The UCAT is a compulsory computer-based entrance exam required by most UK medical schools. It tests various aptitudes, such as mental abilities and ethics. These skills are key in the clinical context, so assessing how you perform in these areas helps universities pick out the best candidates.
Each university uses your score differently – some may put a heavy emphasis on the UCAT, whilst others look at your entire application. So don’t fret if you don’t score as high as you expected, it’s not over yet!
You can only take the test once in a cycle. The test must be sat the same year that you apply through UCAS. There is also a fee for these exams:
If you are a UK or EU student who is facing financial difficulty, the UCAT bursary scheme allows you to sit the exam for free. Even if you have already paid for the exam, the bursary voucher can be applied retrospectively. The scheme opens in early June and closes in late September each year, so don’t forget to complete your UCAT bursary application as early as possible.
If you are eligible for extra time in school exams, then you are more than likely to be eligible for the UCATSEN. This is just the UCAT exam, but with 25% extra time in each section (or even 50% if you usually receive this). There are also other access arrangements for the UCAT exam. For example, some variations allow for rest breaks if you are eligible.
Registration for the UCAT usually opens in early June each year and you can start booking your test from late June. You then have from late June to late September to sit your examination, with your test result delivered to your chosen med schools in November.
As the UCAT is designed to measure an individual’s cognitive ability as a whole, the test is divided into 5 different sections. The UCAT exam is made up of the following elements:
Verbal Reasoning – Analysing your ability to understand critically understand written information.
Quantitative Reasoning – Measuring your ability to critically understand and interpret numerical information.
Abstract Reasoning – Understanding your ability to recognise and identify patterns.
Decision Making – Assessing your ability to make decisions using complex information.
Situational Judgement – Examining your ability to make real world decisions and testing your professional judgement.
Verbal reasoning is the first of five subtests. It is designed to test a candidate’s ability to read a passage of text and to decide whether certain conclusions can be made from the information presented.
Candidates have 21 minutes to read 11 passages and answer a total of 44 questions. This means candidates have exactly 29 seconds to answer each question. These particular questions test a candidate’s ability to read quickly and efficiently, critically evaluate written information, prove causality and identify reasoned conclusions.
In clinical practice, doctors have to be able to read and draw conclusions from scientific articles and apply this information to improve their clinical practice. They must also be able to read these articles and interpret them carefully so that they can communicate the information clearly and accurately to a patient.
Furthermore, as doctors have to sift through lots of reading material on a daily basis, it is really good practise to be able to pick out and summarise key points efficiently from the information given, especially when working in a time–pressured environment.
In this component, candidates will be given a 200-300 word passage, which they will have to read and answer 4 questions per passage. There are two types of verbal reasoning questions: true/false/can’t tell and free text.
Alongside the passage presented on the screen, you will be shown 4 statements. These make up the 4 questions. Based on the passage alone, you must decide whether each of the 4 statements are true, false or can’t tell.
Top Tip: When deciding whether the statement is true, false or can’t tell, you should make sure to be objective and only use the information from the passage. Do not use any of your previous knowledge on the subject, as this could cause confusion and make you choose the incorrect answer.
In this type of question, you will be given a passage of text followed by 4 incomplete statements or questions. You must then decide which free text option is most appropriately applied to the statement/question. This type of question can be hard for candidates as they require you to read the passage carefully.
Top Tip: It may be worth reading the questions/statements before reading the passage so you can save time by actively searching for the answers as you go along. You should practise this strategy frequently to familiarise yourself with the technique. Additionally, it is useful to see if there is another strategy that might work better for you. To find what works best for you, you should practise as much as possible!
Having to answer 44 questions in 21 minutes may sound very daunting, as this seems very time–pressured. Timed practice is key. The more verbal reasoning questions you do, the quicker you pick up time-saving techniques.
Another useful preparation strategy for Verbal Reasoning is reading articles (e.g., online scientific articles or in the newspaper) as efficiently as you can, and then summarising their content into a couple of bullet points at the end. This will enable you to practise your critiquing skills regularly and you will get much faster at reading the passages and answering the questions in the exam.
