Table of Contents
You should take the MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) 1-6 months before submitting your primary medical school applications. Primaries (AMCAS, AACOMAS, TMDSAS) open in May, and you should submit no later than early June so that you don’t disadvantage your application.
Since it takes about four weeks for examinees to receive their MCAT scores after taking the test, we recommend most students take the test no later than the first week of May in their application cycle year — earlier, if possible.
While it’s best to submit a completed application with an MCAT score as soon as possible, it’s just as important to take your exam when it’s the right time for you.
Let’s take a detailed look at when you know you’re ready, the earliest or latest you should take the MCAT, and considerations for gap year(s).
Get access to our half-length MCAT Practice Exam for FREE. Test your MCAT knowledge in a hyper-realistic exam interface with passages/questions built to mimic the AAMC.
You’re Ready to Take the MCAT When…
A major consideration for when to take the MCAT is to know when you’re academically prepared to get a good score. A competitive MCAT score is paramount to getting into your medical school of choice.
You know you’re ready to take the MCAT if you…
- Are able to dedicate at least 350 total study hours.
- Score within your goal range on realistic practice exams.
- Plan to apply to medical school within the next 6-12 months.
- Have completed the recommended courses (see below), as you need to grasp all of the concepts within the exam.
The AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges), who administers the MCAT, recommends taking the following courses before tackling the MCAT:
- General Biology: Two semesters
- General Chemistry: Two semesters
- Organic Chemistry: At least one semester; two semesters are best if possible
- Physics: Two semesters
- Psychology: One semester
- Sociology: One semester
- Biochemistry: One semester
These recommended courses overlap somewhat with the general prerequisites you’ll need to apply for medical school. Talk to your pre-health advisor about when it makes sense to register for the MCAT based on your own unique circumstances.
You can take the MCAT in your junior or senior year of undergrad.
- To get into medical school immediately after your senior year of undergrad, it’s best to take the MCAT no later than May of your junior year.
- If you wait till senior year, you may need to take a gap year before starting medical school.
Many pre-med students plan to take the MCAT by May of their junior year. However, sophomores who have already completed their prerequisite courses and feel well-prepared may confidently take the exam early.
It’s a good idea to talk to your pre-health advisor about your specific situation before deciding when to register for the MCAT.
Inversely, if you haven’t completed your prerequisite courses by the end of junior year, or you haven’t had enough study time, you may want to wait till senior year (or after) to do the MCAT exam, then plan to take a gap year before medical school.
Gap years are increasingly common and can be a good thing on your med school application if you demonstrate that you spent the time developing yourself as a holistic individual and a passionate healthcare professional.
The Earliest You Can Take the MCAT
You can take the MCAT as early as you want (between January and September), but most medical schools want an MCAT score from within the last three years. Ambitious test takers can take the MCAT after their sophomore year, but it’s usually better to wait.
There is no age requirement for taking the MCAT. However, taking the MCAT early, just to see how you’ll do, is not a good idea.
Medical schools will see this score, and you simply won’t be as prepared. (Plus, it counts against your 7 total lifetime chances to take the exam.)
If you’re looking to take the MCAT early but are still prepared, the earliest recommended time to schedule your exam is the summer before junior year. Just make sure it is the right time for you to take it, when you can fit in study time and other commitments like extracurriculars.
Read Next: Requesting MCAT Accommodations
The Latest You Can Take the MCAT
The latest exam date for the MCAT during any cycle year is early to mid-September. Still, MedSchoolCoach Physician Advisors have found that waiting that long decreases your odds of getting accepted into med school.
Some admissions committees are already sending out interview invites in July and August, so you’ll be missing out on the earlier interview offers as slots fill up if you wait till the end of the MCAT cycle in September to take the exam.
We recommend you take the MCAT in January-May of your junior year at the latest — if you want to begin med school after your last year of college.
Students taking one or more gap years can take a more flexible approach, but you should still register to take the test no later than early May at the beginning of your application cycle year.
Having your MCAT score in hand earlier is helpful because:
- It helps create a realistic list of schools you should apply to, instead of applying to too many reach, far-reach, or safety schools.
- It lets you take advantage of the rolling admissions process that most medical schools use. While your MCAT score is not technically required to submit your application, most schools will not look at your application until the primary application service uploads your MCAT score.
- It gives you more time to work on your application. Writing your personal statement or completing volunteer hours for your medical school application is a huge undertaking. We advise starting all these aspects as early as January of your application year.
Most students who take the MCAT in August or September (around the beginning of their senior year) apply to medical school the following application cycle, which is perfectly acceptable; it simply necessitates a gap year.
If you’re taking the MCAT in September at the start of your junior year, then you’re ahead of the curve and can still aim to enter medical school immediately after finishing your senior year.
Considerations for Gap Year(s)
If you already know you’re taking a gap year — which is more and more common — you don’t need to take the MCAT test while in college. Because most med schools only consider MCAT scores from the previous 3 years, plan ahead and take it 1-6 months before you intend to apply.
