Advice from past candidates
Each year, more than 35,000 students take the UCAT. We spoke with some of our highest-scoring candidates to gather their best tips and advice for future test-takers.
Eloise scored in the top 1% of 2025 candidates, we asked for her top tips
"I found it helpful to do a practice test then spend the next week working on those skills. Set up a spreadsheet of your scores to see your progress.
Still take part in recreational activities and schedule practice around this - the UCAT shouldn't be your entire life.
Before beginning the test, take a minute or two to relax yourself so you can start in the best mindset. You know you've done what you can, and panicking won't change this."
This 2025 candidate scored 2520 using the official preparation resources on our website
"I didn't use any outside resources and I think this contributed to me scoring highly because I had a very realistic expectation of what the exam would be like.
Students really don't need to pay for any outside resources. I found restricting myself to the official questions, starting with the question banks and then using mocks the last week before my exam was useful and sufficient. I felt that using unofficial resources could actually be counter-productive to performance as they are usually harder than the actual official mocks and so cause you to lose confidence which is essential for getting a good mark on the day."
Go to our official preparation resources
Booking your test
"Book early! I booked for the end of June and this meant I had the summer holidays to look forward to without the stress of an exam and also meant I wasn't going to be over prepared."
Score: 99th percentile, 2025
Getting used to test conditions
"I made sure to set up my computer as similarly to test conditions as I could."
Niamh scored on the 98th percentile in 2023
Specific Advice
We have identified some groups of candidates who may benefit from specific information. General information about the UCAT applies to all candidates.
Here are some top tips pulled together from candidates who scored within the top 3% in recent years:
