Friday, April 15, 2011

Preliminary Recommendations Released for New Version of MCAT

The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) recently released preliminary recommendations for a new version of the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT).

The proposed recommendations were developed by a 22-member advisory panel, appointed by AAMC in 2008 to review the current MCAT exam. Dr. Ronald D. Franks, vice president for health sciences at the University of South Alabama, was vice chair of the committee.

“Rapid changes in all scientific fields, the impact of behavior on health, and a more diverse population require tomorrow’s doctors to be more broadly prepared,” Dr. Franks said. “Although these recommendations are preliminary, we thought it best to be as transparent as possible as early as possible about the likely changes to the MCAT.”

To view the preliminary recommendations, visit https://www.aamc.org/newsroom/newsreleases/2011/182652/110331.html.

This is the fifth time the MCAT has been evaluated since it was first administered in 1928. The last full-scale review of the MCAT exam was completed in 1990.

If approved, the proposed recommendations will be introduced with the 2015 MCAT examination.