How I Scored In The Top UCAT Decile And Band 1

I achieved a UCAT score over 3,000 and reached Band 1 in SJT, which put me in the top 2% of test-takers in my year. My high score enabled me to get interviews (and subsequently offers) from the UCAT universities I applied to. Here are my best tips and tricks to help you reach Band 1 in Situational Judgement!

Make Sure You Know The Ethical Principles

Read the GMC’s Good Medical Practice document and you’ll identify some of the key standards that Doctors need to maintain, such as compassion, honesty and confidentiality. It’s also useful to know about the four pillars of ethics (autonomy, beneficence, autonomy, justice) so you can think about these too when you’re answering questions.

Understand Your Role In The SJT Scenario

The question will outline what your role is in the given scenario. It could be that you’re a student, a Doctor, or a friend to someone in need. Make sure you read this carefully, because it will influence how you respond as you need to act within your remit.

For example, if the situation involves you being a student on a work experience placement, you shouldn’t be diagnosing patients even if they ask you. The more practice questions you do, the easier it will become to make sure you’re carrying out your role properly.

Don’t Just Select What You Would Do

Although the question says to pick what you would do, it wants you to select what someone would ideally do in the given situation. Even if it’s something you wouldn’t want to do personally, think about what the examiners would consider appropriate and choose your answer accordingly.

Review Questions That You Found Hard

While you’re practising for Situational Judgement, make a note of any questions that you found particularly difficult – and have a look at them again before test day. This will help you if a similar question appears in your real exam, because you’ll know what steps you need to do in order to get the right answer.

Audit Your Prep Resources

Remember that there are only so many resources available for UCAT prep. Before you start using any of them, note down exactly what questions and practice tests you have access to. This will help you to plan your prep, because you don’t want to use up all your resources early on and then struggle towards the end of your practice.

Don’t forget to try The Medic Portal’s free UCAT practice test to get a sense of how you’re doing!