the ukcat test
What is the UKCAT?
The UK Clinical Aptitude Test, or UKCAT, looks at candidates’ mental abilities, attitudes and professional behaviour, in order to help universities select applicants. BSMS requires candidates to take the UKCAT.
Why do I need to take it?
The UKCAT scores are used by different consortium members in different ways. BSMS has always taken particular care to account for both academic and non-academic factors in considering whether to make an offer of a place, and we are broadly satisfied that our application procedures are effective at selecting students from a wide background and with all of the attributes that Tomorrow’s Doctors will need. We are interested to see what additional information we might gain from the UKCAT scores, and so we will be using the UKCAT results selectively and with care in informing the judgements of our admissions assessors in making offers to individual students. This is because the UKCAT test is relatively new. An above average UKCAT score is likely to be an advantage but a lower score is not necessarily a disadvantage if outweighed by other factors in your application as a whole.
Do graduates have to take the UKCAT?
Yes.
Do international students have to take the UKCAT?
Yes, depending on which country you are from. Please see details on exemptions and on overseas test centres. The test questions have been trialled to ensure cultural fairness.
What does it involve?
Rather than testing curriculum knowledge, the UKCAT will cover verbal, quantitative and abstract reasoning, and decision analysis. It will be taken on a computer, on a date of your choice, at one of the Pearson testing centres. It will last less than two hours.
When do I take it?
You need to take the test the summer before applying. The UKCAT guide recommends that you sit the test as early as possible in order to apply for 2010 entry or a deferred place in 2011. The latest registration date is likely to be in September and you must take the test by early October. A guide to registration can be found here.
Where can I take it?
There are over 150 UK test centres and several hundred overseas ones available.
Do I need to revise?
You do not need to learn anything in advance, but may find the practice questions useful.
How much does it cost?
The test costs £60 for EU candidates and £95 for overseas candidates. The cost rises to £75 for EU candidates who sit the test after August.The fee may be waived in cases of financial hardship.
Do I have to take the BMAT too?
BSMS does not require you to take the BMAT, but if you have applied to other universities you should check whether they require the BMAT.
For more information on all of the above, please consult the UKCAT website at www.ukcat.ac.uk. If after looking at the UKCAT site you still have questions, use the enquiry form at www.ukcat.ac.uk/home/cu/