Study Smart: MCAT Master Class Course
If you’re only taking one gap year, you can take the MCAT exam at the beginning of senior year (MCAT cycle finishes in September) or the end of your senior year (the new MCAT cycle starts in January).
If you’re taking multiple gap years, or you’re applying to medical school long after you were in undergrad, you simply need to take the MCAT within 3 years of applying or matriculating — depending on the school.
Pro Tip: If you’re taking one or more gap years, use that time not only to ace the MCAT, but also to rack up great extracurriculars, seek out the best possible letters of recommendation, and consider post-bacc courses to boost your GPA.
When to Expect Your Scores
MCAT score release dates are usually 4 weeks after you take the test. The AAMC says that they release scores “30-35 days after an exam date.”
Our MCAT Test Dates article includes exam dates and score release dates so that you can plan ahead.
Get a Guaranteed Score Increase when you sign up for Silver, Gold, or Platinum MCAT tutoring.
Check Out These Study Resources
To boost your odds for a high MCAT score, there are a lot of powerful and free resources for MCAT prep. We recommend 300+ hours dedicated to studying, on top of everything else you’re doing to prepare for medical school. Don’t leave this vital metric up to the fates.
Here are the best MCAT resources to increase your chances of success:
- WEBINAR: How to Start Studying for MCAT
- MCAT Go, a unique on-the-go MCAT learning experience
- MCAT Prep app, the best mobile app for MCAT studying
- How to Study for the MCAT, tips from 99th percentile experts
- Med Schools That Don’t Require the MCAT
- Low-Cost AAMC Practice Exams
FAQs
On average, medical school candidates spend 300-350 hours on MCAT preparation. This boils down to 10-15 hours per week over 4-6 months, making MCAT prep as intensive as adding another college course to your schedule.
Study time should be free of distractions. Using resources like MCAT tutoring, practice tests, and prep courses can keep you on track. The MCAT is hard, but you can master it with careful preparation.
Some students can fit all that studying into a one-month period, but this would be very difficult unless you are free from all work and school commitments for that time. (We don’t recommend the one-month method, but — if it’s right for you — we do offer guidance.)
If you retake the MCAT once and don’t increase your score by at least 3 points, you’ve probably hurt your application. But if you retake the MCAT multiple times and show considerable improvement each time, you are not hurting your application; you’re demonstrating growth.
You can attempt the MCAT exam 3 times in a single testing year. Over two consecutive testing years, you can take it 4 times, with a maximum of 7 overall lifetime attempts.
If you choose to retake the MCAT to raise your score, check the application timelines for all the schools to which you’re sending your AMCAS application.
Taking the MCAT in the spring, right before applying to med school, allows you to take advantage of many med schools’ rolling admissions process, which slightly benefits applicants who apply earlier in the application cycle.
If you’re looking to enroll in medical school right after undergrad, you want to take the MCAT in the spring of your junior year.
If you plan on taking a gap year between undergrad and med school, you can comfortably take the MCAT in the summer between junior and senior year or even the spring at the end of your senior year.
Although the AAMC never invalidates your MCAT scores, most medical school AdComs only accept and consider scores that are less than 3 years old.
Every school is different — some count the 3 years from the student’s application date, and others count it from their matriculation date (which can be more than a year apart). Always check the med school application requirements of the schools you’re interested in.
The standard MCAT registration fee is $355. If you’re eligible for AAMC’s Fee Assistance Program, the MCAT registration cost is reduced to $145.
There are additional fees for international testing, rescheduling, and cancellations.
There is no age limit to register for the MCAT. But we highly recommend you wait until pre-med to take the MCAT. In high school, you won’t have taken the prerequisite coursework to comprehend the questions on the four MCAT sections.
Plus, your MCAT scores — though less important with time — will appear on your med school application.
Get a Guaranteed Score Increase
A good MCAT score can be your ticket to the med school of your dreams. If you choose not to take an MCAT prep course or hire an MCAT tutor, you need to craft an MCAT study schedule that includes content review, practice exams, and meta-analysis.
You want to walk into the testing center on test day feeling ready and relaxed. You’ve spent a lot of time and money getting this far. Don’t leave it up to chance now.
Work with a 99th-percentile tutor, and get a Guaranteed Score Increase when you sign up for a Silver, Gold, or Platinum MCAT tutoring package.
Ken Tao, PhD
Ken is the Director of MCAT and Research at MedSchoolCoach. He is an alumnus of UC Berkeley and Harvard University, boasts degrees in Bioengineering, Molecular and Cell Biology, and a Ph.D. in Neuroscience. Ken previously worked with undergraduate students at Princeton Review where he was the only tutor certified in all subjects. Ken was one of the highest rated MCAT tutors ever and a teacher trainer. He founded Magoosh's MCAT division and has written content for dozen's of MCAT books and guides.
See How We Can Help
Search for:
RECENT POSTS
What Are the USMLE Pass/Fail Implications for IMGs
medschoolcoach
How to Study for USMLE Step 2
medschoolcoach
A Detailed Guide to Residency Program Signaling
medschoolcoach
The 4 MCAT Sections: A Detailed Breakdown + How to Prepare
