A few questions answered

**Will Watson** · 02-04-2006, 09:40 AM

I was fortunate enough to be speaking to someone from the UKCAT consortium at the BMA students conference yesterday, and I'd just like to answer any questions you might have. Looking over the other threads:

1. Yes it costs £60. However, bursaries will be available for people from poorer backgrounds, reimbursing you after taking the test.

2. Practice questions. A few of these should pop up on the UKCAT site when it goes live.

3. Content - reasoning, cognitive skills, etc. They're being pretty vague :P

4. What it will be used for - partly down to the schools. I believe the cognitive section will be used to complement A-level grades, although for the next few years the reasoning sections will be simply used to see how well they work - building up evidence by comparing how well people have done on the test with how they're doing at medical school.

**Rake** · 08-04-2006, 04:00 AM

Originally Posted by Will Watson

4. What it will be used for - partly down to the schools. I believe the cognitive section will be used to complement A-level grades, although for the next few years the reasoning sections will be simply used to see how well they work - building up evidence by comparing how well people have done on the test with how they're doing at medical school.

So basically, they're making us take another exam just for the craic? None of the schools i asked at the UCAS convention seemed to know where it would fit into the admissions procedure; it sounds like it'll just be used as a tiebreaker betweem similar candidates and not a priority.

**Will Watson** · 08-04-2006, 06:01 AM

The initial stages of selection will still mainly be on A-level grades, although obviously the exact proceedure will differ from school to school. The reason this test has been brought in in the first place is to distinguish between the increasing numbers getting high grades at A-levels...