Which Universities Use UCAT As An Entry Requirement?

Filed in Article, Education by on March 18, 2020 0 Comments

I know you might be wondering which Universities use UCAT as an Entry Requirement? In this article, you will be given detailed information about it. Each university uses UCAT differently. Some will care more about your overall UCAT score, while others will be more interested in how you scored for particular sections. And some don’t use UCAT at all, preferring BMAT instead.

This guide outlines which universities require UCAT for admission, and how they use your scores.

How Do Medical Schools Use Your Scores?

Some medical schools place a great deal of significance on your UCAT scores. They’ll either rank candidates by their score or have a minimum cut-off to progress to the next round.

However, the majority of universities use UCAT scores in combination with other factors, such as your Personal Statement and A-Level exam results.

You’ll get your UCAT results before the UCAS deadline, which gives you the chance to use your results and narrow down your medical school options.

Which Universities Use UCAT As An Entry Requirement?

Here’s a list of UK medical schools using the UCAT in their 2020 entry criteria and a summary of how they do so:

UniversityUCAS Course CodeHow do they use your UCAT score?
University of AberdeenA100, A105, A201Candidates’ UCAT scores are considered in the selection for interview alongside actual and predicted academic achievement. A minimum UCAT cut-off score is NOT used. A score (between 1200 – 3600) is allocated based on the applicant’s overall performance compared with all other applicants. Aberdeen allocates a score based on the total numerical result from the four subtests: Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning,Abstract Reasoning and Decision Making. The SJT will not be scored, but it may be used in offer-making when there are candidates with similar scores. For 2019entry, the lowest score for interview invitation was 2360.
Anglia Ruskin UniversityA100There is no minimum UCAT score. Applicants are ranked by their UCAT score and a certain number will be invited to an Interview Day, providing they also meet the main academic entry requirements. Applicants with an SJT score of Band 4 (lowest band) will not be invited for an interview for September 2020 entry onwards.
Aston UniversityA100UCAT is considered alongside other other required qualifications. There is no specific UCAT or Situational Judgement minimum score threshold.
University of BirminghamA100, A101, A200At Birmingham, there is no minimum UCAT cut off score. An application will receive an overall score, which is the sum of weighted scores for each of the academic and UCAT components. GCSE and UCAT scores are used for interviews. The weightings are: academic – 60%; UCAT – 40%. Total UCAT scores of our applicants (excluding the band score for the SJT component) will be separated into deciles and scored (i.e. the top 10% of applicants’ scores will be in the top decile). The maximum score is 4.0. For example, for 2018-19applicants, the 10th decile was a score of 2950and allocated a score of 4; 9th decile was a score of 2840 and allocated a score of 3.55 and so on.
University of BristolA100, A108, A206, A208Assuming candidates meet the minimum academic entry requirements, their application is scored with a 100% weighting on the UCAT results. This is how candidates are selected for interviews. There is no UCAT cut-off score used. However, the number used as a threshold for interviews is subject to change year-on-year, depending on the strength of the cohort. Therefore, no specific score can be used to predict the likelihood of an invite for the 2020 cycle.
Cardiff UniversityA100, A104, A200, A204Cardiff does not have a minimum threshold score for the UCAT, however, the UCAT score may be used as part of the assessment procedure or in borderline cases.
University of DundeeA100, A104, A200, A204At Dundee, there is no minimum cut-off score. Your UCAT score will be factored into the pre-interview rank alongside academic ability.
University of East AngliaA100, A104UEA do not set a minimum cut-off score for the UCAT, but consider the component scores within the academic screening processes. Whilst a high UCAT score may be advantageous, a low score in an otherwise strong application will not automatically disqualify an applicant from consideration.
Edge Hill UniversityA100, A110Applicants who meet the minimum academic requirements will be ranked according to their UCAT scores. A UCAT threshold is then set up depending on the number of interviews that are to be held. The threshold varies on a year-by-year basis, as it is dependent on the scores achieved by those who apply in each cycle. Any candidate that scores within the band 4 in the Situational Judgement Test will be automatically rejected.
University of EdinburghA100They will consider all scores and no applicant will be excluded from selection based on the score achieved in their UCAT test. Edinburgh also considers the Situational Judgement section of the UCAT test separately.
University of ExeterA100*Applications will be sorted according to academic profiles and UCAT overall score in order to identify which applicants will receive an offer for an interview.
University of GlasgowA100, A200Glasgow considers the UCAT score together with meeting standard and additional entry requirements when determining applicants for interviews. The UCAT range of scores they consider changes each year as the performance of each admissions cohort varies. As Glasgow is required to manage the number of students admitted in line with targets set by the Scottish Government and Scottish Funding Council (Home/EU/Rest of UK/International). Therefore the lowest total UCAT score considered for interview may vary based on the applicant group. The Situational Judgement section of the UCAT will not be taken into consideration for the 2020 cycle.
