Advice & Insight From UCAT Specialists
The medicine application process in Australia is highly competitive. Currently there are 18 AMC (Australian Medical Council) accredited universities which offer medical degrees. Similarly, to UK universities each medical school has a unique and scrutinising admissions process used to select candidates. The UCAT is used to “select applicants with the most appropriate abilities and professional behaviours required for new doctors.” The UCAT was introduced in Australia in 2019 to replace the previous UMAT Undergraduate admissions test used. Not all Australian medical schools require their candidates to sit the UCAT admissions test, however 14 of the medical schools are UCAT ANZ Universities meaning that it is compulsory to sit the exam in order to be eligible to study on these courses.
Each University has a unique admissions process. It is important to be aware of how the universities apply to weight and utilise your UCAT score. High UCAT score achievers should consider boosting their chances of receiving an offer by applying to medical schools that highly weight the UCAT result. If you do not score as hoped on the UCAT consider applying to the universities which use other admissions criteria or that have limited emphasis on the UCAT score.
In addition to how the University uses your UCAT score, there are several considerations to make when selecting medical schools. Using or creating your own comparison tools will help you to make informed decisions. Your medical school selection criteria should consider the weightings of the admissions criteria, course specific factors based on information about the content and delivery of the course and University specific factors such as the University location, size and facilities.
The table below provides information of how the Australian and New Zealand Consortium Universities use the UCAT.
University | Course/ Programme | Admissions Criteria and Use of UCAT Results
|
The University of Adelaide | Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery | UCAT ANZ Results: 20% Interview Results:40% Academic Results 40% |
Central Queensland University | Bachelor of Medical Science | Applicants selected based on an MMI and competitive UCAT score. Minimum UCAT thresholds change depending on performance of applicants and available places |
Charles Sturt University | Joint program in Medicine | UCAT scores used to rank applicants for MMI. |
Curtin University | Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery | Applicants are ranked and selected to be interviewed based on the weighting of their ATAR and UCAT in the ratio 60:40 |
Flinder University | Bachelor of Clinical Sciences, Doctor of Medicine | Year 12 Entry: ATAR + UCAT to begin 2-year clinical Sciences degree |
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Monash University | Bachelor of medical science and Doctor of Medicine | Interview selection based upon a combination of UAT and ATAR Results. The cut off is determined by the score distribution |
The University of Newcastle/ University of New England | Bachelor of Medical Science and Doctor of Medicine Joint Medical Program | Candidates will be invited to multiple skills and personal qualities assessment days based on their UCAT ranking |
The University of New South Wales | Medicine |
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The University of Queensland | Doctor of Medicine | Students who have an adjusted ATAR of 95+ are ranked based on UCAT for interview |
University of Tasmania | Medicine MBBS | Used to determine eligibility for entry |
The University of Western Australia | Doctor of Medicine | Minimum ATAR of 99 + UCAT ANZ ranking for interview selection |
Western Sydney University | Joint Program | Applicants must sit the UCAT and meet academic Thresholds. Rankings of UCAT are used to select who receives an invite to the MMI and is assessed by the Medical Admission Questionnaire |
The University of Auckland | Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery | Used for offer selection. Offer based on the following weightings: Cumulative GPA from your qualifying programme: 60% Total UCAT ANZ Score:15% MMI- 25% |
University of Otago | Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery | A threshold value for each of the 5 sections is determined annually by the Medical Admissions Committee. Selection for applicants who have received above these thresholds will be based on their HSFY (Health Sciences First Year) academic score or undergraduate degree grades. |
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The following table provides information about the admissions process and selection criteria of the 4 Australian Universities which do not utilise the UCAT as part of their admissions process.
University | Course | Admissions Process |
The University of Sydney | Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Medicine | Minimum ATAR of 99.95 or equivalent is required. An online assessment including a written assessment and panel discussion. English Language Requirements. |
Bond University | Bachelor of Medicine | Students are selected for psychometric testing based on their academic performance. Results for this assessment shortlist applicants for an MMI interview |
James Cook University | Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of surgery | Written Internal JCU application form |
The University of Melbourne | Doctor of Medicine | Applicants are assessed based on their GAMSAT or MCAT admissions test score and are selected for a multi–Mini Interview. ATAR of 99.0 – 99.85 is required for entry pathway or a weighted average of 75% of a University of Melbourne Undergraduate degree. |
