UCAT ANZ guide for parents
A student applying for medicine straight from school in Australia usually has three hurdles to clear: their school results, including any subjects the course requires, the UCAT ANZ admissions test, and an interview. Each university weighs the three in its own way.
The UCAT ANZ is a computer-based test sat at a test centre in the middle of the final year of school. It measures reasoning under time pressure, not school content. It can be sat once a year, and a result counts for one round of applications.
A parent has three real decisions along the way: when preparation should start, what help is worth paying for, and what the plan is if an offer does not come.
These pages answer the questions parents ask along the way. The facts about the test itself are in the UCAT ANZ guides.
- When should my child start preparing?Start light in late Year 11, then build up. The full timeline to results.
- How do students get into medicine?The three hurdles and the three routes, in plain terms.
- Is paid preparation worth it?Not mandatory, though some find it helpful. The options compared.
- How can I help my child prepare?Routine, timed practice, Year 12 and when to step back.
- What if medicine doesn't work out?Resitting, a gap year, graduate entry and other health careers.
- What happens after the UCAT?Results, applications, interviews and offers, in order.
- How does it work in New Zealand?Otago, Auckland and when the test is actually sat.