A way to use this method to test yourself even further is to get a friend/family member to read the article first and pick out a piece of information that they want you to find in a certain time period. It’s a good way of switching up your revision to avoid boredom and burnout.
Similar to the above, practicing your speed reading is vital. Speed-reading tests are available for free online. Make a note of your baseline reading speed and work actively to improve this.
Another thing to be very careful of in these passages is wording. Words such as ‘always’ and ‘sometimes’ crop up a lot in the passages and can help you narrow down the free text options that best suit the statement given. Read with a critical eye! Always consider if something is explicitly stated or just implied. Is an opinion being presented as fact?
Words to look out for:
Remember that in the UCAT, all questions are equally weighted. In the verbal reasoning section, some passages will be significantly longer than others. This means that learning when to move on is vital. You do not want to waste time on longer passage questions and miss the chance to answer the questions with shorter passages.
One strategy is to first quickly flick through all of the questions in the first 30 seconds or so and then initially answer all the sections with the smaller paragraphs. These would usually be the true or false sections. Once complete, you can then move on to answering the questions with larger passages later on during the test. This way, you’ll have a high accuracy rate for the easier questions and score higher in the test rather than fumbling through all of the questions and panicking towards the end.
Always read the questions posed to you first. This way, once you know the question, you can search for keywords in the passage to help you find the correct section of the passage to answer your question. This focuses your reading a lot more and will save you a lot of time in the exam.
Once you have identified the keyword in the question, scan the passage for that same keyword and place your finger on it. Then read the sentence before, during and after that keyword when answering any of the true, false, can’t tell questions
Keywords may be abbreviations, names, dates, or capitalised words. With practice, identifying keywords will be easier.
Remember not to consider any prior knowledge that you may have. Don’t make any assumptions either! Your answers should be based on the information in the passage and only that information.
The quantitative reasoning section of the UCAT is the second section of the exam. It tests your numerical problem-solving skills using evaluating numerical data sets and multiple–choice questions.
Candidates have 24 minutes for this section. Nine scenarios will be presented to the candidate, each with 4 questions, 36 questions in total. This equates to, on average, 40 seconds per question.
It is important to note that certain question types take slightly longer to complete. However, this will be balanced out with questions you can complete quickly, so don’t start panicking if you take a little longer on a question. If you do get stuck on a question and are unsure of how to complete it, simply flag it, and move on.
Questions in quantitative reasoning include the use of graphs, charts, shapes, and tables with data that you need to be able to extract and then use to answer the questions. Therefore, it is important you practice reading graphs, charts and more specifically for this section.
You’ll also have access to a basic on-screen calculator for this section.
Read the question first, as you are often presented with lots of excess information that you do not need. Pay attention to the wording of the question! There may be words and units that are used to trip you up.
After reading the question, look at any data provided. Keep an eye out for extra information in bullet points. Some candidates ignore this information but this could be essential in answering at least one question. Make easy eliminations throughout, looking out for units and orders of magnitude.
Make sure you are confident with your basic maths! For example, percentage changes/direct and inverse proportions/averages/ratios/rates. All of these topics commonly pop up in the UCAT so it is important to practise these areas.
However, don’t feel disadvantaged if you don’t think you’re good at maths. While this section does test numerical skills, the arithmetic required is not complicated so don’t fret! Still, as you will be assessed on your ability to interpret data, practice basic arithmetic and mental maths skills. For example, working out percentage profit. GCSE Maths past papers will come in handy!
You should practise using the calculator whilst you are completing the questions to get a feel of what it will be like on the day of your exam. However, relying on your mental maths is also important, as using the calculator for every calculation will slow you down. Practicing your mental maths will help you complete more questions with as little use of the calculator as possible, which will increase your speed and save you time! The best solution is to work out easier calculations mentally and then use the calculator for the harder calculations. Experiment with how often and when you use the calculator during practice questions to get the best results.
If you are using your keyboard for calculations, ensure ‘Num Lock’ is on to be able to use the number keypad. This is faster than clicking the numbers on the calculator itself. Remember, timing is everything. You can practice using the calculator online before you complete your test. Make sure you do this to familiarise yourself as you may be slower than you would expect!
