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Use this book to
maximize your UKCAT
score

If you have been searching for a way to improve your UKCAT score then you have found
it. This book provides practice to maximize your chances of getting into medical school
with over 600 questions and signposts to thousands more. Use it to get down to some
serious score-improving practice.
Our aim is simply to provide everything you need to ace the test. We will not spend
time discussing why you want to be a doctor or how you might best prepare for medical
school. Instead we will focus purely on giving you the practice you need to meet the chal-
lenge of the five sub-tests that make up the UKCAT.
You should have carefully studied the very important information provided at
www.ukcat.ac.uk. You should be completely familiar with the details regarding the stated
purpose of the test, what it attempts to predict and its key features. You should follow the
online application process to the letter and regularly check your inbox for e-mails from
UKCAT. You should have already downloaded the practice questions and tests. You will
realize that the UKCAT is made up of sub-tests of verbal reasoning, decision making,
quantitative reasoning, abstract reasoning and non-cognitive analysis. Note that some of
the questions in each sub-test may be non-scoring as they are being trialled for inclusion
as scoring items in future tests. You are not given any indication as to which are scoring,
so treat every question with the same determination. You should also realize that, like all
selection tests, the UKCAT is under almost constant development and so some things
may change. You will find a great deal of interesting (soft) information about the UKCAT
on forums, for example www.thestudentroom.co.uk. Take some of the views expressed
on these sites with a largish pinch of salt.
2 How to pass the UKCAT

The computer-administered test

Be sure to take the time to become entirely familiar with the way in which the UKCAT is
administered onscreen. Pay attention to, for example, how to use the onscreen calculator
in the qualitative sub-test. Be aware that diagrams on the computer screen can be
misleading, especially in the case of geometric shapes, tables and graphs, as the screen
can distort the image or the scale or both! The test author is aware of this and will have
provided sufficient information to arrive at the answer. Take note what is said and avoid
drawing unnecessary assumptions about the appearance of a diagram, table or graph on
the screen. For example, if a shape is described as a cube but on the screen the sides do
not all seem quite equal, ignore it and treat the shape as a cube. Equally, if a table or graph
says that quality x is the largest but on the screen it looks like quality y is the same or in
fact bigger, then take no notice and treat quantity x as the largest.

You need a good UKCAT score

Competition for places at medical (dental and veterinary) school and especially at the
more prestigious schools is fierce. The score range for the UKCAT is 300–900, with
500–700 being the normal range and 600 being the average mark in each section (note
that the non-cognitive paper is scored differently from the other four sub-tests). To ensure
that your score supports your application you will generally need an above-average score
in each sub-test. However, the averages are based on a very broad range. Some people
will get into the school of their choice with lower scores than others. There will not be a
minimum score that you have to achieve. The UKCAT is only one of the many assess-
ments used to decide if an applicant is to be offered a place, but it is in your interests to try
to maximize each element of your application.

You may also need a well-balanced score

Doing really well in, for example, the quantitative part of the UKCAT will compensate
for a weaker performance in the verbal parts of the test, but this compensation needs to be
within certain limits. Most schools will prefer candidates who do well across all five sub-
tests. The need for a balanced score makes it really important that candidates identify and
work to address areas of personal weakness. If you have always found maths difficult but
until now have succeeded in spite of it, it is time to correct this. You will feel more
confident and will recognize what is behind a question and the significance of the subtle
differences in the suggested answers.
Most UKCAT candidates will have strengths and weaknesses, but if you believe that
you have an imbalance that may be seen as too great, make sure you start work early to
address it. Everyone can become proficient in the aptitudes examined; it is simply a
matter of giving yourself enough time to practise. It takes some candidates longer to
reach the required standard in any area of personal challenge, but given hard work and
determination everyone can realize it. It can be boring, painful even, but if you have
decided to follow a career that requires you to realize a good balanced pass in the
 Use this book to maximize your UKCAT score 3

UKCAT then you have little alternative but to get down to some serious hard work. Once
again, if you are not prepared to put in the hard work to maximize your scores on these
tests, then it is likely that medical, dentistry or veterinary school and a related career are
not for you.

