Medical schools across the country are dropping Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) requirements in favor of alternative routes that promote “diversity.”
“The MCAT has been shown to predict who has the best chance to be successful in medical school,” Do No Harm Program Manager Laura Morgan told The Daily Caller. “Eliminating it removes a proven standard for schools to consider when admitting students who demonstrate the aptitude to be good doctors.”
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) administers the MCAT, encouraging a holistic admission model that considers an applicant’s “experiences and attributes.”
From The Daily Caller:
“Standardized tests are backed by evidence and can be objectively evaluated. To conduct a ‘holistic review,’ some schools are requiring their admissions committee members to take training on how to evaluate applicants based on experiences and attributes,” Morgan told the DCNF, adding that the AAMC permits race and ethnicity to be used as an admission factor when it aligns with the school’s diversity-based mission and goals. “It’s not adequate because it is subjective, as opposed to standardized tests which are objective metrics.” Javarro Russell, AAMC’s senior director of admissions testing services, told the DCNF that every “U.S. M.D.-granting medical schools require the MCAT exam” with some exception for alternative routes such as through joint BS/MD programs. Such programs are “designed for students to transition from an undergraduate to a medical degree through an eight year commitment, according to Inspira Advantage. “The MCAT exam was created with the input of medical schools for their use in the admissions process,” Russell explained. “The AAMC does not – and cannot – mandate if or how medical schools use the MCAT exam. Every medical school sets its own criteria for selecting the students who will contribute to its mission and successfully complete rigorous medical school curricula.”
