UCAT Exam 2024: Syllabus, Eligibility Criteria, Fees, Application Deadlines and more

Medicine as a profession has a long history and is an ever-growing field. If you dream of joining this life-enriching field, University Clinical Aptitude Test UCAT is the exam to crack. It allows you to pursue medical and dental programs at top universities like Glasgow, Edinburgh University, and plenty more. 

UCAT, formerly UKCAT, is an exam designed to identify people eligible for admission to medical and dental programs across the United Kingdom. It is a two-hour computer-based test conducted by Pearson UVE and divided into five sections.

UCAT Exam syllabus includes Verbal Reasoning, decision-making, Quantitative Reasoning, Abstract Reasoning, and Situational Reasoning. 

UCAT Exam Eligibility

To be eligible to sit in the UCAT exam, one must fulfill the following requirements:

• Minimum 10+2 years of education, i.e., they must have cleared their secondary education or higher degree from a recognized university
• Pearson has set no limit on attempts, which means candidates can take any number of attempts. However, one can only sit for a test once a year; you cannot appear twice in a single year.
• There is no age limit.
• However, individuals with financial interests, such as tutors in UCAT, are not eligible to appear for the exam.

UCAT Exam Date 2025

UCAT 2024 test is over, regarding the 2025 test cycle the dates will be published in January 2025. Aspiring students must keep an eye on updates on our website or the official UCAT website. 

UCAT Exam Registration 2024.

Step 1: Create a UCAT account from the date specified.

Step 2: register using your legal name for the UCAT exam.

Legal documents include

• A valid passport
• Government-issued identity card.

Step 3: After registration, log in to your account using your created account.

Step 4: Look for your Candidate ID in the left corner of your account.

Step 5: Pay the required fees

Step 6: Next, you need to decide on the exam center.

Step 7: Carefully follow the guidelines and carry only the allowed things.

UCAT Exam Fees 2024

Candidates need to pay the fees at the time of booking. The amount depends on where the test is taken.

Tests taken in the UK cost £70 and £115 outside the UK. 

Please keep in mind that the fees can be revised; thus, one needs to keep an eye on the official website. 

UCAT Exam Syllabus 2024

The UCAT has five sections. Each section assesses the candidate’s Communication ability, attitude, logical comprehension, and temperament. 

1. Verbal Reasoning: This part of the syllabus focuses on candidates’ ability to analyze texts, comprehend them, and logically arrive at their intended meaning. A proficient individual in this section would be able to read through complex paragraphs and communicate their meaning in an understandable way to himself. One way to prepare for it is by being an avid reader. Start building your base by reading the newspapers daily and then reviewing the practice and mock tests.
2. We also have a part of the syllabus focusing on Quantitative skills. In this part, one needs to have good numerical ability, which helps them in problem-solving and data analysis. This section has been kept in mind, considering the daily work of medical professionals, as they need a decent understanding of basic calculations based on weight, age, and other factors. At a higher level, medical professionals need to understand advanced data. Thus, it is essential to keep a basic understanding of Quants.
3. Decision Making: As the name suggests, this section expects you to have a clear and coherent decision-making ability. UCAT understands that medical professionals need to arrive at a clear-cut decision. One way to prepare for this section is by going through case studies and practice papers.
4. Abstract Reasoning: This part of the syllabus is designed to assess the candidate on abstract thinking, and an ideal candidate would be able to identify patterns in abstract concepts. You can find practice papers on UCAT.
5. Situational Judgement: Finally, we have Situational judgment. It measures your capacity to understand real-world situations and what can fly by and what cannot. UCAT has introduced this part of the syllabus to make people’s situation ready.

UCAT Exam Pattern 2024

As discussed above, the UCAT exam has five sections, and it is all but natural that the UCAT will gauge you in all of these sections.

So, UCAT is a two-hour standardized test. The candidate needs to go through each section in the given timeframe.

UCAT Exam Pattern: Verbal Reasoning 

There will be two different types of questions under this section.

An incomplete statement can be given, and one needs to complete the sentence by picking up an appropriate option, it’s a fill in the blanks type of question.

In the second type of question, the test taker needs to identify whether the given statement is true or false based on the information given in the question. Sometimes, the answer can also be that it cannot be determined. Thus, we have three choices: true, false, and not determinable.

UCAT Exam Pattern: Decision Making.

One can expect questions based on charts, Venn diagram tables, and graphs. 

There are several different question types in this subtest:

• Syllogisms
• Logical Puzzles
• Recognizing Assumptions
• Probabilistic and Statistical Reasoning
• Interpreting Information
• Venn Diagrams

In some questions, you will have to choose the correct option from the given choices.

Other questions require that the test taker responds with yes or no to the statements asked. These statements will be five in number.

UCAT Exam Pattern: Quantitative Reasoning section.

In this section, you must solve the charts, data sheets, and graphs. This section focuses on your numerical ability. 

