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Thirty universities in the United Kingdom include the UKCAT as part of their selection process for medical or dental school.

Interested in medicine or dentistry? 

Then you need to be prepared for the UCAT test. Keep reading for pro tips, advice and strategies to help you prepare for (and pass) the UKCAT admissions exam.

The UCAT (United Kingdom Clinical Aptitude Test) is the exam you need to pass if you want to study medicine or dentistry at most UK universities.

UCAT skills

The UCAT:

• Subtests include verbal reasoning, which helps to evaluate information presented in a written form exclusively. 
• UCAT decision making. subtest evaluates one’s ability to make sound decisions and judgments using exclusive data.
• The UCAT Abstract reasoning test addresses both convergent and divergent thinking concerning a piece of particular information.
• Is designed to assess a range of different skills necessary in the medical field, including:

• Communication
• Problem solving
• Numeracy
• Spatial awareness
• Integrity
• Empathy
• Teamwork

The idea is that the higher your UKCAT score is, the better your potential to successfully train as a doctor or dentist. 

Practice UCAT Entrance test materials

Let’s start with a list of all our free UCAT practice tests: UCAT verbal reasoning test practice; Quantitative reasoning test practice; UCAT Decision Analysis test practice; Situational judgement test practice; and the UCAT abstract reasoning test practice.

FREE UCAT Quantitative reasoning tests 

UCAT Quantitative Reasoning UKCAT Test Practice 1.

Quantitative Reasoning UCAT Test Practice 2.

UCAT Quantitative Reasoning Test Practice 3.

Quantitative Reasoning UCAT Test Practice 4.

UCAT Quantitative Reasoning Practice Test Answers.

Quantitative Reasoning Practice UCAT Test 2 answers.

UCAT Quantitative Reasoning Practice Test 3 answers.

Quantitative Reasoning Practice UCAT Test 4 answers.

UK UCAT Universities In The UK

These are the thirty UK Medical Schools requiring the UCAT:

• University of Aberdeen. They will combine your subtest scores and then give you an application score on how your performance compares with all other applicants. There is no cut-off score and for 2021 entry the lowers score for interview invitation was 2,370 for home students.
• Anglia Ruskin University. You need at least Band 3 in SJT. You’ll be ranked by score and the top-scorers will be invited for interview.
• Aston University. All SJT bands are accepted and your UCAT score counts for 1/3 of the shortlisting process. Your academic qualifications account for the remaining 2/3.
• University of Birmingham. UCAT represents 35% of your application score. Applicants are put into deciles and scored on UCAT performance.
• Bristol University. This UCAT university gives your score 100% weighting. For 2020 entry, applicants scoring above 2,690 were invited to interview.
• Cardiff University. Your score may be used but they don’t give any details about how.
• Dundee University. Your score will be used alongside academic ability, but they don’t outline how.

UCAT University of East Anglia

This UCAT uni says: “a high score is advantageous; however, a low score does not disqualify an applicant from consideration.” For 2020 entry the lowest score of someone who got an interview was 1,980.

• Edge Hill University. You’ll be ranked by your score and the top-scorers will be interviewed. Anyone with Band 4 SJT will be automatically rejected.
• University of Edinburgh. You’ll be put into deciles and given a score that’s combined with your academic score. You’ll be rejected if you get Band 4 in SJT.
• Exeter University. UCAT counts for 25% of shortlisting with academic performance counting for 75%.
• University of Glasgow. This UCAT university doesn’t look at your SJT score but will allocate interviews based on UCAT performance.
• Hull York Medical School. You’ll get scored out of 40 for your UCAT score and out of 30 for your GCSE results. Up to 15 points are allocated for your SJT banding.

UCAT Keele University

You have to meet a cut-off score (previously 2,280) and get at least Band 3 in SJT to be considered.

• Kent and Medway Medical School. You have to get at least Band 3 in SJT and meet the cut-off score (previously 2,470) to be considered.
• King’s College London. This UCAT uni says your UCAT score and A-Level performance are the most important. They average out your score rather than look at individual subtest scores and they do take SJT bandings into account.
• University of Leicester. Your score is exactly half of the shortlisting process and if you get Band 4 or score in the bottom two deciles, you’ll be automatically rejected. If you meet the GCSE requirements and score in the top 5 deciles, you’ll get an interview invite.
• Liverpool University. If you get Band 4 in SJT you’ll be rejected. Applicants with the most competitive UCAT scores will be shortlisted for interview.

UCAT University of Manchester

• This UCAT uni has a cut-off score and if it’s a high-scoring year then you’ll be ranked by your scores. Applicants are grouped into similar educational and socio-demographic backgrounds and assessed against each other. They say that people with Band 1 & 2 in SJT are most likely to get an interview.
• Newcastle University. You’ll be assessed by your UCAT score and the threshold for interview in 2021 entry was 2,820.
• University of Nottingham. You’ll get given points for your score, with verbal reasoning getting double points – but you need at least Band 3 in SJT to be considered.
• Plymouth University. This UCAT university uses a cut-off score, which was 2,400 for 2021 entry.
• Queen Mary University of London. Your UCAT score is given equal weighting to your grades and you’ll be ranked by combined performance.