Hull York Medical SchoolA100, A101A number of points (out of 40) are awarded based upon total UCAT score – this is done once UCAT results are released in early November. UCAT scores will be considered in line with GCSE results (out of 30) as well as meeting academic requirements. Interviews are given out accordingly. Up to a maximum of 15 points are allocated depending on the Situational Judgement Test Band achieved.
Keele UniversityA100*, A104*Keele exclude students who scored in the bottom 20% nationally, or students who score Band 4 in Situational Judgement. Keele also uses UCAT results in borderline cases. Applicants who narrowly miss achieving the required score for their application may receive further consideration on the basis of their UCAT score. Similarly, if the number of applicants tied on a particular academic score exceeds the number of interview slots available, these applicants will be ranked on their total UCAT score. In these borderline cases, the required UCAT score will depend upon the level of performance in the test among this group of applicants.
Kent and Medway Medical SchoolA100As this is a relatively new medical school, accepted UCAT scores from previous years have not been published as a guide. The UCAT scores will be used alongside entry criteria as applications are initially assessed. There will then be a further review of UCAT scores in relation to the applicant’s contextual data and personal statement, before interviews offers are given.
King’s College LondonA100, A101, A102, A202, A205, A206At King’s, GCSE scores, predicted A-Level grades, the personal statement and reference all contribute to the shortlisting of candidates, but examination performance and the UCAT score are perhaps the most important. KCL does not have a threshold UCAT score in any particular year. The overall UCAT score averaged across the four subtests is given more consideration than the individual subtest scores. The Situational Judgement Test is also taken into account when the shortlisting process occurs.
University of LeicesterA100, A199UCAT forms 50% of the pre-interview scoring system. Applicants with band 4 in the Situational Judgement Test will be rejected pre-interview. Applicants will automatically be invited to interview if they have a total UCAT score in the top 7 deciles with a Situational Judgement Test band between 1-3. Candidates must also have achieved a grade B or 6 at first sitting in the mandatory GCSE subjects and AAA at A-Level in required subjects within 2 years of taking GCSEs. Leicester does not have a minimum UCAT cut-off score, but your total UCAT score (scored up to a maximum of 32 points) is used in selection for interview alongside academic ability (also scored up to a maximum of 32 points, making the maximum possible score out of 64). Applicants with a total score in the bottom two deciles of that year’s results will be given a maximum score of 16. Last year, that was equivalent to or less than a UCAT score of 2280.
University of LiverpoolA100*, A200At Liverpool, the UCAT is assessed alongside academic criteria. It is expected that applicants who achieve Band 4 in the Situational Judgement Test of the UCAT will not have their applications processed beyond the first stage. Of the remainder, only those applicants who meet or exceed their minimum academic criteria and who offer the most competitive overall UCAT scores will have their applications proceed to the second stage. The UCAT threshold is determined each year on a competitive basis.
University of ManchesterA104, A106, A204, A206If your score is approximately in the top third of results nationally, you will be invited to interview based on our UCAT threshold as long as minimum academic requirements are met. At Manchester, UCAT scores are ranked and the top 900-1000 applicants proceed to the interview stage. To help identify talented students from all backgrounds, UCAT scores from UK/EU candidates who come from similar educational and socio-demographic backgrounds are considered against each other. This is conducted using supplementary information provided by publicly available datasets. Equal proportions of top scoring applicants from each group are then selected for interview. Scores that do not fall within the top third of national results will be treated as part of a holistic assessment, all information available will inform decisions (such as GCSEs, A-Level profiles, additional qualifications). 500-600 applicants are invited to interviews through this route.
University of NewcastleA100, A101, A206At Newcastle, applications fulfilling the academic thresholds will then be assessed on their UCAT scores. The UCAT threshold may vary depending upon the competition to each programme. The threshold is based on the total UCAT score. This threshold may differ in each admission cycle, as it is dependent on the scores achieved by applicants in the current cycle. In 2019, the interview threshold was 2720.

* Alternative requirements may apply to certain groups of students. Please see the medical school website for further details.

We try to ensure that information is up-to-date. But admissions procedures are subject to change. We recommend contacting universities before making application decisions.

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