Practice makes a big difference in UKCAT scores

It is important that you realize that most people who score well in the UKCAT will have
worked hard preparing for the test. There is no secret. Studies show that those who put in
the most hours do best, whether in sport, music or academic achievement. Above all else,
this requires time and especially commitment. Without the latter it is unlikely that you
will do very well.
In addition to plain hard slog, there are also some strategies to adopt so that you are not
only working harder, but smarter too.

Adopt a ‘no going back’ philosophy

Treat every question as a passport to fulfilling your dreams. Adopt the mindset that each
question counts, so be sure of every answer before moving on to the next. When prac-
tising, resist the temptation of going back and reviewing your answers. In the real test you
will not have time to do this, so do not hit the submit button for each answer without a
final, brief review.

Manage your time expertly

You need to work quickly through every sub-test. Sometimes you may find it difficult to
attempt all the questions in the given time. You should practise answering the questions
in this book in an average of 30 seconds per question, so that in the real test you will be
able to concentrate on the questions and take your time management for granted. Resist
wasting too much time on difficult questions.

Guess intelligently
If you do not know the answer you have little alternative but to guess. Straight guessing
offers a 20 per cent chance of getting the right answer, but remember to look at the
suggested answers to see if you can rule any out as definitely wrong. If you can, then you
will improve your chances of guessing correctly. If the end of the test approaches and you
have not attempted all the questions, then in the last 60 seconds or so, randomly guessing
answers to the remaining questions may well secure a couple of extra percentiles.

Make a really good start

In the UKCAT every question counts, but try especially hard to get the first question right
in each sub-test, then the first five questions and then all the rest! The opening questions
in a computer-administered test are especially significant because these tests are often
4 How to pass the UKCAT

computer adaptive. This means that the first question will be of the level that the
‘average’ candidate should get right. The next question will be a bit harder and so on. But,
and this is important, you have to get the question right before the program presents you
with the harder questions. Keep getting the questions right and you will soon be
following along branches into the upper percentiles, rapidly leading to the level that will
win you a place at medical school.

Whatever you do, avoid a bad start

A bad start is something you should work hard to avoid in any test but especially in a
computer-adaptive test like the UKCAT. Get the first few questions wrong and the
computer-adaptive test will present you with easier questions and you will struggle to get
back to the level expected by many institutions. This adaptive process continues through
the test, so keep trying to get as many questions right as possible to maximize your
chance of being awarded a winning score.

Key stages in preparing

We each have our preferred method of revising for exams and your study to date will
have made you aware of what you have to do to meet the challenge of the UKCAT.
However, if it is some years since you last sat an exam (and there are many mature appli-
cants to medical schools), then the following advice should help you towards a successful
UKCAT campaign.

Adopt a winning mindset

Doing well in the UKCAT is not simply a matter of intelligence. It is critical that you
realize that to do well you have to try very hard indeed. Weeks before the test you will
need to undertake extensive revision, then during the exam you will need to really ‘go for
it’. After the exam you should feel mentally fatigued. If you don’t then you probably
failed to apply yourself sufficiently and may not have fully done yourself justice. You
may well have to dig deep towards the end of the test session and find the mental strength
to keep going, otherwise you risk getting a disappointing score in the last paper because
by this stage in the process you felt tired.
It is common to experience feelings of irritation or resentment about having to do a test
like the UKCAT, as after all the institutions can see how good you are from, for example,
your A level results, school references and so on. If you harbour these kinds of feelings
then it is crucial that you put them aside. They can be very counterproductive. Try not to
wonder about the validity of the test or how it is used by institutions. What you think of
the UKCAT and its predictive value is entirely irrelevant. You need to do well in this test
if you are to realize your goal of winning a place in medical/dental/veterinary school. Do
well and an important opportunity will become possible. Focus on that goal and put all
else aside for a few weeks. You really need to let your determination to do well in the
UKCAT take over your life for a while.