UCAT Queen’s University Belfast

You’ll get points for your UCAT score and SJT will be ignored except for deciding on borderline applicants.

• University of Sheffield. You have to meet a cut-off score (2,430 for 2022 entry) and SJT is considered as part of the interview assessment.
• Southampton University. You’ll be ranked by your score but your SJT banding is ignored.
• University of St Andrews. This UCAT uni ranks you by score and you must be within the top global 400 scorers to get shortlisted.
• St George’s, University of London. You’ll be ranked by score and there is a cut-off, although SJT isn’t considered. For 2022 entry the cut-off was 500 in each subtest.
• University of Sunderland. You must be within the top 8 deciles and Band 3 or above to be considered.
• Warwick Uni. If you score above the national mean in verbal reasoning, you’ll move to the next stage of shortlisting. You’ll then get points for your UCAT score, so the higher you score, the higher your chances of getting an interview. For 2019 entry the lowest score of an interviewee was 2,570.

The few UK Universities that don’t require the UCAT as part of their admissions criteria, require the BMAT instead.

More UCAT relevant Aptitude Test practice for each UCAT subtest

The UCAT requires several aptitude tests to be practiced.

The UCAT subtests include verbal reasoning, which helps to evaluate information presented in a written form exclusively. Another subtest is on decision making, which evaluates one’s ability to make sound decisions and judgments using exclusive data.

The UCAT Abstract reasoning test addresses both convergent and divergent thinking concerning a piece of particular information. The above tests are allocated specific durations.

The following four aptitude tests and situational judgement test which are included in the UKCAT assess the following medical reasoning skills:

1) UCAT Quantitative reasoning test intro

This assesses the ability to evaluate numerical info presented in the form of tables, charts and graphs. This test assesses the use of numerical reasoning to solve problems. Specifically, knowing which information to use and how to manipulate numerical data using simple calculations.

2) UCAT Verbal reasoning test intro

This assesses applicants’ ability to read and critically evaluate written info. Specifically, to quickly assess the content of written passages and the accuracy of the conclusions drawn.

3) UCAT Abstract reasoning test intro

This assesses the ability to find patterns in the abstract shape information presented. Both convergent and divergent thinking are assessed. You need to track pattern changes, generate hypotheses about which features are changing; and test these hypotheses.

4) UCAT Decision analysis test intro

This assesses applicants’ ability to make decisions based on complex coded information. Specifically, making complex decisions when faced with ambiguous, uncertain situations.

5) UCAT situational judgment test intro

This assesses UCAT applicant abilities to:

• Identify the critical factors in real-life, medical scenarios.
• Use logical reasoning skills to determine how best to deal with these SJT scenarios.

UCAT Situational Judgement Test tips

– The new UKCAT SJT test format means you can give the same rating to all response options. If, for example, two were Inappropriate and two were Appropriate that’s fine.

– The timeframe is very important to the correct answer. Consider how appropriate each response option is to both the short-term and to the long-term.

– Even when there are 4 response options this does not mean that one is Very Appropriate, Appropriate, Inappropriate and Very Inappropriate.

UCAT Decision making sample question – UCAT example one

Which shape will make the last equation true?

A. Cross

B. Diamond

C. Crescent

D. Octagon

ANSWER

Replace the set of shape equations with variables. For example: cross = x, Diamond = y, Crescent = z, Octagon = w.

If you work out the equations correctly, you’d find that ? = z, which means a square will make the last equation true.

UCAT Abstract reasoning sample question – UCAT example two

Which of the following test shapes belongs in set B?

ANSWER

This question is best worked out with a process of elimination.

A is incorrect because the black rectangle must branch off to both a black heart and a white heart.

B is incorrect because the black heart must branch off to a rectangle and a triangle of the same colour.

C is incorrect because the white triangle should not branch off to anything.

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Ask ROB (expert test developer) your questions by emailing passedpapers@gmail.com

An Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society, Rob Williams is a Chartered Psychologist with over 25 years of experience working and designing tests.
Rob has worked for the school entrance test publishers ISEB and GL – as well as the leading global psychometric test publishers including SHL, Kenexa IBM, MBTI, CAPP and SOVA Assessment.

Admissions Tests

These are some course-related admission tests:

• Cambridge Law Test
• LNAT – National Admissions Test for Law
• Mathematics Admissions Test (MAT)
• Sixth Term Examination Paper (STEP)
• Test of Mathematics for University Admissions
• BioMedical Admissions Test (BMAT)
• Graduate Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT)
• Health Professions Admission Test (HPAT Ulster)
• University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT). Read UCAT’s 2020 update on how the test will be delivered this year.
• Thinking Skills Assessment Cambridge (TSA Cambridge)
• The Thinking Skills Assessment Oxford (TSA Oxford)
• Thinking Skills Assessment University College London (TSA UCL)