Whilst most of them will be provided in the exam, if you already know 1 mile ≈ 1.6km, then this will help you to complete a question involving the conversion between the two faster, saving you more time for other questions!
Be prepared to skip extremely long and difficult questions. There may be one or two questions that are extremely long and/or difficult and will take 3 or 4 minutes to do properly. Remember that in the time it would take to do these questions, you could attempt 4 or 5 easier questions, and all questions are worth the same number of marks! Flag these and come back to them at the end (if you have time). You won’t be penalise for skipping questions.
The abstract reasoning section is the third section and tests whether you can identify particular patterns amongst abstract shapes. You will be given shape–based patterns and sequences and assessed on your spatial awareness and reasoning.
Candidates have 13 minutes to complete this section. A total of 55 questions divided into 13 question sets will be presented to you. This means you have about 14 seconds to answer each question.
There are four question types in the abstract reasoning section:
The most important way to improve your abstract reasoning section is to practice. Learning rules is one thing, but when you have practiced a lot, the rules will be second nature and it will become far easier to spot similarities and differences between sets and question shapes.
If you can’t find the pattern after a few seconds, make an educated guess and move on to the next question. Your time will be used more efficiently here and you will hopefully be able to identify that pattern. Our advice would be: if you can’t find the pattern in 45 seconds, flag the question and come back to it.
With educated guesses, the best way to do this is to look at the 2 sets as a whole – almost ‘zoom out’ on them – and ask yourself simply which one do the given objects look most similar to. You will not always get the questions right using this method, but it is also vital not to waste time, so finding a balance is a really good skill.
Questions in the popular UCAT question books are often much harder than the questions in the real exam. Bear this in mind when practising with these as it is easy to feel you aren’t good at this section when really it’s because the questions are much more difficult.
This section assesses your pattern recognition abilities. The more practice questions you do, the quicker you’ll be able to recognise the common patterns. Examples of patterns could be the number of shapes in each box, colour pattern, symmetry, shapes rotated clockwise or anticlockwise.
Some people find the acronym ‘SCANS’ helpful in this section. It can remind you what to look for specifically:
Don’t rush to time yourself when you first start practising. It will take a while for you to recognise and learn the patterns. Have a system and list of questions for each set of shapes to rule out obvious patterns. For difficult sets, sometimes taking a step back and not focusing on any one box can make the pattern a bit clearer. Give it a try!
The decision-making section is the fourth section and requires you to use logic and reasoning to solve textual and visual data-related questions. It is the newest UCAT section having replaced decision analysis in 2017.
This section consists of 29 questions that are to be answered in 31 minutes. This leaves about 64 seconds per question.
It is made up of multiple-choice questions (4 answer options – only one will be correct) and yes/no type questions (5 statements – you must mark ‘yes’ or ‘no’ for each). Questions may involve interpreting information in the form of text, graphs, and diagrams.
You will also have access to a basic on-screen calculator for this section.
Although it may seem unrelated to the rest of your medical school application, this section is important in testing some clinically relevant skills. The questions require the use of logic and the ability to work under time pressure to reach a conclusion or solution to a problem. They assess your ability to evaluate arguments, gain information using statistics and make an educated decision based on the information provided. These are skills that are transferrable to a career in medicine as pressured, important decisions based on logic and reasoning are common in the field.
Also, the graphs and charts included in the decision-making section prepare you for the statistical and visually presented data that you may encounter and be expected to analyse in interviews, as well as in your role as a future clinician.
There are six types of questions that could come up in this section. They are:
Information is presented in the form of text, tables or graphs and candidates must select the correct conclusion based on this.
Top Tips:
Candidates are given a series of statements and based on these, must decide whether a list of conclusions is true or not. Multiple answers may be correct in this type of question.
Top Tips:
Candidates are presented with information in formats such as written text, graphs or charts and are expected to interpret this. A list of conclusions is then provided, and you must drag and drop ‘yes’ and ‘no’ answers depending on which of the statements follow from the information given.
Top Tips:
These questions involve evaluating the strength of arguments for and against a solution to a particular issue and choosing the strongest one. Your own beliefs should not be considered here; you are expected to be objective.
