General Oldest MCAT accepted

[BC_89]

Hi there,

My primary was verified and distributed to AMCAS schools in late June, and I had not received the Kaiser secondary yet. Upon contacting them, they told me my MCAT was older than their oldest accepted, but they would still consider my application and subsequently sent me a secondary. My MCAT is from May 2017 and their oldest accepted is July 2017. However, this got me thinking/researching/worried about my MCAT eligibility. A lot of the information about the oldest MCAT accepted at schools seems ambiguous.

E.g. for Tulane:

• MSAR says the oldest accepted MCAT is September 2016
• Their website says "We will accept MCAT scores as far back as three years prior to matriculation. For example, to apply for the fall 2018 class, you will need to submit MCAT scores from at least 2015," which I assume is August 2017 as I am applying for fall 2020 matriculation
• The AAMC document (https://aamc-orange.global.ssl.fast...93-5ef31ec9f761/oldest_mcat_accepted_2019.pdf) says the oldest accepted for Tulane is January 2016.

Which should I consider as the most accurate? Following through the MSAR and the AAMC document for oldest MCAT accepted, I should not have a problem for any other schools this cycle, but next year my MCAT will be expired at many schools, so I just wanted to clarify this since retaking the MCAT would be at the top of my list if I reapply.

Thanks for helping me figure this out! Much appreciation for y'all

Faculty and Adcom members will be able to answer this more sufficiently. That said, "prepare for the worst case scenario" so your not left out an entire cycle due to negligence on a miscommunication.

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[Mr.Smile12]

To answer your question regarding Tulane, it's pretty well spelled out that the rule of thumb is 3 years before matriculation, regardless of when they actually update the year on the website or MSAR. Every year before the start of the application cycle, I would have a sticky note on my phone with the calculated oldest date test score and last date test score for each matriculating class in case anyone called me; my secretariies would get copies of that note as well.

I also say it's foolish to apply to a school simply because you won't need to retake the MCAT. I would also check DO schools if this is your second or third application and haven't applied to them before.