Your MCAT Score
What's A Good MCAT Score?
The average numerical score at each MCAT administration is a 24, or an 8 on each of the multiple choice sections. To be considered a competitive applicant at a U.S. medical school, your goal should be to score 10's and 11's on the Physical Sciences, Verbal Reasoning, and Biological Sciences sections, and 12's or higher if you are aiming for a top 10 medical school.
How are the multiple-choice sections of the MCAT exam scored?
Each score that you achieve on the three scored multiple-choice sections is based on the number of questions you answer correctly. This raw score is a reflection of your correct answers only. This means that a wrong answer will be scored exactly the same as an unanswered question; there is no additional penalty for wrong answers. Therefore, even if you are unsure of the correct answer to a question, you should make your best guess.
The scores from each of these three sections will be converted to a scale ranging from 1 (lowest) to 15 (high). For example, if your raw score on one of the sections is between 40 and 43, your converted score might be 11. Scores ranging from 44 to 46 might have a converted score of 12, and so forth. The voluntary Trial Section is not scored and your performance will not be shared with medical schools. Learn more about the Trial Section.
Why are raw scores converted to scaled scores?
The conversion of raw scores to scaled scores compensates for small variations in difficulty between sets of questions. The exact conversion of raw to scaled scores is not constant; because different sets of questions are used on different exams. The 15-point scale tends to provide a more stable and accurate assessment of a student's abilities. Two students of equal ability would be expected to get the same scaled score, even though there might be a slight difference between the raw scores each student obtained on the test.
Is the exam graded on a curve?
Examinees often ask if earning a high score or higher percentile is easier or harder at different times of the testing year. They ask whether they have a better chance of earning a higher score in April or in August, for example. The question is based on an assumption that the exam is scored on a curve, and that a final score is dependent on how an individual performed in comparison to other examinees from the same test day or same time of year.
While there may be small differences in the MCAT exam you took compared to another examinee, the scoring process accounts for these differences so that an 8 earned on physical sciences on one exam means the same thing as an 8 earned on any other exam. The percentile provided on your score report simply indicates what percentage of examinees from the previous testing year scored the same as you did on the MCAT exam.
How you score on the MCAT exam, therefore, is not reflective of the particular exam you took—including the time of day, the test date, or the time of year—since any difference in difficulty level is accounted for when calculating your scale scores (see above for information about scaling).
The average numerical score at each MCAT administration is a 24, or an 8 on each of the multiple choice sections. To be considered a competitive applicant at a U.S. medical school, your goal should be to score 10's and 11's on the Physical Sciences, Verbal Reasoning, and Biological Sciences sections, and 12's or higher if you are aiming for a top 10 medical school.
How are the multiple-choice sections of the MCAT exam scored?
Each score that you achieve on the three scored multiple-choice sections is based on the number of questions you answer correctly. This raw score is a reflection of your correct answers only. This means that a wrong answer will be scored exactly the same as an unanswered question; there is no additional penalty for wrong answers. Therefore, even if you are unsure of the correct answer to a question, you should make your best guess.
The scores from each of these three sections will be converted to a scale ranging from 1 (lowest) to 15 (high). For example, if your raw score on one of the sections is between 40 and 43, your converted score might be 11. Scores ranging from 44 to 46 might have a converted score of 12, and so forth. The voluntary Trial Section is not scored and your performance will not be shared with medical schools. Learn more about the Trial Section.
Why are raw scores converted to scaled scores?
The conversion of raw scores to scaled scores compensates for small variations in difficulty between sets of questions. The exact conversion of raw to scaled scores is not constant; because different sets of questions are used on different exams. The 15-point scale tends to provide a more stable and accurate assessment of a student's abilities. Two students of equal ability would be expected to get the same scaled score, even though there might be a slight difference between the raw scores each student obtained on the test.
Is the exam graded on a curve?
Examinees often ask if earning a high score or higher percentile is easier or harder at different times of the testing year. They ask whether they have a better chance of earning a higher score in April or in August, for example. The question is based on an assumption that the exam is scored on a curve, and that a final score is dependent on how an individual performed in comparison to other examinees from the same test day or same time of year.
While there may be small differences in the MCAT exam you took compared to another examinee, the scoring process accounts for these differences so that an 8 earned on physical sciences on one exam means the same thing as an 8 earned on any other exam. The percentile provided on your score report simply indicates what percentage of examinees from the previous testing year scored the same as you did on the MCAT exam.
How you score on the MCAT exam, therefore, is not reflective of the particular exam you took—including the time of day, the test date, or the time of year—since any difference in difficulty level is accounted for when calculating your scale scores (see above for information about scaling).
