MCAT®
The Medical College Admission Test, conceived and administered by the Associationof American Medical Colleges (AAMC), is a standardized, multiple-choice examinationdesigned to aid the medical school admissions offices assess the aspirants’ problemsolving, critical thinking, and knowledge of natural, behavioural, and social scienceconcepts and principles prerequisite to the study of medicine. MCAT is accepted foradmission mainly to medical institutes in the US, Canada and some other countries. The syllabus and pattern for this test are set in a way to test an aspirant’s awarenessof scientific concepts and principles. Besides medical institutes, some other healthprofessions and graduate schools accept MCAT scores as part of their selection procedure.Aspirants planning to register for health professional institutes can chooseto appear in the MCAT test. MCAT centres are located all around the world for the convenience of the test takers. However, the confirmation of the test date depends onthe availability of seats for that particular day and location. With more than 85000students appearing for the exam every year, MCAT evaluates a candidate on threeyardsticks, namely, Physical Sciences, Verbal Reasoning and Biological Sciences.
MCAT Syllabus and Exam Pattern
Along with medicine, in particular, the following medical schools are a part of ‘health professional institutions’ as well:●●Allopathic
●●Osteopathic
●●Podiatric and
●●Veterinary medicine.
International aspirants do not require ‘special permission’ to register for MCAT examif they have completed MBBS or are pursuing the program. With a total duration of 6hours 5 minutes (approximately), the medical entrance examination consists of foursections, namely
●●Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems
●●Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems
●●Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behaviour
●●Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills
It is advisable that aspirants should be well-versed with the syllabus of the MCAT exam so that preparation of the exam can be a planned one.
The scoring format of the MCAT is well-illustrated underneath
| Sections | Score |
|---|---|
| Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems | 118 – 132, midpoint:125 |
| Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems | 118 – 132, midpoint:125 |
| Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behaviour | 118 – 132, midpoint:125 |
| Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills | 118 – 132, midpoint:125 |
| Total | 472 – 528, midpoint:500 |