5 Easy Ways to Improve Your UKCAT Scores

For many people, getting to a UK medical school has been a very big challenge due to low scores in the clinical aptitude test. It could also be frustrating especially if you’ve had several rejections from medical schools in the past.

But are you sure your preparation is solid enough? Or is there something you’re doing wrong that you’ve still not been able to identify?

If you’re looking to break the jinx of failure the next time you write your UKCAT, you simply need to improve your scores. Here are 5 easy ways to do that.

1.     Prepare adequately

That you want to be in Medical school alone suggests that you might be brilliant. But that’s not a guarantee that clinical aptitude test will be a walk over for you. The reality is that without adequate preparation, you’ll continue scoring low marks, and your dream of being in medical school might become thwarted.

Consider changing your entire approach towards preparing for the test. If you have friends that are taking the aptitude test, try studying in group. Sharing ideas can open your eyes to tricks and time-saving techniques that could help boost your score. 

2.     Enrol for a crash course

Taking a UKCAT course is one of the surest ways to score higher points. Nearly 75 percent of medical students I’ve spoken to say the crash course they took before the test helped them prepare better for the test. To them, the value was much more than the enrolment fee for such a course.

To select the best centre to take the crash course, ensure that they have experienced medical tutors that have tutored the UKCAT for several years. It’s also important that they have an ongoing support, online lectures recorded by experts and practice guides that you can use on your own.

3.     Take a mock exam

Before going for the exam, endeavour to get accustomed to the UKCAT testing platform. Most students score low marks because the test date was the first time they ever saw what the UKCAT exam screen looked like. And this makes them panic on the exam day.

Once you have the software that allows you to practice in real time, you can practice as many times as you wish. It makes you more familiar with the online calculator, the reviewing screen, the position of the timer. More importantly, you’d become more confident and less panicky.

4.     Follow instructions

There’s no better way to fail like not following instructions. Most students perform poorly in this exam because they pay little attention to instructions. Before you start answering any question, read instructions carefully, if possible more than once. 

You should avoid making silly mistakes like missing the word “NOT” in a question. It is typical to find NOT questions in the quantitative and verbal reasoning questions, and skipping it will result in completely the wrong answer.

5.     Be mindful of time

For this kind of exam, you have to be mindful of time as you answer each question. Although, the timer on the screen could make you a bit nervous, never panic or rush to answer questions. Make sure you understand the question and provide your best answers.

Again, avoid using a stop watch stop, as it only increases your nervousness. The purpose of the screen timer is to guide on how much time you have to complete the questions in each section.

Implementing all the tips herein increases your chances of improving your UKCAT scores. So go ahead and make your dream of making it to medical school happen.