Where do I go? Take the MCAt again or go abroad.

[wheredoigonow]

Where do I go now? Having not been accepted to any of the US schools (including DO) I applied to this year, mainly because of the 20Q MCAT score I got (despite a 3.534 GPA in Eng. Physics and an MS in Aerospace Engineering with a 3.68), I am pondering two things: retaking the MCAT this august or going abroad to E. Europe. I need to decide now, since deadlines to some of the schools in Poland, Czech, and Hungary are coming up and if I retake the MCAT I need to get on it now. I am thinking of going abroad because I don't want to wait another year, and retaking againg the MCAT does not guarantee anything.

1.What do you guys think? Should I go abroad and not retake the MCAT.
2.What are the best schools in Poland, Czech and Hungary if my objective is to come cack and practice in Colorado or California or Portland?
3.How about Australian schools? Queensland or Adelaide?
4. Are there any 4 year MD programs in Hungary?

[stephew]

take the mcat. this is the rest of your life youre talking about. under no circumstances should you go abroad if there is at all a possiblility to get in north america. wait a year now and don't diminish the possibilities for the rest of your life.

[mikewhite]

take the mcat again dude. BUT only if you see improvement on your score on practice exams otherwise what is the point. Take it from me, when I took the mcat i was so burned out that if i didnt get in , i was like"screw it", ( i got in, butthats a whole different story. ) Anyway get over it, okay ..sit your **s down and study!!!!! Your looking at the whole rest of your life and you could do a million productive things with this year anyway. :D Good luck!

[bckwood]

and don't diminish the possibilities for the rest of your life.

Are you suggesting that by being an IMG that you are diminishing your possibilities for life?

[tRmedic21]

I would totally disagree, most likely. I say most likely because I don't think we have enough information about YOU to help you make such a decision. Are you single or married? Kids? Would you take your family with you? How is your life situation? How old are you? Are you in a good career now, with bright prospects, or are you aging and in a dead-end kind of position? Is this your ticket out? What kind of specialty do you feel (as of now) that you might be interested in? How did you prepare for this MCAT? Did you blow it off (as I did) and not study a lick, or did you work your tail off, take the prep courses and still not live up to your own hope/expectations? Is it realistic to think you might improve your score significantly, as you would likely have to do to be competitive at many US schools? What area of the country are you in, as we all know in-state schools usually are the best shot, and some states (Michigan, Cali, Texas, etc.,) are notoriously more difficult to get into that others.

There are simply too many possibilities that would drastically alter my advice in this situation. I am not one of those people who think that you should stick around year after year waiting for US schools until you absolutely have exhausted every option... I just don't believe in some situations it is worth that. in mine, it certainly wasn't, and I don't think for a minute I should have waited even one more year trying to get in. For the record, I never applied to US schools, just went right to the Carib.

But truly before I'd give you any real advice, I'd want to know more about your situation.

[dawgfan]

I really don't know what to tell you, but I can tell you what I did. I had a science GPA of 3.75 and an overall GPA of 3.68 with a ** in Biology and Chemistry and a lot of other things that made my application look good. However, I did not take the MCAT because I procrastinated and never made time to do so. So, instead of having to take the MCAT and wait another year and apply to a US school my wife and I decided it would be best for me to go ahead and go to medschool abroad. Good luck with your decision.