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  • Professional Service

    Annotated Bibliography of MCAT® Research

    This list presents publications and presentations about research on the MCAT® exam since 1987. Among the areas explored in the bibliography are the relationship between performance on the MCAT® and performance at difference stages of medical education, test validity, reliability and equating issues, medical college selection procedures, and issues related to acceptance to medical school.

    Research on the current MCAT exam 

    • Busche K, Elks ML, Hanson JT, Jackson-Williams L, Manuel RS, Parsons WL, Wofsy D, Yuan K. The Validity of Scores from the New MCAT Exam in Predicting Student Performance: Results from a Multisite Study. [published ahead of print August 13, 2019]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000002942.
    • Girotti JA, Chanatry JA, Clinchot DM, McClure SC, Swan Sein A, Walker IW, Searcy CA. Investigating Group Differences in Examinees’ Preparation for and Performance on the New MCAT Exam. [published ahead of print August 13, 2019]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000002940.
    • Lucey CR, Saguil A. The Consequences of Structural Racism on MCAT Scores and Medical School Admissions: The Past is Prologue. [published ahead of print August 13, 2019]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000002939.
    • Schwartzstein, R.M., Rosenfeld, G.C., Hilborn, R., Oyewole, S.H., & Mitchell, K. (2013). Redesigning the MCAT Exam: Balancing Multiple Perspectives. Academic Medicine, 88(5), 560-567.
    •  Swan Sein A, Cuffney F, Clinchot D. How to Help Students Strategically Prepare for the MCAT Exam and Learn Foundational Knowledge Needed for Medical School. [published ahead of print September 24, 2009]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000003000.
    • Terregino CA, Saguil A, Price-Johnson T, Anachebe NF, Goodell K. The Diversity and Success of Medical School Applicants with Scores in the Middle Third of the MCAT Score Scale. [published ahead of print August 13, 2019]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000002941.
    •  Violato C, Gauer JL, Violoto EM, Patel D. A Study of the Validity of the New MCAT Exam. [Published ahead of print November 5, 2019] Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000003064.
       

