I have a 3.4 undergrad gpa and a 3.6 sciGPA. I want to rush the MCAT in Sept without Bio2 and Physics2 and apply for the Jan09 class. If I don't get in, I can always prep all fall and retake the MCAT in Jan for August09 start. But does that first rushed MCAT (let's assume it's a 23) hurt me majorly if I otherwise have good grades? Or is it smarter to just take it ONCE do much better and wait for next year's fall class?

why not wait till fall for your mcat and apply to us schools?

....or DO schools, and then to SGU

While an MCAT retake isn't as harmful as trying to boost a bad undergrad GPA with a decent grad GPA, your score needs to be higher the second time around. I think taking the time to do it right the first time will not only get you a higher score, but may open doors to a US school. Getting into a US school should be a priority.

__________________
~~SGU M1~~
Class of 2012

Why would trying to boost a bad undergrad GPA with a decent grad GPA be harmful? Unhelpful, maybe.. but harmful?

The emphasis was on the MCAT. Retaking it and not doing well is harmful.

I was going to add something else to the grad GPA thing but I thought the sentence structure could not tolerate another conditional statement. Sorry for any unnecessary confusion or misinterpretation of my post. I hope you will accept my sincerest apologies as boosting a bad GPA is not a laughing matter and should be undertaken with complete and utter seriousness.

__________________
~~SGU M1~~
Class of 2012

retaking mcat is what helped me get in! jumped 6 points