Top Tips:
Here, you will either be presented with a Venn diagram and asked which conclusion follows, or information will be provided, and you must select the most appropriate Venn diagram that best represents this data.
Top Tips:
Candidates will be given a short passage containing statistical information, usually centred around probability, and are asked to select the best response to the question.
Top Tip:
The Situational Judgement test (SJT) is the final component of the UCAT.
The SJT is designed to test an applicant’s non-academic ethical decision-making and moral judgement in various clinical ethical scenarios. It will also test an individual’s capacity to respond to real-life situations in a way that shows both integrity and professionalism.
Key Point: You should check the entry requirements of the universities you are applying to as they might specify a specific band you must achieve. You can find this information on the entry requirements section of any medical school website.
The SJT can feel like another hoop to jump through to obtain the goal of securing a place at medical school, and in some ways it is. However, it is also a fantastic introduction to the life of a healthcare professional. A lot of the time in medicine we come across scenarios that we are unsure of how to deal with, which can be daunting. However, the SJT will allow you to start to learn how to deal with certain ethical scenarios in a professional manner, which will be invaluable throughout your medical career.
It also provides a really good introduction to the sort of ethical dilemmas/ scenarios that you will be expected to engage with in the interview stage of the admissions process, so don’t think that it’s all just for the sake of one exam!
As a doctor, you’ll be working with other medical professionals, so it is important to have good people skills. The SJT involves assessing real-world scenarios, identifying important factors and appropriate responses. The questions centre on ethics, confidentiality, empathy, integrity, teamwork and communication.
This section is quite different from other UCAT sections and has a different marking system. Understanding how it works and what you are being tested on is key. It is also the only UCAT section that uses a 1-4 band scoring system (Band 1 is the highest and Band 4 is the lowest).
The SJT is composed of 22 scenarios, in which you must rate how important or appropriate certain responses are to the situation. Candidates will have 26 minutes to answer 69 questions related to the scenarios. This gives you about 70 seconds per scenario and around 23 seconds per question.
There are two types of questions that can be posed to candidates: appropriateness and importance questions.
After each scenario, you are presented with an action. For the appropriateness questions, you must rate the options as ‘very appropriate’, ‘appropriate, but not ideal’, ‘inappropriate, but not awful’ and ‘very inappropriate’.
For the importance questions, you will rate the response options on how important it is to carry out the action in the context of the scenario. These options will be rated from ‘very important’ to ‘not important at all’.
The questions posed can have a student as the responder, or a different healthcare professional. It is vital that you read the question thoroughly to make sure you know who is responding in the scenario.
Note: A statement of appropriateness or importance can be used more than once, or not at all.
Natasha, a 4th year medical student, is on a clinical placement in the Accident and Emergency department (A&E). A fellow 4th year medical student and friend of Natasha’s, Amber, who is on the Gastroenterology ward, telephones Natasha to ask if she can have access to a file of a patient in the A&E department. Amber sounds very distressed down the phone and says that the patient is her friend Harriet and she wants to know Harriet’s current medical status.
How appropriate are each of the responses by Natasha?
A – Very appropriate thing to say
B – Appropriate but not idea
C – Inappropriate, but not awful
D – A very inappropriate thing to say
1 = A: This is a very appropriate thing to say, as it acknowledges Amber’s feelings with empathy, but also politely reminds Harriet that Natasha cannot disclose this sort of personal information, because it breaches the confidentiality in a doctor- patient relationship and the data protection act. As Natasha has given the reason for not acting on this request, it is more likely that Amber will be understanding of the situation she has put Natasha in.
2 = A: This is also a very appropriate thing to say. This response offers a practical solution to the scenario, without breaching patient confidentiality or the data protection act, as Amber will not have access to the files.
3 = D: This is a very inappropriate thing to say. Sending Harriet’s file to Amber breaches both the data protection act and patient confidentiality. This would be viewed as misconduct and could lead to disciplinary action for both Natasha and Amber.
