MCAT

The MCAT is a standardized, computer-based examination developed and administered by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). Nearly all medical schools in the United States and many in Canada require it. The exam assesses your knowledge of natural, behavioral, and social science concepts, your scientific reasoning and problem- solving skills, and your ability to analyze and reason through written material.

Exam Structure and Timing

The exam has four scored sections, always given in the order below. The three science sections contain 10 passage- based sets of 4–6 questions each plus 15 discrete (independent) questions. CARS contains 9 passages with 5–7 questions each. The science sections in this guide appear in content order (biology first); on test day, Chemical and Physical Foundations comes first.

Mcatsectionsintest-Dayorder

Order	Section	Questions	Time	ReviewedinThisGuide
1	ChemicalandPhysicalFoundationsofBiologicalSystems	59	95min	Section2
	(Chem/Phys)
2	CriticalAnalysisandReasoningSkills(CARS)	53	90min	Section4
3	BiologicalandBiochemicalFoundationsofLiving	59	95min	Section1
	Systems(Bio/Biochem)
4	Psychological Social andBiologicalFoundationsof , ,	59	95min	Section3
	Behavior(Psych/Soc)

Test-Daytimeline

➜

➜

➜

Cars

95 min

90 min · then 30-min break

95 min

95 min

Optional 10-minute breaks follow the first and third sections, and an optional 30-minute mid-exam break follows CARS. With check-in, tutorial, breaks, and the closing survey, the total seated time is about 7 hours 30 minutes.

What Each Section Covers

The science sections draw on introductory college courses in biology, biochemistry, general and organic chemistry, physics, psychology, and sociology. The approximate share of each discipline is shown below.

Section	DisciplinesTested
Chem/Phys	Generalchemistry30%·Biochemistry25%·Physics25%·Organicchemistry15%·Introductory
	biology5%
CARS	Humanities50%·Socialsciences50%(nosciencecontentknowledgerequired)
Bio/Biochem	Introductorybiology65%·Biochemistry25%·Generalchemistry5%·Organicchemistry5%
Psych/Soc	Introductorypsychology65%·Introductorysociology30%·Introductorybiology5%

In the three science sections, questions also test four Scientific Inquiry and Reasoning Skills: knowledge of scientific concepts and principles (about 35% of questions), scientific reasoning and problem-solving (about 45%), reasoning about the design and execution of research (about 10%), and data-based and statistical reasoning (about 10%).

Foundations of Comprehension

30%

What the passage says and implies

Reasoning Within the Text

30%

How the argument is built and supported

Reasoning Beyond the Text

40%

Applying or testing ideas with new information

Scoring

Raw scores are converted to the scaled scores above through a process called equating, which adjusts for small differences in difficulty between test forms. Your score report also shows a percentile rank for each section and for the total, and scores are released about 30 to 35 days after the exam.

Exam at a Glance

ExamAspect	Details
Administeredby	AssociationofAmericanMedicalColleges(AAMC) atPearsonVUEtestingcenters ,
Format	Computer-based; 230 multiple-choice questions mostly passage-based ,
Time	6hours15minutesoftesting;about7hours30minutesseated
Scoring	118–132persection;472–528total;nopenaltyforwronganswers

ExamAspect	Details
Registrationfee	US$360standardregistration;US$145throughtheAAMCFeeAssistanceProgram andtesting ,
	outsidetheUS andCanadaaddsaninternationalfee . .
Testinglimits	Up to 3 attempts in a single testing year 4 in two consecutive years and 7 in a lifetime; no-shows and , ,
	voidedexamscountasattempts
Testdates	OfferedonmanydatesfromJanuarythroughSeptember

Why the MCAT Matters

Admissions committees use MCAT scores, together with your GPA, experiences, and personal qualities, to judge your readiness for the demands of medical school. A strong score can make your application stand out in a competitive pool. Just as important, the exam measures the analytical and reasoning skills you will use throughout medical training and practice, so preparing well builds a foundation that lasts beyond test day.