Medical school admissions review boards typically admit applicants with higher than average MCAT scores. According to doctorpremed.com, out of a possible cumulative MCAT score of 45, medical school applicants earn an average of 28. Students accepted to medical school earned an average score of 32. There are numerous face-to-face, online and distance learning courses and study guides that provide undergraduate students with the tools they need to earn impressive cumulative scores on their MCAT.
A medical school applicant must achieve a high score on the physical sciences portion of the MCAT. Out of a possible score of 15, the average physical sciences score is 8. Students accepted at Johns Hopkins and Harvard averaged 12. In order to earn high scores, students should study the electronic structure of atoms and the periodic table, bonding, phases and phase equilibria, stoichiometry, thermodynamics and thermochemistry, rate processes in chemical reactions, solution chemistry, acids and bases, electrochemistry, translational motion, force and motion, gravitation, equilibrium and momentum, work and energy, waves and periodic motion, sound, fluids and solids, electrostatics and electromagnetism, electronic circuit elements, light and geometrical optics, and atomic and nuclear structure.
While the average MCAT examinee scores 8 out of a possible 15 points on the biological sciences portion of the MCAT exam, students accepted at Washington University in St. Louis earned an average score of 12.5. According to the American Association of Medical Colleges, the biological sciences portion of the MCAT exam will contain questions on molecular biology, microbiology, the generalized eukaryotic cell, specialized eukaryotic cells and tissues, nervous and endocrine systems, circulatory, lymphatic and immune systems, digestive and excretory systems, muscle and skeletal systems, the respiratory system, the skin system, genetics, evolution and organic chemistry.
Although Princeton Review reports that the average verbal reasoning MCAT score is 8, students accepted at the prestigious Harvard University average a score of 11. Medical school applicants who want to meet the requirement of higher-than-average MCAT scores should study the comprehension, evaluation, application and incorporation of new information, in preparation for this part of the exam.
Medical school applicants are also required to achieve high scores on the writing section of the MCAT examination. The writing sample is scored differently than the other three sections; rather than a number, the writing sample is scored by letter, on a scale of J to T. The average examinee earns an O. Students will be required to write unified essays in which they expound upon statements such as "A good movie usually teaches a moral lesson," or "A person's first priority in life should be financial security."