    Research on previous versions of the MCAT exam

    • Basco, W.T., Jr., Way, D.P., Gilbert, G.E., & Hudson, A. (2002). Undergraduate Institutional MCAT Scores as Predictors of USMLE Step 1 Performance. Academic Medicine, 77, S13-S16.
    • Basco, W.T., Jr., Gilbert, G.E., & Blue, A.V. (2002). Determining the Consequences for Rural Applicants When Additional Consideration is Discontinued in a Medical School Admission Process. Academic Medicine, 77, S20-S22.
    • Boyd, A.M., Dodd, B.G. & Fitzpatrick, S.J. (2002). A Comparison of Exposure Control Procedures in CAT Systems Based on Different Measurement Models for Testlets. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Bhardwaj, A. (1993, November). A Method for Using New MCAT Scores with Longitudinal Databases. Paper presented at the Research in Medical Education Conference, Washington, D.C.
    • Blue, A.V., Gilbert, G.E., Elam, C.L., & Basco, W.T., Jr. (2000). Does Institutional Selectivity Aid in the Prediction of Medical School Performance? Academic Medicine, 75, S31-S33.
    • Childs, R.A., & Oppler, S. H. (1999). Practical Implications of Test Dimensionality for Item Response Theory Calibration of the Medical College Admission Test. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Colliver, J. A., Verhulst, S.J., & Williams, R.G. (1989). Using a Standardized Patient Examination to Establish the Predictive Validity of the MCAT and Undergraduate GPA as Admissions Criteria. Academic Medicine, 64, 482-484.
    • Davis, D., Dorsey, K., Franks, R.D., Sackett, P.R., Searcy, C.A., & Zhao, X. (2013). Do Racial and Ethnic Group Differences in Performance on the MCAT Exam Reflect Test Bias? Academic Medicine, 88(5), 593-602.
    • Dunleavy, D.M., Kroopnick, M.H., Dowd, K.W., Searcy, C.A., & Zhao, X. (2013). The Predictive Validity of the MCAT Exam in Relation to Academic Performance through Medical School: A National Cohort Study of 2001-2004 Matriculants. Academic Medicine, 88(5), 666-671.
    • Dunleavy, D.M., Sondheimer, H.S., Castillo-Page, L., & Bletzinger, R.B. (2011). Medical School Admissions: More than Grades and Test Scores. Association of American Medical Colleges: Analysis in Brief, 11(6).
    • Dunleavy, D.M., & Whittaker, K.M. (2011). The Evolving Medical School Admissions Interview. Association of American Medical Colleges: Analysis in Brief, 11(7).
    • Daugherty, S.R., Nora, L.M., Schmidt, J.L., & Goodman, L.J. (1992). Identifying Poor Preclinical Performers Who Do Well in Clerkships. Academic Medicine, 67, S72-S74.
    • Davis, L.L., & Dodd, B.G. (2001). An Examination of Testlet Scoring and Item Exposure Constraints in the Verbal Reasoning Section of the MCAT. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Elam, C.L., & Johnson, M.M.S. (1992). Prediction of Medical Students' Academic Performances: Does the Admission Interview Help? Academic Medicine, 67, S28-S30.
    • Elam, C.L., Stratton, T.D. Wilson, J.F. & Scott, K.L. (2002). How Admission Committees Decide: Influence of Committee Members' Experience and Applicants' Academic Characteristics. Academic Medicine, 77, S26-S28.
    • Etienne, P.M. (2000). The MCAT Science Content Review Part I: Report on the Medical School Survey of Science Content. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Etienne, P.M. (2000). The MCAT Science Content Review Part II: Report on the Surveys of Undergraduate Science Content. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Haraysm, P.H., Woloschuk, W., Mandin, H., & Brundin-Mather, R. (1996). Reliability and Validity of Interviewers' Judgments of Medical School Candidates. Academic Medicine, 71, S40-S42.
    • Hendrickson, A.B., & Kolen, M. J. (1999). IRT Equating of the MCAT. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Hojat, M., Erdmann, J.B., Veloski, J.J., Nasca, T.J., Callahan, C.A., Julian, E., & Peck, J. (2000). A Validity Study of the Writing Sample Section of the Medical College Admission Test. Academic Medicine, 75, S25-S27.
    • Hojat, M., Robenson, M., Damjanov, I., Veloski, J.J., Glaser, K., & Gonnella, J.S. (1993). Students' Psychosocial Characteristics As Predictors of Academic Performance in Medical School. Academic Medicine, 68, 635-637.
    • Huff, K.L., & Fang, D. (1999). When are Students Most at Risk of Encountering Academic Difficulty? A Study of 1992 Matriculants to U.S. Medical Schools. Academic Medicine, 74, 454-460.
    • Huff, K.L., Koenig, J.A., Treptau, M.M., & Sireci, S.G. (1999). Validity of MCAT scores for Predicting Clerkship Performance of Medical Students Grouped by Sex and Ethnicity. Academic Medicine, 74, S41-S44.
    • Hull, M.L., & Stocks, M.T. (1995). Relationship between Quantity of Undergraduate Science Preparation and Preclinical Performance in Medical School. Academic Medicine, 70, 230-235.
    • Jolly, P. (1992). Academic Achievement and Acceptance Rates of Underrepresented-Minority Applicants to Medical School. Academic Medicine, 67, 765-769.
    • Jones, R.F. (1986) The Effect of Commercial Coaching Courses on Performance on the MCAT. Journal of Medical Education, 61, 273-284.
    • Jones, R.F., & Adams, L. N. (1983). The Relationship between MCAT Science Scores and Undergraduate Science GPA. Journal of Medical Education, 58, 908-1011.
    • Jones, R.F., & Mitchell, K. J. (1986). Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Predictive Validity of MCAT Scores. Paper presented at the 67th Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco.
    • Jones, B.J., & Seeman, R.E. (1993, November). How Does the New MCAT Correlate with Term 1 Medical School Performance? Paper presented at the Research in Medical Education Conference, Washington, D.C.
    • Jones, R.F. & Thomae-Forgues, M. (1984). Validity of the MCAT for Predicting Performance in the First Two Years of Medical School. Journal of Medical Education, 59, 455-464.
    • Julian, E. (2005). Validity of the Medical College Admission Test for Predicting Medical School Performance. Academic Medicine, 80, 910-917.
    • Julian, E.R., Ingersoll, D.J., Etienne, P.M., & Hilger, A.E. (2004). The Impact of Testing Accommodations on MCAT Scores: Descriptive Results. Academic Medicine, 79, 360-364.
