Medical School Entrance Exams

With ever increasing A-level results getting a place at medical school is more competitive than it has ever been. Another way of sorting the wheat from the chaff are the medical school entrance exams, which came into existence at the start of the decade. Medical schools usually use the exams as an additional filter of applicants before the interview stage - if you don't do well in the exam you don't invited for interview.

There are three main exams:

• UKCAT: The UK Clinical Aptitude Test - an exam required by everyone applying to a 5-year undergraduate medical degree programme.
• GAMSAT: The Graduate (Australian) Medical School Admission Test - an exam required for entry to some 4-year graduate entry courses and some 5-year courses. As the name suggests a variety of this exam is also used for entry to Australian medical schools.
  
• BMAT: The BioMedical Admissions Test - an exam required for entry to some 4-year graduate entry courses.
  

Applicants should check carefully which institutions require which exam because it is quite often necessary to register for these exams before the UCAS application deadline (15th October each year).

It is sad that, because of the watering down of the A-level gold standard, medical schools have had to resort to these additional exams. It's also quite an unfair system for three reasons:

• The cost: These exams can cost hundreds of pounds EACH. If the exam venue is far from your home you will also need to cover your own travel expenses and one, possibly two, night's accommodation.
  
• The time frame: Some exams, GAMSAT for example, have only one sitting during the year. If you can't attend you can't sit the exam at another time.
  
• The geography: Some exams are held at 'centralised' locations. If you live in a remote part of the UK then getting to these places could be a problem.

The disproportionate cost, particularly of GAMSAT, is my main gripe - I honestly believe the massive expense is a deterrent to many very capable medical school applicants.

In my case GAMSAT costs nearly £200 to register, plus I have to travel more than 100 miles to Sheffield (about £40 return rail fare), spend 2 nights in a hotel (about £100). Combined with other expenses (like food and drink) this means it costs me nearly £400 in total to sit GAMSAT. That is a lot of money - most people's monthly mortgage or rent bill.

Now for a little more about each exam. Please be sure to check the details on the official websites:

UKCAT

• When:
• UKCAT must be registered in August/September/October of the year before you intend to enter medical school. The last date to sit the exam is the middle of October in the year before you enter medical school (eg. before the UCAS application deadline of 15th Oct). Candidates can choose which day they take the test, but it can only be taken once and must be before the published deadline. Be sure to check the website for precise dates.
• Where:
• UKCAT is sat at your local Pearson Vue test center. These are the same people who do the driving theory test.
• What's involved:
• UKCAT is a computer based test with 5 sections:
• Section 1, "Verbal Reasoning", in which candidates have to respond to onscreen evidence. Examples might include responding to a piece of poetry, a newspaper article or a chart. All questions have a choice of 4 possible answers and have an equal weighting.
• Section 2, "Quantitative Reasoning", in which candidates have to perform onscreen maths problems. Quite often this involves responding to the evidence provided. All questions have a choice of 4 possible answers and have an equal weighting.
• Section 3, "Abstract Reasoning", in which candidates have to recognise and respond to patterns of shapes. All questions have a choice of 4 possible answers and have an equal weighting.
• Section 4, "Decision Analysis", in which candidates use the evidence provided onscreen to decipher some codes. All questions have a choice of 4 possible answers and have an equal weighting.
• Section 5, "Non-Cognitive Analysis", in which candidates answer a series of profiling questions. This new test was introduced in 2007 and is being trialled. It didn't count towards the final UKCAT score in 2007, but may do in future.
• How is it scored:
• Each section is scored between 300 and 900, with scores between 500 and 700 being the norm. An overall score is obtained from the mean of all sections.
• When are results published:
• As UKCAT is computer based results are available immediately on completion of the test.
• Other points:
• You will be provided with a calculator and an erasable board for working out.
  
• UKCAT is a 'busy' test with lots to do in a short space of time. Incorrect answers are not penalised so it's important to maintain a sense of urgency and complete all questions. Although you may be permitted to take a break the clock will not be stopped if you choose to do so.
• UKCAT scores are available for only one year.
  
