Students Score 100th & 99th Percentiles on MCAT

Honors students well-prepared for testing

This summer, Ashley Reichert, Sumiko Weir and Zach Reichert, three senior Biology major students at Andrews University, scored in the 100^th and 99^th percentiles on the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). The three students are also a part of the J. N. Andrews Honors Program, and both Ashley and Weir are National Merit Scholars, having scored extraordinarily well on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

With regards to the Department of Biology Zach says, “Upper division courses went beyond just reading the textbook; I had a lot of professors that would have me read primary research articles and look at and interpret data. Learning how to do that and reading articles gives you really vital critical thinking skills.”

Ashley agrees. “Dr. Zdor structures his tests very similarly to the MCAT,” she says. “He will provide you with some sort of result, along with real research, and ask you questions about interpreting that information. It was really helpful.”

“While reviewing for the MCAT, there was never a moment where I felt like I had never seen something before,” says Weir. “It was always that I needed to remember what I was taught. Also, having to read difficult primary source material in honors classes really prepared us for the MCAT.”

Zach adds, “There’s a whole section on the MCAT called Critical Reasoning and Analysis and they take passages that are exactly like what you’re reading in Honors and the analysis section asks similar questions, maybe even more basic. I felt like I was prepared already.”

“These three students are exceptional,” says Tom Goodwin, chair of the Department of Biology. “They love to learn, they love to research and they are very inquisitive.”

The Department of Biology boasts a 71% acceptance rate for students applying to medical school, in comparison to the national average of 41% (2014).

Ashley has applied to nine medical schools and is anticipating interview season, Zach plans to take a year off and do medical missionary work and Weir plans to start medical school this coming fall.

“Honestly, we’re proud of all its students,” Goodwin says. “We are really fortunate to work with a great bunch of students who are serious about their studies.”

For information about the Department of Biology, visit andrews.edu/biology or email biology@andrews.edu. For information on our honors program, visit andrews.edu/honors or email honors@andrews.edu.