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The UCAT is a two-hour standardised, computer-based exam, designed to assess the suitability of candidates to study undergraduate medicine. Suitability is measured through an assessment of a student’s critical thinking capacity, emotional intelligence and non-verbal reasoning.
How is the UCAT marked?
The UCAT exam is split into five sections: Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Reasoning, Abstract Reasoning and Situational Judgement. Due to COVID-19, universities are excluding the Situational Judgement test from their prerequisite eligibility requirements. Performance is measured by a student’s percentile score - how many questions answered correctly relative to all other candidates.
How are UCAT scores calculated?
UCAT scores are calculated by converting the number of questions you got right into a ‘scaled score’. For more information about scaled score, check out our Exams and Interviews eBook. This ranges from 300 to 900 in each subtest. Your scores in each of the four cognitive subtests are added together to form an overall UCAT cognitive subtest score, which ranges from 1200 to 3600. Students also receive a separate score for UCAT Situational Judgement ranging from 300 to 900.
What is a good UCAT score?
There is no clear indicator as to a ‘good’ UCAT score. However, we can assume that anything higher than one standard deviation above the mean can be considered a ‘good’ UCAT score.
UCAT Scores
| Verbal Reasoning | Decision Making | Quantitative Reasoning | Abstract Reasoning | Total Score | Situational Judgement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max | 900 | 890 | 900 | 900 | 3530 | 759 |
| Min | 300 | 300 | 330 | 300 | 1310 | 300 |
| Mean | 571 | 618 | 663 | 629 | 2481 | 592 |
| +1 SD | 648.7 | 701.2 | 744.9 | 720.1 | 2750.7 | 664 |
What UCAT score do I need to get into medicine?
As the UCAT is relatively new to New Zealand and Australia, it is difficult to gauge the current accuracy of test results in defining an appropriate medical student. Because of this, it would not be accurate to use prerequisites defined by universities in England, as ANZ differ in teaching curriculums. For more information check out Australasia’s Top Medical Schools exclusive video!
How are the UCAT scores used?
UCAT results are made available prior to most application deadlines. The consortium will advise applicants to use their results to guide their academic choices, to reduce the chance of a dead-end application. However, universities will advise applicants to use your UCAT results to determine eligibility.
Want to learn more?
If you have found this blog helpful, and would prefer to speak with a medical student or doctor one on one, you’ve come to the right place. MedView is the leading medical school preparation organisation in Australasia, with a proven record of success. Unlike our competitors, our team of academic advisors, doctors, medical students and expert tutors understand that there is more to med school preparation than basic UCAT courses.
As such, we offer private 1-1 mentoring, application assistance, personalised support, exam preparation workshops, and interview training for prospective medical students. The process from here on out is simple. An academic assessment is a chance for our team to get to know you and your child, where we can discuss their motivation for studying medicine, their current strengths and weaknesses relative to the entry criteria, and then finally how we can give them everything they need to make sure they are as best prepared for the road ahead as possible.
