Info on UCAT

Do students generally write UCAT after A levels or during the A level year, just after AS?...and when should one actually start focusing on UCAT?

mostly unaware of the information as an international candidate 😅

Reply 1

AspiringSurvivor

Original post by *bookworm27*

Do students generally write UCAT after A levels or during the A level year, just after AS?...and when should one actually start focusing on UCAT?
mostly unaware of the information as an international candidate 😅

In the UK we tend to do UCAT after the first year so during the break that we have after AS and just before A2 starts. Lovely @toothysmile gave these amazing tips that I screenshoted (thanks so much!)
“Take it late summer before school starts (test takers statistically get lower marks i suspect bc they're prepping UCAS and school.)
Practice is about quality not quantity. Find a study buddy or community to hold you accountable. Learn keyboard short cuts and skim reading.”

Do a practice test when you can to see how you do it on your first go and then take it from there to do focused sessions on the sections

(edited 9 months ago)

Reply 2

toothysmile

Original post by AspiringSurvivor

In the UK we tend to do UCAT after the first year so during the break that we have after AS and just before A2 starts. Lovely @toothysmile gave these amazing tips that I screenshoted (thanks so much!)
“Take it late summer before school starts (test takers statistically get lower marks i suspect bc they're prepping UCAS and school.)
Practice is about quality not quantity. Find a study buddy or community to hold you accountable. Learn keyboard short cuts and skim reading.”
Do a practice test when you can to see how you do it on your first go and then take it from there to do focused sessions on the sections

🫡🫡🫡

Reply 3

toothysmile

Original post by AspiringSurvivor

In the UK we tend to do UCAT after the first year so during the break that we have after AS and just before A2 starts. Lovely @toothysmile gave these amazing tips that I screenshoted (thanks so much!)
“Take it late summer before school starts (test takers statistically get lower marks i suspect bc they're prepping UCAS and school.)
Practice is about quality not quantity. Find a study buddy or community to hold you accountable. Learn keyboard short cuts and skim reading.”
Do a practice test when you can to see how you do it on your first go and then take it from there to do focused sessions on the sections

Here's some more tips
5 UCAT top tips:

•

Revise for the UCAT - despite what some people say you can revise for the UCAT and boost your score, most people recommend doing 8 weeks intensive revision, but I would recommend 2 months light prep (30 mins a day) and only 4 weeks intensive revision (2-3 mocks a day).

•

Practice, practice, practice - the only way to get better at UCAT is practicing the Qs, it’s not necessary to book expensive courses on UCAT improvement, however buying a book may be useful, but it’s crucial that you practice a lot. Through this you’ll pick up small tricks such as keyboard shortcuts and learning common SJT scenarios.

•

Keep track of your progress - keeping track of your score in a spreadsheet can be really motivating as you can see gradual progress that you may not see on a day-to-day basis.

•

Don’t book your test in September - lots of people are tempted to book their UCAT as late as possible so they can have more prep time. Although this is admirable, when school starts you will be busy (with UCAS form, A-levels) so UCAT may be left on the backburner. It’s best to do the UCAT over the summer and start the school year without an extra commitment.

•

Don’t neglect the SJT - so many candidates neglect to practice the SJT and are limited to where they can apply to despite an amazing numerical score, don’t let this be you! Make sure that the question bank you are using marks the SJT Qs the same way that the real UCAT marks the SJT (1 mark for right Q, 0.5 mark if in right ‘half’).

Reply 4

*bookworm27*

Original post by AspiringSurvivor

In the UK we tend to do UCAT after the first year so during the break that we have after AS and just before A2 starts. Lovely @toothysmile gave these amazing tips that I screenshoted (thanks so much!)
“Take it late summer before school starts (test takers statistically get lower marks i suspect bc they're prepping UCAS and school.)
Practice is about quality not quantity. Find a study buddy or community to hold you accountable. Learn keyboard short cuts and skim reading.”
Do a practice test when you can to see how you do it on your first go and then take it from there to do focused sessions on the sections