Normally the test has been set up in a 144-question format in three hours and 20 minutes. Starting in May, however, the new MCAT will consist of 230 questions over six hours and 15 minutes in addition to other supplemental material and graphic analysis.
The American Association of Medical Colleges has made the change to implement other subjects that they believe to be necessary for aspiring physicians. These additional subjects include biochemistry, introductory psychology and sociology, added to the eight courses already covered within the exam.
This newly implemented approach is better formatted to how students will study in medical school and one day prepare for their ?medical board exams.
“Students will require a greater amount or stamina and endurance to get through this new test,” said Owen Farsy, MCAT curriculum leader at Kaplan Test Prep.
Farsy has already started teaching classes that help prepare students for this new exam. No one knows what the new exam will look like, but the earlier students start to prepare by including the newly added material, the more leverage they will have when the exam finally ?approaches.
From the perspectives of the medical schools, admissions officers are not entirely sure how they will treat the test. The new test is designed for the upper-middle percent to shine and take emphasis off of the elite students.
“The test is never the sole decider to get into medical school,” Farsy said. “It tries to test if the student will be able to stand up to the academic rigors of ?medical school.”
Farsy said that in relation to the new material, most students will not see it as much of a challenge. Many students have taken at least one of the courses already within their individual prerequisites at their colleges and universities, so adding two more courses is not a large request.
“It’s about time the field of medicine has finally caught up to reality,” said Maneesh Tiwari, IU senior recently accepted to the University of Cincinnati ?Medical School.
The downfall in this, nevertheless, is that the schedule for a pre-medical student is already so busy, Farsy said. If more courses are added to the workload, very few students will have room in their schedules to take a ?variety of electives.
Maurissa Amrhein, junior microbiology major, was originally on the pre-medical track but switched, with the change in the test a contributing factor.
“I hated continually adding classes all just for one test,” Amrhein said.
With a lack of electives, a lack of diversity is bound to occur, which presents a problem for admissions counselors. Counselors particularly look for students that have a vibrant academic background outside of the medical sciences. This will deter them from finding these desired backgrounds.
“We know pre-med students are extremely motivated students regardless, and alternative career paths would rarely come into play with this change,” ?Farsy said.
At IU, pre-medical students are highly encouraged to take all of the courses, including the newly added sciences, ?regardless of the new test.
According to data reports collected by Kaplan Test Prep, last year alone, 253 IU undergrads applied to medical school, making IU one of the largest pre-med population centers in the country.
Following the exam, a brief survey will be included to build up a data set in response to the change. Students, after sitting for more than six hours, will have the opportunity to fill out this survey and voice their comments and concerns in ?relation to the exam.
Registration for the spring exam opened Wednesday, and the next exam registration will open around late April for the summer testing dates.
“We are designing a curriculum from the ground up and seeing what is successful for students and what is not,” Farsy said. “It is truly a giving force in order for students to be successful.”
