*MEGATHREAD* - The 2014 entry BMAT Thread

Hey, I'm thinking of taking the BMAT this year. Begun doing a few practice questions, is there anyone that has been on a KAPLAN course for it and if so, was it beneficial?

I went on Kaplan BMAT course 2 years ago. In all honesty, it wasn't that helpful. The best part was the 5 practice papers they gave us, but apart from that it was a waste of time. We did do 2 of the 5 practice papers during the actual course (timed) so it was an eye opener in that regard.

when should be the time to start revising (thoroughly) as im practicing the UKCAT? im applying this year to oxford or cambridge what score would I need?

I would say, take the UKCAT before September. Revise for the BMAT in September and October. Do all the past papers, learn all the science you need to know for section 2, practice essays for section 3.

As for what score you would need - that's a difficult question. If you're applying to Cambridge (ie, have an AS UMS score in the 90s) then they interview almost all applicants anyway, and the BMAT is just used along with everything else.

If you're applying to Oxford, then they use the BMAT along with your GCSE performance (in relation to the rest of your school) to shortlist people for interview, so BMAT is important in getting an interview.

Having said that, the average (for oxford) for interview is 5.7 ish and for offers is 6.0 ish. That's what you're aiming for (obviously aim for 100% but thats quite hard so if you're getting 6-7 in the practice papers then you're doing great)

i have GCSEs 9A*1A and EPQ (2 years early) which is like pA* of 0.90....

I've seen people quite frequently calculating the percentage of A*s they got in their GCSEs. Just wondering exactly where this practice originated, and if the percentage of A*s is of any officially-acknowledged significance?

ok thanks Ive been scouring the net for more stuff

regarding AS UMS and GCSES, i have GCSEs 9A*1A and EPQ (2 years early) which is like pA* of 0.90.... if I were to get AS UMS total average of 95.6% (scored full ums in bio so far) where would i stand a better chance?

Cambridge. The 0.9 pA* is good but in my year of entry, the statistics said that over 150 people had 100% A*s, which is more than the number of places in a year at Oxford. Add this to the fact that Cambridge has 300 places (twice as many) and your AS UMS score is slightly higher than the average offer-holder (based on admissions talks on the Churchill college open day 2 years ago), I think you have a better chance of getting into Cambridge.

For those that have sat the BMAT before did you find the ISC 400Q Book accurate to the real exam or was it outdated etc. in the content and difficulty of questions for S1 and S2?

Section 1 was about the same difficulty, section 2 was slightly harder in the book than in the actual papers. It's still great practice though, especially considering there aren't that many past papers around.

Hi,

I haven't started BMAT preparation as yet because I've got the UKCAT at the end of this month.

Have you all started yet? If so, when did you start?

And, those of you who have sat the BMAT in previous years, when did you start preparing?

Just a tad worried because I haven't started as yet.

Thank you

Hi,

I haven't started BMAT preparation as yet because I've got the UKCAT at the end of this month.

Have you all started yet? If so, when did you start?

And, those of you who have sat the BMAT in previous years, when did you start preparing?

Just a tad worried because I haven't started as yet.

Thank you

I didn't start preparing until about mid-September, when I'd got all my UKCAT and personal statement stuff sorted. So don't be worried. There's plenty of time

Don't worry about the BMAT until the UKCAT is finished. All my friends and I started preparing for BMAT in early September, but that might have been slightly overkill.

And, those of you who have sat the BMAT in previous years, when did you start preparing?