UK university of your choice may need you to take a special exam. Here’s a guide

UK university of your choice may need you to take a special exam. Here’s a guide

Undergraduate applicants aspiring to study medicine, maths, computer science, physics or engineering at leading universities in the UK should keep in mind the fact that these institutions have specific admissions exams that are mandatory or viewed favourably for admissions.

At Oxbridge, admissions tests are mandatory for many social science courses too.

Here are some key admissions tests that if you’re looking to study in the UK:

MAT: Mathematics Admissions Test, it’s for students applying to Oxford Mathematics, Computer Science and their joint degrees as well as Imperial Mathematics courses.

PAT: Physics Aptitude Test, it’s for all applicants to Oxford for Engineering, Material Sciences and Physics undergraduate degree courses.

TSA: Thinking Skills Assessment tests to ascertain whether you have the skills for critical thinking and problem-solving. It’s for many social science degrees at universities such as Oxford, Cambridge and UCL.

UKCAT: The UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT), used by a consortium of UK Medical and Dental Schools. Some universities require the UKCAT, others require the BMAT.

BMAT: BioMedical Admissions Tests for applicants to medicine, biomedical science and dentistry courses at certain varsities.

STEP: The mathematics exam used by Cambridge, Warwick and Bath. There are three STEP exams, STEP I, II and III, of increasing difficulty. They only take place in June, well after universities give you an offer. Grades for STEP will make up part of your conditional offer.

Tests for other subjects: At Oxford, exams such as HAT for History, ELAT for English and CAT for Classics determine whether applicants are invited to interviews. Cambridge has its own pre-interview exams for most undergraduate courses.

TEST GRADE REQUIREMENTS

Universities have different grade requirements for each of these exams. It is important to check UK university entry requirements to see what grades they are looking for and ensure that these are achievable for you.

For pre-interview admissions tests such as MAT, TSA, PAT and other Oxbridge tests, there is no specific minimum mark needed. Rather your test score will be considered alongside your UCAS application to assess whether you are to be invited for an interview or proceed to the next stage of the selection process.

Many of these pre-interview exams do not require much knowledge outside of your school syllabus but they not only test for the knowledge you have but how you apply that knowledge to unfamiliar applications.

The best way to prepare for these exams is to try as many past papers as possible.

TIMELINES

Whilst in the UK these exams are invigilated at school, in India (and most other countries outside the UK), students will need to register and sit for the relevant exam at one of the British Council Exam centres in either Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai or Kolkata.

To register for the exam you can email the British Council at examscustomercare@britishcouncil.org to request the relevant registration forms. Before you apply, make sure you are able to go sit for this exam on the required date.

Students interested in applying to UK universities should also visit The Admissions Testing Service to access the complete guide to all admissions exams used by every university in the UK.

Check the entry requirements for your degree on the university website. If an admissions exam is required, this will be stated here.

Once you know which exam you are required to take, go to the Admissions Testing Service website, and select the relevant exam. It will display the information you need on exam dates, registration costs and process as well as tips on how you can prepare for the exam.

Source | Hindustan Times | 19 April 2017

Regards!

Librarian

Rizvi Institute of Management