• Unfortunately I can't remember the time limit for each section because I was a bit rushed!
• A good revision resource is the book called "Passing the UK Clinical Aptitude Test and BMAT" by Felicity Walker-Buckton, Rosalie Hutton and Glenn Hutton.
  

GAMSAT

• When:
  
• GAMSAT must be registered in the June/July of the year before you intend to enter medical school. The exam is sat in September of the year before you enter medical school (eg. before the UCAS application deadline of 15th Oct).
• Where:
  
• GAMSAT is held at the following test centres around the UK: Birmingham, Bristol, Swansea, London, Nottingham, Sheffield. It is also available at Melbourne, Australia.
• What's involved:
• GAMSAT has 3 sections:
  
• Section 1, "Reasoning in Humanities and Social Sciences", has 75 multiple choice questions. Candidates are allowed 10 minutes reading time and then 100 minutes to complete the section. All questions have a choice of 4 possible answers and have an equal weighting.
• Section 2, "Written Communication", has 2 essay questions. Candidates are allowed 5 minutes reading time and then 60 minutes to complete the section. Both questions have an equal weighting.
• Section 3, "Reasoning in Biological and Physical Sciences", has 110 multiple choice questions. Candidates are allowed 10 minutes reading time and then 170 minutes to complete the section. All questions have an equal weighting.
• How is it scored:
• ACER, the people who administer the test, have a complicated algorithm for marking the tests. A useful approximation is as follows: Overall score = [(1 x Section 1) + (1 x Section 2) + (2 x Section 3)] / 4.
• The medical schools set a different overall pass score each year, but for entry to Nottingham and St. George's candidates must score the following: at least 55 in either section 1 or section 3, at least 55% in section 2, at least 50% in the remaining section, an overall score equal to or higher than that published.
• When are results published:
• About 6 weeks after the exam date. ACER will email you prior to the results being published.
• Other points:
• The exam takes a full day and usually begins at around 10 am and finishes around 6 pm. Sections 1 and 2 are completed in the morning, then there's a 1 hour lunch break, then section 3 is completed in the afternoon. There is a short refreshment break between sections 1 and 2.
• Candidates are allowed a bilingual dictionary for sections 1 and 2. Use of a calculator is permitted in section 3.
  
• GAMSAT scores are valid for 2 years.
• There are some good GAMSAT preparation courses, but these are expensive. It is also worthwhile buying the sample questions. Questions tend to be very similar each year.
  

BMAT

• When:
• BMAT must be registered in August/September/early October of the year before you intend to enter medical school (eg. before the UCAS application deadline of 15th Oct). The exam is sat at the end of October in the year before you enter medical school.
• Where:
• BMAT can be sat at a suitably registered Cambridge Assessment test centre, normally quite local to where the candidate lives. More details on the website.
• What's involved:
• BMAT has 3 sections:
• Section 1, "Aptitude and Skills", has 35 multiple choice questions to be completed in 60 minutes.
• Section 2, "Scientific Knowledge and Applications", has 27 multiple choice questions to be completed in 30 minutes.
• Section 3, "Writing Task", has a choice of 3 essays questions, one of which is to be completed in 30 minutes.
• How is it scored:
• Each section is scored between 1 (low) and 9 (high). Most candidates should expect to get around 5 in each section, only the most able score 6 or higher. Scores are reported to one decimal point.
• When are results published:
• Results are available a few days after the exam. For more details see the website.
• Other points:
• Candidates are not allowed a calculator or bilingual dictionary.
• BMAT scores are valid for only one year.
• A good revision resource is the book called "Passing the UK Clinical Aptitude Test and BMAT" by Felicity Walker-Buckton, Rosalie Hutton and Glenn Hutton.

Remember that most of these tests require the candidate to respond to the sources of evidence provided. If you do have to do these tests be sure to get it right first time - it's too expensive not to! Good luck.