the cut-offs) can be offset by achievements in other areas.

The MCAT is primarily a thinking skills test, not a Science knowledge test. It is specifically designed to assess whether or not you have the intellectual dexterity to practice medicine.

The questions in the three Science sections test your reasoning skills (65%) over your content knowledge (35%), while the questions in the CARS section test your critical thinking (70%) over your reading comprehension (30%).

Your raw scores (number of questions you answer correctly) are converted into scaled scores using a statistical procedure that adjusts for variations in difficulty between different test versions.

Each section is scored from 118 to 132 (lowest and highest scores). The median section score is 125.

Scores for all four sections are combined to create a total score from 472 to 528 (lowest and highest scores). The median total score is 500.

You will also be given a percentile rank for each section – and for the test as a whole – that reflects the percentage of candidates who scored equal to or below your score.

Scores are usually reported 30-35 days after your test date.

You can register through the AAMC website.

Registration usually opens in November for January-March test dates, in February for April-June test dates, and in May for July-September test dates.

The basic MCAT registration fee is $320 USD. This fee covers taking the test and disseminating your scores to medical schools.

The AAMC offers a Fee Assistance Program to help students with financial challenges and the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada does too.

You are allowed:

• three takes in a calendar year but only one active registration at a time;
• four takes in two consecutive years;
• seven takes in a lifetime.

Skipped (“no-show”) exams and voided exams count as takes but do not yield scores so they are not included in the information shared with medical schools.

It varies by medical school but 2-3 years is the most common lifespan.