UCAT Timings: How to Tackle the Hardest Part of the Exam

Imagine ball bearings dropping into a metal bucket.

As each one drops, it clangs and pulls your attention away from your task. Your heartbeat quickens and your eyes just can't help glancing over to the bucket.

That's what the UCAT feels like if you walk in unprepared for the time pressure.

In fact, given that only around ⅓ of applicants get into medical school in the UK (¼ for dental school), getting on top of this is essential. 

Table of contents

Why are UCAT timings important?

Creating a plan to save time in the UCAT

UCAT test time

UCAT section times

• Verbal Reasoning timing
• Decision Making timing
• Quantitative Reasoning timing
• Abstract Reasoning timing
• Situational Judgement timing

Medify's UCAT mock timing statistics

Why are UCAT timings important?

• The exam is deliberately time-pressured as a way of differentiating students. Timing is one of the main ways you can improve with practice.
• Learning how to ‘play the game’ intelligently can boost your score without any additional knowledge.
• Being short of time creates stress, which leads to poorer performance. Regular practice keeps you cool and focused.

Creating a plan to save time in the UCAT

The key to UCAT timing is a solid preparation plan. Read up on how to create a plan and prepare for the UCAT.

This one is worth pulling out all the stops for, so you get it right first time.

Try some free UCAT practice questions to help you with your preparation

UCAT test time

The UCAT is a two-hour computer based assessment with five sections.

Some are more time-pressured than others, but all require speed of thought and strategy.

Find out about the average UCAT score for each section

UCAT section times

‍
We’ve updated all of our mocks and mini-mocks to reflect the latest UCAT UK changes.

Verbal Reasoning timing

Minutes: 21

Questions: 44

The key to timing in Verbal Reasoning is how quickly you can interpret written information.

This is arguably the most time-pressured section, with only 28 seconds per question and very large texts to read.

Explore UCAT VR tips‍ and try our VR Inference Trainer (included with all UCAT Online Course packages)

Decision Making timing

Minutes: 31

Questions: 29

Decision Making has some easy questions you'll breeze through and others that could trap you and waste your time.

The main issue is the variety of possible questions. This is a great place to focus your practice and work on creating solid routines.

Explore UCAT Decision Making tips

Quantitative Reasoning timing

Minutes: 25

Questions: 36

The key to QR timing is mastering the UCAT calculator and knowing when and when not to use it.

Part of this is improving your ability to guesstimate answers at speed to save time.

Explore UCAT QR tips and try our QR Calculator Speed Trainer (included with all UCAT Online Course packages)

Abstract Reasoning timing

Minutes: 12

Questions: 50

Once you've mastered the different types of recurring problems in this section, it shouldn't pose a timing issue.

The article linked below outlines the SCANS mnemonic and some other tricks to save time.

Explore UCAT Abstract Reasoning tips

Situational Judgement timing

Minutes: 26

Questions: 69

Some questions may just be reading a short text and marking an action as 'appropriate' or 'inappropriate', while others require more thought.

Solid exam techniques can prevent you getting stuck on questions. 

Explore UCAT Situational Judgement tips

Medify's UCAT mock timing statistics

Medify's UCAT Online Course features mock timing statistics, where you're able to view all your timings and scores for each question:

This allows you to compare your time per question data across all sections of your mock exams and gives you a comparative view of the average time Medify users take to reach a correct answer. 

Your weaknesses can easily be spotted through this feature that shows your exact strengths and weaknesses.

Unanswered questions? Check out our UCAT FAQ article

Summary

Timing is critical to performing well in the UCAT.

VR is often considered to be the hardest section in terms of timing. Read our tips and tricks articles above to create your UCAT revision plan, as targeting your weaknesses and sticking to routines increases your speed.

Ultimately, the best way to improve your timing is by doing timed UCAT practice questions. Medify has over 20,000 – the largest UCAT question bank in the world!