The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) recently announced that, for the first time since 1991, the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) will undergo several substantial changes beginning in 2015.
The changes constitute several major differences in the structure of the test. The major changes include the introduction of a "Psychological, Social and Biological Foundations of Behavior" section and a new "Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills," section as well as the elimination of the writing section.
The AAMC's Preview Guide for the MCAT 2015 states that the "Psychological, Social and Biological Foundations" section will evaluate students' comprehension on psychology, sociology, biology, research methods and statistics, which provide background for the more advanced topics studied in medical school. The section will feature topics such as behavior and behaviorial change, how people think about themselves and others and cultural and social differences that influence well-being.
The "Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills" section will consist of a series of passage-based analysis questions that will test students' reasoning ability on a wide range of social sciences and humanities disciplines, including ethics, philosophy and cross-cultural studies.
The new MCAT will continue to feature the now-standard rigorous queries of test-takers' understanding of the natural sciences, although there will be a greater emphasis on biology and chemistry.
Tufts students looking to prepare for the revised hard sciences section of the new MCAT would be best served by taking a biochemistry course, according to Carol Baffi-Dugan, program director for Health Professions Advising and an associate dean for undergraduate education.
She also stressed the importance of taking statistics as one of the two Tufts mathematical distribution requirements.
Baffi-Dugan is confident that the introductory courses offered at Tufts and the liberal arts-style education provided to students is enough to prepare them to properly tackle the revised MCAT.
"Our introductory courses are pretty rigorous here, and I think that students get a very comprehensive grounding in subject matter, perhaps more than at many other schools," Baffi-Dugan said. "Things that might not be covered until an upper level course at another school, we are touching on it at the introductory level."
She believes that students will continue to buy study guides and review books just as they have done for years, and that this, in combination with the comprehensive education one receives at Tufts, will ensure that Tufts students will know how to properly tackle the revised test.
Baffi-Dugan said that these changes were brought about by a joint report released by AAMC in 2009 called "Scientific Foundations for Future Physicians," which emphasized that would-be medical practitioners should display a strong understanding of foundational concepts in fields beyond the natural sciences if they are to be successful participants within the medical community.
This report was groundbreaking because it addressed how the next generation of doctors will have to adapt to changes in society, according to Baffi-Dugan.
Richard Rayne, a lecturer in biology and assistant dean for Teaching and Quality Enhancement at Birkbeck, University of London noted that the changes to the MCAT form a parallel with the changes that the scientific community is current undergoing.
"Interestingly, there is a new emphasis on ‘human and social factors' in the new MCAT," Rayne told the Daily in an e-mail. "This seems to emphasize the need for doctors who are well-rounded people who can relate to the changing demographic of the country. It also pays attention to the ethical dilemmas that arise as progress in science makes possible more and more types of medical intervention."
Rayne explained that the new emphasis on nurturing understanding of basic foundational concepts aim to bring about the development of a curriculum geared toward fostering more comprehensive intellectual competency in pre-medicine students.
"It is interesting that there seems to be increasing emphasis on ‘foundational concepts' over a multitude of facts," Rayne said.
Assistant Professor of Chemistry Joshua Kritzer, expressed excitement over these changes in the medical community. He reflected that Tufts has typically evolved well in response to change and stated that the chemistry department wishes to promote these changes in the most productive way possible.
"Medicine is not some elevated branch of science, but something that requires a unique way of thinking," Kritzer said.
