43 Practise the Patterns

The biggest improvement in your UKCAT score is going to be from high levels of Abstract Reasoning practice. Familiarity is the important buzzword here. One can boost confidence and correct responses to Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning and Decision Analysis, but by practising more and more with Abstract Reasoning questions will undoubtedly improve your ability to recognise patterns more effectively and quickly.

The reasons for this are two-fold:

1. Recognising pre-recognised patterns

Having gone through hundreds of patterns which make up the rules, you are primed to recognise more patterns. This will give you the edge on your peers who may not see the patterns quicker than you. And where time is very important, finding patterns quicker gives you more time to find other more complex rules and also builds momentum.

2. Shape-specific pattern recognition

With practice, you begin to become an expert in Abstract Reasoning. When you see a square, you know what types of rules to look for. Squares of four sided, equal sided, straight-sided, have right-angles, have many planes of symmetry, etc. When you see arrows, you know that direction or where the arrows are pointing could be major factor in the rule making. And thus your ability to recognise what and where to look for patterns becomes very efficient and a powerful skill.

General Tips

1. What is the UKCAT? And is it fair?
2. UKCAT Registration – Book UKCAT Now!!!
3. If you can, take the UKCAT test one year earlier.
4. Your UKCAT test day should not be the first time you locate the Pearson Vue UKCAT test centre
5. Try not to book the UKCAT test day during school/university term-time
6. Do not put off the UKCAT test
7. Take the UKCAT test in the afternoon, not the morning
8. Register for UKCAT Bursary early
9. UKCAT test only lasts one medical school application cycle
10. Prepare your materials the night before your UKCAT test day
11. Pre-UKCAT test jitters
12. Admittance to medical school is not solely based on this UKCAT test
13. Eat breakfast on UKCAT test day
14. The Pearson Vue UKCAT test room
15. Not allowed to eat or drink in the UKCAT test room
16. Rest yourself between UKCAT subtests
17. That two-sided sheet of paper is all you've got (sort of)
18. Every question is equally weighted
19. There is one (and only one) correct answer. Accept it
20. The UKCAT is not a race
21. Just because you didn't answer one or two questions does not mean you will get a poor score
22. Plan each day for the two weeks prior to your UKCAT test
23. Incorporate exercise into your UKCAT routine
24. Keep focused
25. Practise regularly at the time of the day that you will be take the UKCAT test
26. Do not peak in your UKCAT practice too soon
27. Why UKCAT Practice is Important

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Verbal Reasoning UKCAT Tips

28. Why is reading comprehension important for Medicine
29. Attempt shorter passages first, flag longer passages
30. Put simply, a 'true' statement can co-exist inside the passage
31. Put simply, a 'false' statement contradicts the passage
32. Put simply, a 'cannot tell' statement requires more information than the passage
33. Look out for extreme qualifiers
34. Words in the Passage does not mean Cannot Tell
35. Practise by reading broadsheets

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Quantitative Reasoning UKCAT Tips

36. Why is mathematics important for medicine?
37. Practise your simple mathematics - quick and accurately
38. Practise your speed with the simple calculator - not scientific
39. Know your GCSE Maths
40. Beware of percentages

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Abstract Reasoning UKCAT Tips

41. Why is pattern recognition important for medicine?
42. Learn the simple/advanced mnemonics
43. Practise the patterns
44. First order and second order rules
45. Beware of common distractors

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Decision Analysis UKCAT Tips

46. Why is cryptography important for medicine?
47. Diligence in Decision Analysis
48. Shorthand shortcuts in Decision Analysis
49. Only three types of questions

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Miscellaneous UKCAT Tips

50. Eliminating the incorrect responses
51. Moving on from UKCAT Results
52. What does my UKCAT score mean?