Even though taking the UCAT (University Clinical Aptitude Test) has been a common practice for medical and dental schools across Australia, New Zealand, and the UK for quite some time now, some students still experience some difficulties trying to prepare for it. Furthermore, it is quite hard pinpointing just what the problem is in most cases, considering there are quite a few tricky sub-tests within the UCAT.
Many are firm believers in taking the UCAT courses, which can definitely help you overcome the difficult Situational Judgement, Quantitative Thinking or Abstract Reasoning or any other subtest for that matter, although for many others – that’s just not quite enough. Those in need of additional help usually turn to UCAT tutoring.
Whether a UCAT tutor can help you or not is not up for a debate – they certainly can. However, many are wondering – is it really worth the extra time and money or are you just better off attending a course or preparing all by yourself. Well, we want to put an end to that debate and determine once and for all – is online UCAT tutoring is worth your time and money? To do that, we must see what it brings to the table. Let’s begin!
Understanding The Questions
First things first, you’ll need a good understanding of the question categories that make up the UCAT. That is, without a doubt, the first thing you’ll go over with your UCAT tutor. Understanding these question categories will make it a lot easier for you to give answers to them.
As you probably already know, the exam has 5 categories: Linguistic Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Thinking, Abstract Reasoning, and Situational Judgment. However, just knowing the names of categories is not enough.
UCAT is an ability exam, which means it doesn’t test your knowledge – it tests your abilities, your skills. That means that this exam is all about understanding how you have to answer the questions and who better to teach you that than a tutor who has already passed the exam and knows what you have to do to pass the exam as well.
You Can Start And Finish Whenever You Want
Unlike courses that take places in test centres (in the UK they don’t), when you sign up for an online tutorage, you won’t have to share a room with loads of other people. Instead, you have one-on-one time with your UCAT tutor at any time you please, for as long as you please.
UCAT Tutoring sessions have a major advantage over courses simply because you can take as many lessons as you need, without having to sit through or pay for unnecessary classes. You can start from wherever you want, you can start whenever you want and you can end the tutoring sessions whenever you feel like you’ve learned enough.
One-on-one online tutoring is absolutely personalized and tailored to your needs and wants – which makes it a much better option than all the others.
You’ll Cover A Lot Of Ground
As we’ve said in the beginning, the test is divided into 5 separate categories and each of those categories has an infinite amount of possible problems for you to solve. The best way to prepare for a scenario like that? Cover most of them.
With a personal tutor, you’ll go over thousands of possible and probable questions that you might end up with come the examination day. According to MedicMind, practising with these questions drastically improves your chances of passing the exam and getting into your dream school.
Naturally, not every tutor from every organization is the same, so we would recommend doing a little bit of research, particularly on this exact topic. Some tutors are part of the organization that provides you with these practice questions and some don’t and that’s something you need to find out beforehand.
It Saves Time And Money
What’s funny about online UCAT tutoring is the fact that a personalized, one-on-one approach could be more affordable than a standard course. You’ll agree that that’s not usually the case with personalized programs. However, as we’ve previously mentioned, the ability to tailor your work with your tutor is what makes this method great.
As far as money is concerned, you could just need an hour or two with a tutor, just to go over some minor details you’re not certain about, which would cost you significantly less than an average UCAT training course. Additionally, you wouldn’t have to travel to a training facility, which would also save you a few bucks. Factor in the coffee or a snack you’d have while out and about and you can see how this could be a real money-saver.
Now, as far as time goes, you’re pretty much guaranteed to progress faster with a tutor than alone or as a part of the group. Not only will you only cover the essentials, meaning the things you actually need help with, but also, one-on-one tutoring is much more efficient than a group setting where everyone is on a different level and you have to tend to everyone’s needs at the same time.
It’s Safe And Comfortable
You can’t be safe enough nowadays. We’re in the midst of a worldwide health crisis and you have to do all that’s in your power to stay safe. Online UCAT tutoring is as safe as it gets. There’s no human contact, you’re communicating via the internet and you’re sitting comfortably in your own home.
Speaking of comfort, many recent studies have shown a drastic increase in productivity and efficiency with people that are working and studying from the comfort of their own home. Peace and comfort are often overlooked and neglected, but in reality, they’re one of the key components of success.
First-hand Insight
Last, but not least, when being tutored, you always have an insight into how much you’ve progressed. Your UCAT tutor will have a keen understanding of how much you’ve progressed over time, as well as clear insight into what you need to improve and work harder on, which could be very beneficial for you.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are quite a few things that UCAT tutoring brings to the table and when you consider all of them – it’s hard not to see how this could help improve your chances of acing the test. Our final verdict would be – yes, the online UCAT tutoring is very much worth it and you shouldn’t mind investing your time and money in it.
