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UKCAT for 2017 Entry to UK

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where did you apply for? I get that a higher mark will better your chances, but if an applicant has a strong personal statement showing experience, commitment and ease working with the public then I don't see how a school can decline an interview on the complete basis of their ukcat score. The threshold for an interview with qub was 32 points a few years ago. A graduate gets 36 points, and the ukcat is translated into points, max out of 6 and I got 3, so a total of 39. The max is 42. So there is a possibility of an interview, but I just wanted to share my experience of the test with people who are disheartened by their mock/real scores. You may have a high ukcat score, but can be pathetic working with the public which is an imperative trait for a doctor or dentist so a lot has to be considered when universities look at applications.

But many universities' selection criteria for interview do not take personal statement or qualitative traits into account. Most are based purely on more quantitative parts of the application, such as UKCAT and grades. If you don't do enough to be selected for interview, you won't even have a have a chance to show off people skills/reflections on work experience etc.

I think what the last poster was trying to emphasise is that getting a high UKCAT makes getting an interview easier, which thus increases chances of acceptance.

Of course you can be accepted with a below-average UKCAT, but you have to choose medical/dental schools wisely.

Reply 2641

helloimastudent

Original post by clairebear101

Okay that reassues me too! yes i cant get higher than 630 in mocks :frown:

and even when im doing the mocks i find every question hard too haha! just did the medify 3 mock and did much worse than the medify 2 mock, did u find this mock harder?

630 in a mock is really good I reckon you'll get 730 in the real thing! I never reached 600 in a mock for verbal! And personally I found all three medify mocks as hard as each other lol

Reply 2642

aspiringmedic178

Any last minute advice?

Reply 2643

Medici103

Original post by natalia.medicine

Any last minute advice?

Take your time getting settled before you start the test. Don't feel like you have to start as soon as you go in.
Between sections, have a stretch whilst reading the instructions.
Remember: guess, flag, and move on

Reply 2644

aspiringmedic178

Original post by Medici103

Thank you!

Reply 2645

aspiringmedic178

Are AR questions similar to the isc 1000 questions book?

Reply 2646

chaz16

is real UKCAT similar to the mocks on ukcat website?

Reply 2647

adrian1998

Original post by isabella1999

People with Medify ---> How did you do in Medify Mock 1? As I just did it and got 750 Verbal, 700 Quantitative and 830 Abstract ( :eek3:

) and SJ Band 1. I am just wondering if medify mocks are easy as doubt I will do that well and curious how everyone else is doing with them?

Also, Anyone who has done the UKCAT already, did you do better or worse in the real thing than medify mocks and how do they compare?

Here's wt i got
Medify mock 1
VR 650
QR 800
AR 770

Real exam
VR 570
QR 900
AR 870

Reply 2648

123chem

Original post by 123chem

i got 570 on vr, 890 on qr, 790 on Ar, and band 1 SJT. will uni's look too much into vr? During the test, i thought vr was the best but i think i got too complacent half way through vr and didnt notice time. If anyone wanna ask something go ahead! Would also appreciate someone with experience to answer my question ^^ (going for dentistry here)

Good luck all!

bump

Reply 2649

chaz16

Original post by 123chem

bump

hi is UKCAT actually similar to the ones on UKCAT website (mocks). also does the calculator stay in the same place or does it disappear when u go to the next question?

Reply 2650

kiwifruit99

Original post by Gogregg

Is this the one?

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=621992

ah yes! Thank you!

Reply 2651

123chem

Original post by chaz16

hi is UKCAT actually similar to the ones on UKCAT website (mocks). also does the calculator stay in the same place or does it disappear when u go to the next question?

Didnt actually do the official ones. I think calc disappears after each question.

Reply 2652

te.lope

Original post by BlueBlizzard

Anybody doing the UKCAT in 2016 or 2017? What, in your opinion, is the most difficult section? Is it just me, or is Verbal Reasoning really frustrating? :/

vr is a pain and the text is soo long AND its mostly comprehension

Reply 2653

te.lope

Original post by chaz16

is real UKCAT similar to the mocks on ukcat website?

well, the vr is much much longer texts so be prepared but the QR is much easier and everything else is pretty much the same

Reply 2654

chaz16

Original post by te.lope

well, the vr is much much longer texts so be prepared but the QR is much easier and everything else is pretty much the same

oh thats a relief! i find qr hard and for vr i always end up guessing

Reply 2655

lemonlikelime

Original post by shahmeer99

Hi, i'm taking mine tomorrow, wish me luck!
For verbal, personally i find the tips you can give are quite general but i'll try anyways.
- firstly in some papers you can get some really long texts, and may not be able to go through them all, personally what i find best is to flag any stems with long sample texts and move on as all Qs are worth the same
-With the inference and summary questions, you are going to need to know briefly what happens in the text, so you need to read fast enough to save time but still understand the text (it sounds hard, but trust me you will get it with practice) - Try and spot key dates or names as you read to refer back to for Qs
-often Qs are chronological, so once you've read the first few paragraphs then check the first question to see if you can answer it

Its quite general but i hope that helps as a start! :smile:

GOOD LUCK!!! Hope it goes well :-)
yes it does help as a start - thank you so much :-) I'll give that a go

Reply 2656

bz47

Original post by Medici103

As far as I know, Barts, Newcastle, and Southampton are all quite UKCAT heavy so you may have to research some alternative choices. I think there is a spreadsheet detailing how each med school use the UKCAT. Barts may be an option if you have stellar academics as they use 50:50 UKCAT and UCAS tariff.

I know unfortunately but if I get my ucas tariff to be in the 700s I might have a chance.
Have you got any advice on how to gain extra ucas points excluding EPQ or extra AS levels

Reply 2657

bz47

Original post by Natalierm2707

Applying to barts, Newcastle and southampton with a 610 will most likely mean a rejection I am afraid.

Which unis don't take the ukcat as highly? Btw I was told by someone the cut off for dentistry at Newcastle was 590 last year hm not sure if that is right

Reply 2658

Medici103

Original post by Abubakr 7232

I know unfortunately but if I get my ucas tariff to be in the 700s I might have a chance.
Have you got any advice on how to gain extra ucas points excluding EPQ or extra AS levels

Maybe have a look at the tariff tables that were used for 2016 entry. Although the points are different for 2017 entry they may give you some guidance as to what sort of qualifications carry UCAS tariff points. Other than that I really don't know if there is much you can do to improve your tariff outside of EPQ etc.

Reply 2659

Mutmit287

Original post by Abubakr 7232

Which unis don't take the ukcat as highly? Btw I was told by someone the cut off for dentistry at Newcastle was 590 last year hm not sure if that is right

590?? You would have to confirm with newcastle, I am going off the medicine cut offs and it sure wasnt 590, it was somewhere in the high 600s, but dentisrty (if that is what your applying for) will have different cut offs.

All universities now require the UKCAT or BMAT for entry, but some do not use it as heavily. The issue with these schools though is because they dont use the UKCAT much they rely really heavily on another factor for selection:
Cardiff: rely on really high GCSE score (mostly A* grades if not all).
Birmingham: rely on really high GCSE score (mostly A* grades)
QUB: rely on really high GCSE score.
Bristol: rely on personal statement
Sheffield: have a cut off of 1800 but then rely heavily on the personal statement.
Keele: exclude SJT band 4 and the bottom 20% of UKCAT scores. After this they rely heavily on the R&R form which requires a lot of work experience and voluntary work.

Obviously all BMAT schools are open for consideration if you meet their requirements.