Is The UCAT Test Hard?

The UCAT score is often grouped with academic qualifications by universities to form an overall grade. Queen Mary University of London is one that gives a 50/50 weighting criteria for UCAT scores with academic scores. However, it is important to note that the criteria for this grouping varies across institutions.

For example, the Situational Judgment section of the UCAT, which is marked by bands rather than direct scores, carries different weightings, from automatic elimination for a low band, to no weighting at all. Universities such as Leicester and Nottingham will automatically reject applicants with a Situational Judgment band 4 rating. In contrast, other universities such as Bristol and East Anglia do not take the Situational Judgement band  into consideration at all. It should be noted that while Bristol and East Anglia do not have a specific cut off mark for UCAT scores, low scores mean attaining an interview with them is unlikely.

Other sections of the UCAT examination are considered either by their individual scores, an overall score for all sections, or an average. St George’s University of London requires individual section scores of at least 500 while the Hull York Medical School will not consider any applicant with less than 450 in each section. The University of Dundee will invite applicants with total scores above 2500 for interview and offer places for those above 2700.

Without doubt, all universities expect a high level of academic and UCAT achievement for automatic interview prior to consideration. In addition, the examination is taken at centres which require registration prior to testing. There is a set date when testing begins and when it finishes prior to the UCAS application deadline. All of this requires a considerable amount of planning well in advance to attain the required grades for success on the day.

So how does an learner achieve these required grades? The first step is to familiarise yourself with the format of the UCAT examination.