    • Julian, E. & Lockwood, J. (2000). Predictive Validity of the Medical College Admission Test. Contemporary Issues in Medical Education, 3, 2.
    • Koenig, J.A. (1995, April). Examination of the Comparability of MCAT Writing Sample Test Forms. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA.
    • Koenig, J.A. (1992). Comparison of Medical School Performances and Career Plans of Students with Broad and with Science-focused Premedical Preparation. Academic Medicine, 67, 191-196.
    • Koenig, J.A., & Leger, K.F. (1997). A Comparison of Retest Performance and Test-preparation Methods for MCAT Examinees Grouped by Gender and Race-Ethnicity. Academic Medicine, 72, S100-S102.
    • Koenig, J.A., Li, W., & Haynes, R. (1987, December). Estimation of the Validity of the 1991 MCAT for Predicting Medical School Grades, NBME Performance, and Academic Difficulty. Paper prepared for MCAT Evaluation Panel Meeting, Washington, DC.
    • Koenig, J.A., & Mitchell, K.J. (1993). Use of Medical College Admission Test Writing Sample Data in Medical School Admissions Decisions. The Advisor, 13, 13-15.
    • Koenig, J.A., & Mitchell, K.J. (1988). An Interim Report on the MCAT Essay Pilot Project. Journal of Medical Education, 63, 21-29.
    • Koenig, T.W., Parrish, S.K., Terregino, C.A., Williams, J.P., Dunleavy, D.M., & Volsch, J.M. (2013). Core Personal Competencies Important to Entering Students’ Success in Medical School: What Are They and How Could They Be Assessed Early in the Admission Process? Academic Medicine, 88(5), 603-613.
    • Koenig, J.A., Sireci, S.G., & Wiley, A. (1998). Evaluating the Predictive Validity of MCAT Scores Across Diverse Applicant Groups. Academic Medicine, 73, 1095-1106.
    • Koenig, J.A., & Wiley, A. (1996). The Validity of the Medical College Admission Test for Predicting Performance in the First Two Years of Medical School. Academic Medicine, 71, S83-S85.
    • Kroopnick, M. (2013). The MCAT Exam: Comparing the 1991 and 2015 Exams. Academic Medicine, 88(5), 737.
    • Lacher, D.A., & Richardson, B.L. (1994, October). Predicting First-Year Medical School Performance From MCAT Scores and Premedical Grade-Point Average Using Neural Networks. Paper presented at the Research in Medical Education Conference, Boston, MA.
    • Li, W., & Mitchell, K. (1992, April). Preliminary Investigation of the Factor Structure of the 1991 Medical College Admission Test. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA.
    • Lynch, K.B., & Woode, M.K. (1990). The Relationship of Minority Students' MCAT Scores and Grade Point Averages to Their Acceptance into Medical School. Academic Medicine, 65, 480-482.
    • Matthew, D., & Kroopnick, M. (2010). Evolving Behaviors of MCAT Examinees Who Apply to U.S. Medical Schools. Academic Medicine, 85(6), 1100.
    • McGaghie, W.C. (2002). Assessing Readiness for Medical Education Evolution of the Medical College Admission Test. Journal of the American Medical Association, 288, 1085-1090.
    • McLarty, J.R., & Mitchell, K.J. (1991, April). Effects of Prompt Context and Order on Creating Equivalent Essay Test Forms. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, IL.
    • Meara, K., & Sireci, S.G. (1998). Appraising the Dimensionality of the Medical College Admissions Test. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Mitchell, K.J. (1990). Traditional Predictors of Performance in Medical School. Academic Medicine, 65, 149-158.
    • Mitchell, K.J., & Anderson, J.A. (1996). Reliability of Holistic Scoring for the MCAT Essay. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 771-775.
    • Mitchell, K.J., & Haynes, R. (1990). Score Reporting for the 1991 Medical College Admissions Test. Academic Medicine, 65, 719-723.
    • Mitchell, K., Haynes, R., & Koenig, J.A. (1994). Assessing the Validity of the Updated Medical College Admission Test. Academic Medicine, 69, 394-401.
    • Mitchell, K.J., & Molidor, J.B. (1986). Factor Structure of the MCAT and Pilot Essay. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 46, 1019-1027.
    • Monroe, A., Quinn, E., Samuelson, W., Dunleavy, D.M., & Dowd, K.W. (2013). An Overview of the Medical School Admission Process and Use of Applicant Data in Decision Making: What Has Changed Since the 1980s? Academic Medicine, 88(5), 672-681.
    • Montague, J.R., & Frei, J.K. (1993, April). A Twelve-year Profile of Students' SAT Scores, GPAs, and MCAT Scores from a Small University's Premedical Program. Academic Medicine, 68, 306-308.
    • Neustel, S. (1998). An Investigation into the Possible Speededness of the Medical College Admission Test. Washington, DC: Association of American Medical Colleges.
    • Scott, J.N., & Markert, R.J. (1994). Relationship Between Critical Thinking Skills and Success in Preclinical Courses. Academic Medicine, 69, 920-924.
    • Searcy, C.A., Dowd, K.W., Hughes, M.G., Baldwin S., & Pigg T.  (2015) Association of MCAT Scores Obtained With Standard vs Extra Administration Time With Medical School Admission, Medical Student Performance, and Time to Graduation. Journal of the American Medical Association, 313(22), 2253-2262. June 9, 2015 Volume 313, Number 22
    • Shen, H., & Comrey, A.L. (1997). Predicting Medical Students' Academic Performances by Their Cognitive Abilities and Personality Characteristics. Academic Medicine, 72, 781-786.
    • Silver, B., & Hodgson, C.S. (1997). Evaluating GPAs and MCAT Scores as Predictors of NBME I and Clerkship Performances Based on Students' Data from One Undergraduate Institution. Academic Medicine, 72, 394-396.
    • Swanson, D.B., Case, S.M., Koenig, J.A., & Killian, C.D. (1996). Preliminary Study of the Accuracies of the Old and New Medical College Admission Tests for Predicting Performance on USMLE Step 1. Academic Medicine, 71, S25-S30.
    • Vancouver, J.B., Reinhart, M.A., Solomon, D.J., & Haf, J.J. (1990). Testing for Validity and Bias in the Use of GPA and the MCAT in the Selection of Medical School Students. Academic Medicine, 65, 694-697.
    • Veloski, J.J., Callahan, C.A., Xu, G., Hojat, M., & Nash, D.B. (2000). Prediction of Students' Performances on Licensing Examinations Using Age, Race, Sex, Undergraduate GPA, and MCAT Scores. Academic Medicine, 75, S28-S30.
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