Testing Competencies with the New MCAT® Exam

Abstract

The new Medical College Admission Test® (MCAT®) will be introduced in April of 2015. Periodic updates to the MCAT exam are important to ensure it keeps pace with medical school curricula, and provides admissions committees with valuable information about their applicants' readiness. These updates help ensure that the exam is keeping pace with changes in the study and practice of medicine, such as new and innovative treatments, health care system reforms, and the challenges that come with serving an increasingly diverse population. Highlights of the changes to the exam include the organization around competencies, use of interdisciplinary life sciences passage sets, the inclusion of biochemistry content, and the introduction of a test section that focuses on the behavioral and social sciences. The competencies that include biochemistry content can be found in the Biological and Biochemical Foundations of Living Systems section as well as the Chemical and Physical Foundations of Biological Systems section. Each section will feature interdisciplinary life sciences passages and questions that will ask students to combine their knowledge of the content domain with scientific inquiry and reasoning skills to answer the questions. This presentation will describe the new exam with a special focus on the competencies that include biochemistry as well as the resources available to aid faculty in preparing students for the exam.