The type of questions asked in this section are twofold: some questions would have data, and then based on that data, there will be four questions that the test taker has to answer.

Secondly, we have questions which are standalone, that is to say these will not be connected to a data but would be sufficient in themselves, in this type of question you will have five options, and you will need the right option.

One thing to keep in mind is that the UCAT EXAM is testing your aptitude and not how fast you can calculate as they provide an onscreen calculator. 

UCAT Exam Pattern: Abstract Reasoning

In the abstract reasoning section, you will have to go through sets of shapes. 

Most questions will have five questions associated with the same set of shapes. 

There are four types of questions in this section:

• Decide whether an example test shape belongs to Shape Set A, Shape Set B, or Neither.
• Select the next shape in a series.
• Determine which shape completes a statement.
• Decide which shape belongs to a particular Shape Set.

UCAT Exam Pattern: Situational Judgment Test. 

As this section measures real-world situational awareness, the UCAT Exam asks hypothetical questions pertaining to real-world scenarios. 

Each scenario may have six questions associated with it.

In some questions the test taker is asked to rate the appropriateness of the action in a given scenario, there are four answer options, but you can only choose one. 

Lastly, there are questions that require you to choose the most appropriate and the least appropriate action one can take based on the scenario. 

To sum up, there are five sections, each with different types of questions within them. 

UCAT Exam Scoring System

UCAT Exam does not have negative markings. Also, unlike GMAT, your performance on one question does not affect or influence the presentation of other questions.

Situational Judgement scoring.

However, things are different with situational judgment scoring. UCAT understands that situational awareness can be subjective; hence, they have devised a different type of scoring system for this section. In the situational judgment section, you will be awarded full marks if you hit the bull’s eye and partial marks if the option that you picked was close to the correct answer. 

Another thing to remember is that in this section, UCAT provides band instead of raw scores, as it does in other exam sections. There are four bands, and alongside your band, you are provided with an interpretation of the band score.

Band 1 is the highest band you can achieve, and Band 4 is the lowest among the other bands.

Subject-wise UCAT Exam Preparation

1. Verbal Reasoning:

• Since the test requires you to be able to comprehend and logically reach a conclusion, you must have a healthy reading habit.
• Start with newspapers and go on to complex articles and journals.
• Focus on understanding the basic argument given in the paragraph and jot down its crux in one to two sentences.
• After a proper foundation, start solving practice and previous year’s papers.

2. Quantitative Reasoning: 

• Since UCAT Exam provides a calculator you do not need to worry about huge calculations but you should be well versed with cube roots, square roots and tables till 20.

• Start with arithmetic topics like percentages and ratios, which will also help in solving data charts. 
• Brush up on Algebra topics. You need to go through the previous year’s paper and look into what is asked.
• Solve the previous year’s questions and practice paper; keep in mind that practice is the key here.

3. Decision Making: 

• Go through different types of logical and analytical questions, like Venn diagrams, syllogism, logical inferences, etc.
• Try to identify the patterns in the paper.
• Practice is the key here as well. Also, understanding the demands of the question and going through the answer key will help a lot.

4. Abstract Reasoning:

• Abstract Reasoning can only be developed by going through the practice papers and previous year’s papers. One needs to identify the trends and patterns.
• Focus on analyzing the shape and figure.

5. Situational Judgment:

• In situational tests, your answer must match the panel of experts, and thus, you must read into what makes something right and wrong according to them by going through the previous year’s answer keys.
• The best way to prepare for any exam is by analyzing the previous year’s paper. 
• Practice and try to understand what makes the question right.
• Try to inculcate the same thought process as the panel of experts possess.

FAQs on UCAT Exam 2024

1. What is the UCAT Exam?

Ans. University Clinical Aptitude Test, commonly known as UCAT, is a 2-hour computerized entrance exam used by universities in the United Kingdom for their dental and medical programs. A good score on your UCAT can set you on a successful career path.

2. Which exam should I take, the UCAT or the UCAT ANZ?

Ans. For those wanting to pursue their medical and dentistry program in Australia, New Zealand, they must appear for UCAT ANZ, one would wonder if UCAT and UCAT ANZ are different? It is not; they both are the same. UCAT is for UK universities, and UCAT ANZ is for Australia and New Zealand.

3. How many times a year is UCAT held?

Ans. One can appear for UCAT only once a year. The scores are also valid for that period only. Pearson VUE, the conducting body, will directly send the scores to the universities for evaluation.

4. What is the UCAT examination fee for Indians?

Ans. The fee for applications from India is £120 

5. How long are UCAT scores valid?

Ans. The UCAT scores are valid for one year; also, you can sit for the exam only once. Getting into top universities abroad is itself a challenging task. It becomes even harder when you add a challenging exam like UCAT. 

We at Rostrum Education specialize in converting your overseas dream into reality. Through our specialized programs, we have helped several students get to their dream universities like Colombia, Cambridge, and Havard. 

Book a free session today, and let us guide you through this tricky path.