4 = C: This response is inappropriate but not awful. It is not awful, as Natasha has not breached confidentiality, as she is not sending the file, but she should know that the doctor in charge of Harriet’s medical care will not be able to disclose information to Amber either. This could lead to further distress for Amber and could’ve been avoided had Natasha addressed the issue head-on instead of passing the responsibility onto another healthcare professional.
To prepare for the SJT, you should read the ethical guidance section on the General Medical Council (GMC) website. ‘Good Medical Practice’ and ‘Confidentiality’ in particular, can be really useful for understanding the practical procedures in place for certain ethical scenarios and a lot of the themes in SJT questions seem to be embedded in this guidance!
The GMC Good Medical Practice is considered to be fundamental reading for aspiring medics! It discusses all aspects of good practice, including communication, maintaining trust, patient safety and teamwork. It is only 80 bullet points so make sure you read it! You can then apply this new knowledge to SJT questions!
Unfortunately, even if you’re the most morally correct person out there, rights and wrongs in medical practice can be more complex than just doing what seems to be ‘the right thing’. This, therefore, can result in the answer you would give as the ‘right’ one actually being the wrong answer. Luckily, practice really does make perfect and the more time you spend getting to grips with this sub-section and its quirks, the better.
There are a few pointers you can always keep in mind when deciding on the most appropriate answers in this section:
Always answer the question by thinking about what you SHOULD do in the situation. You may think you would do something different so try and take the time to think about the scenario and answer it how you should behave.
Unlike school exams, there are no grades 1-9 or A*- G. Instead, your score will fit into a decile/ percentile or a band, which shows you how you performed in comparison to all other candidates.
The higher the decile or percentile, the better!
Deciles refer to groups that represent 10% of a population – in this case, the 30,000 or so people to take the UCAT each year. If you are in the 9th decile, this means you have scored in the top 10% of all candidates.
Percentiles refer to groups that represent 1% of a population, so give a more precise idea of where you have scored. If you are in the 87th percentile, you have scored in the top 13% of all candidates.
As the deciles are based on the exact scores of the candidates who have taken the exam each year, it is not possible to publish deciles/ percentiles until the end of testing, meaning you can’t find your exact ranking until around the middle of October.
In mid-September, UCAT will publish interim results, which give an idea of your decile based on how all candidates who have taken the exam up to that point have performed. Whilst you wait, you can refer to the previous year’s deciles, as although there is some change, it is rarely significant. All of the previous year’s decile information is available here.
Different medical schools look for different things in their applicants. Some focus heavily on your UCAT score but others use things such as your personal statement or GCSE grades to decide whether you are invited to interview. This means that even if you haven’t achieved a particularly high UCAT score, you can probably still apply to various medical schools; you just have to be selective with which ones.
Applying strategically is the most important aspect of your medicine application. We cannot emphasise how crucial this is. It is vital that you understand how the medical schools you are applying to select candidates for interview, and whether this maximises the strengths of your application.
One way of enhancing your med school application is to have quality medical work experience. At PreMed, we offer a range of medical work experience courses, helping you elevate your application and kickstart your career in medicine. Book one of our courses today!
The UCAT, also known as the University Clinical Aptitude Test, is an online test that assess an individual’s cognitive abilities. This test must be taken if you want to apply to medical (or dental) school as it is a requirement from all UK medical schools.
Generally, a score of 2760 (690) is a competitive score that will support your application to many different universities. It is important to remember if you score lower than this benchmark, all is not lost! Universities have a range of different ways of deciding who should and who shouldn’t be invited to an interview so a lower UCAT score might not be detrimental to your application.
You can only sit the UCAT once in one admissions cycle. Your score from this test will be submitted in your university applications. If you wish to resit the exam, you will have to wait until the following year and apply for the next cycle of admissions into medical school.
There are question banks available online that have a range of practice questions from all sections of the UCAT. You can also find a range of books that contain various practice questions and answers to help you prepare for the UCAT. For more information, take a look at our blog post on Navigating the UCAT Journey.
There are times when you can get additional time in the UCAT exam. If you usually get extra time for your school exams, you will likely be eligible for the UCATSEN. This is where you can get an additional 25% extra time for each section of the exam. There are also other access arrangements that are available if you need this. For more information, you can visit the UCAT website here.
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