#umatasks

[ttstudiesmd]

Hi was just wondering when you were doing past papers what marks did you get? Like what was your overall percentage (not percentile) and for each section. Also what type of papers do you advise on doing? medEntry, Face2Face, ACER etc.

Hey Anon,

Sorry I can’t help you with that because I actually don’t remember. 

As for past papers, I’d recommend do all of them and everything you get your hands on. 

Best of luck with UMAT.

mildcasesofmd.

[ttstudiesmd]

So I'm on my way to UMAT. I only got half right in the practice test, so I'm pretty bad at it. I really really want to do medicine. I have not been getting awesome grades and my estimated atar is below 90. Please give me some advice on what I could do to improve my chances.

Dear Anon,

Firstly, congratulations on working hard during these holidays for the UMAT! You should be very proud of yourself for dedicating time on working hard to get into Medicine during these times where you could have gone out and have fun! 

Regarding the amount of questions you got right/wrong in your practice test, don’t worry too much about them! It is not a true indications of how you will go on the actual day. There are many factors that will contribute to how well you go such as what you ate for breakfast, how much sleep you get, your level of performance anxiety etc. In fact, I have friends who did very poorly in practice tests and aced the UMAT, and same for those who thought they were set for the exam but received a percentile that they would’ve wanted to be higher.

My advice for you on the days leading up to UMAT is to get a good rest the night before (~8 hours), be emotionally/mentally stable throughout the weeks and also eat healthy (have a good filling breakfast loaded with proteins and fats and not too much carbs). 

Regarding your ATAR, remember that your estimated ATAR is only an estimation. There is a chance that you may get an actual ATAR higher, provided that you continue to work hard and keep believing in yourself that you will succeed. Sure you may have gotten bad grades throughout the year, but it is never too late to improve.

Understand that getting into Medicine is a very long journey and more often than not, it takes more than one attempt to get in. Even I have to attempt several times and my grades were excellent in high school! So even if everything don’t go according to plan and you don’t get into Medicine the first go, try again. Don’t think that it’s over. I know it’s ideal to get into Medicine straight away in the first shot, but trust me, it is a marathon, not a sprint.

Best regards,

mildcasesofmd.