UCAT/BMAT preparation notes
(This is not a studyblr. I just want to post something that I wrote ages ago and hopefully it will be useful to someone. Though I am happy to answer questions.)
so it’s summer and time for test preparation. Here are my notes for UCAT and BMAT, as someone who’s taken each of them twice.
BMAT (second time) 7.3, 8.6, 4A
UKCAT preparation (They renamed it UCAT I think. I am not absolutely sure if these notes are still applicable.)
I did all the free practice questions on the official UCKAT guide. Whilst The Medic Portal UKCAT question bank was still free, I finished about 90% of all questions. Overall I think it was a really good source with realistic questions.
The amount of time needed for preparation is really different for everyone. I’d rather start early, try a few problem sets, and plan from there.
Verbal Reasoning: Read the questions first before reading the article. Scanning didn’t work for me as a non-native English speaker, so I just tried my best to read as fast as possible.
Quantitative Reasoning: Familiarise yourself with all the common formulas, and improve your mental arithmetic bit by bit. The official practice questions were generally harder than the ones in the actual test. The numeric keypad was a lifesaver. Again scanning didn’t really work, so I consciously read every word.
Decision Making: There are several types of DM questions, and the only one I struggled with was Evaluating Argument. (It often turned out that my common sense was a bit different to everyone else’s, oh well…) Pick the strongest and most logical argument, even if it sounds ridiculous to you. You might be able to first exclude the arguments with inappropriate assumptions or those irrelevant to the question.
Abstract Reasoning: I have no idea. I wasn’t able to memorise any of those mnemonics, so I just practised a lot to find the ‘sixth sense’.
Situational Judgment Test: Good Medical Practice guide from GMC website is a must read. Here are a few things I jotted down, but of course you can make your own notes after lots of practice.
Very appropriate=addresses at least one aspect of the situation. Appropriate but not ideal=no bad consequences, but not very wise. Inappropriate but not awful=shouldn’t really be done, but no terrible consequences. Very inappropriate=makes the situation worse.
Very important=vital when deciding to do or not to do. Important=useful but not vital. Of minor importance=can be taken into account, but doesn’t really matter if it’s considered right at that moment. Not important=completely irrelevant.
Medical students cannot give any medical advice to patients or family members.
Apologising on someone else’s behalf (when they are indeed wrong) is appropriate but not ideal.
For problems in group work, you should first try to solve locally. You should encourage everyone to contribute. You must not exclude anyone from discussion. Asking for tutor’s advice is appropriate but might not be ideal.
Future grade/assessment is not important at all when you’re considering reporting someone’s behaviour.
You cannot ignore a friend’s inappropriate behaviour or expect the friendship to affect anything professional decision.
It is very appropriate for a medical student/junior doctor to consult a senior doctor.
You should refuse the ‘wrong’ kind of help, but make use of available resources.
You should not appear insensitive even when you cannot provide sth.
You cannot discuss a mistake right in front of a patient.
Other people’s professional opinions are (very) important.
You cannot compromise quality of service.
You cannot blame anyone for anything before gathering enough evidence.
It is important that the patient understands everything and errors are corrected ASAP.
Patient history is important.
People who’re in need of urgent help should be prioritised.
I did every official practice paper at least twice. I also finished the book The Ultimate BMAT Guide 600 Practice Questions, which was very helpful with explained answers and good tips. (If you’re concerned with the cost) I used a very cheap second-hand copy. The main idea is to practise as much as possible, and also to reflect once in a while.
If you’re anxious about the timing, just try to think ‘one question at a time’. I liked to check the time after every single question, but this might not work for other people.
Section 1: The school curriculum in my country doesn’t even mention money exchange. You will need to familiarise yourself with playing cards, public transport timetables, loans, etc. For those data analysis problem sets, I preferred to read the questions first and then scan the article and graphs. I always, always ran out of time, so when there was only two minutes left I would roughly scan the unanswered questions and choose the answers that seemed most sensible, and then I would return to whatever question I was working on.
Section 2: Even if you take biology and chemistry to A-level/IB, there might still be something that you don’t know about, so those sections are worth a thorough check. With the invaluable help of a friend who studied physics in IB, I made sure that I understood all the formulas and when to use them. There were also some miscellaneous things that needed to be memorised.
Section 3: I did all the past questions from 2012 to 2017 at least once. Having done IB History and TOK, I was pretty comfortable with writing about things that I didn’t want to write about. I noted down all the key concepts in medical ethics and many examples that could be used. A habit to read around science and think about ethical issues definitely comes in handy.
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