Unlike the UKCAT, the BMAT 2018 assesses a combination of aptitude and knowledge testing a broad range of skills across three sections:-

1. BMAT Section 1 (Aptitude & skills)
2. BMAT Section 2 (Scientific knowledge & applications)
3. BMAT Section 3 (Written communication)

The exam is a two-hour pen and paper test, which you can sit in September or October 2018. You can find out more about each section of the exam below:-

BMAT SECTION	What does it test?	Question Format	Timing
Section I	Generic skills in problem solving, understanding arguments,& data analysis & inference.	35 multiple-choice questions	60 Minutes
Section II	The ability to apply scientific knowledge typically covered in school Science & Mathematics by the age of 16(i.e. GCSE in the UK & IGCSE internationally).	27 multiple-choice questions	30 Minutes
Section III	The ability to select, develop & organise ideas,& to communicate them in writing, concisely & effectively.	One writing task from a choice of three questions	30 Minutes

BMAT September is an alternative test date for BMAT in October. The test will have the same format & will be scored in the same way as the October test & results from either session will be considered equally by the institutions/ courses participating in BMAT September, so when you take the test is your choice (although please note that if you are applying to Oxford, you will need to take the October exam). For BMAT September, you must register yourself online for the test when registration is open. However, for BMAT October, your school/college/ test center needs to register you for the test when registration is open.

You can see key dates for 2018 below:

	BMAT September	BMAT October
Registration opens	25th June 2018	01st September 2018
Registration deadline	12th August 2018	01st October 2018
Late registration deadline	No late registration deadline available	15th October 2018
Test date	01st September 2018	31st October 2018
Results released to test takers	21st September 2018	23rd November 2018

Should I Take the Exam in September or October?
Ultimately, this is your choice – but remember you can only take the test once in the application cycle!
However, it’s worth noting that whereas before you could only sit the exam after submitting
your UCAS application,the new test session in September means you can now find out your BMAT score before applying to medical school. This means you can apply strategically with
both your UKCAT and BMAT scores in hand. In addition, don’t forget that if you’re applying to Oxford you will need to sit the exam in October – even if you’re applying to other medical schools accepting September results. When you decide to take the test will depend on a variety of factors – for example, how much time you will have over the summer for UKCAT preparation, work experience, extracurricular and other commitments.

• Band A: Good use of English – clear, fluent, good use of grammar & vocabulary.
• Band C: Reasonably clear use of English – reasonably fluent, some errors.
• Band E: Rather weak use of English – not easy to follow, faulty grammar.

• Score 1: the essay has some bearing on the question but does not address it fully.
• Score 2: addresses most of the question, but has significant elements of confusion.
• Score 3: reasonably well-argued, may have weakness in the argument.
• Score 4: good answer with few weaknesses, all aspects of the question are addressed.
• Score 5: excellent answer with no significant weaknesses.

Each medical school will use the exam differently, & this can even vary within a university (for example, different admissions tutors in Oxford or Cambridge). Generally speaking, the results will be used in conjunction with your GCSE scores & UCAS points to decide who to invite to interview. Some universities place more emphasis on the score than others when allocating the weighting that your score will contribute overall. Not all BMAT universities will officially announce how they use the exam — so it’s essential you maximize your score in all sections! Want to know how different BMAT universities use your BMAT scores? See our table below!
Please note that this is only a guide – we recommend visiting each individual university’s website for the most up to date information.

University	How do they use the BMAT?
Oxford	Your chances of being short-listed rest on a number of factors, although we do rely heavily on BMAT scores and GCSE performance (where available) during short- listing. You should bear in mind that as we short-list the same number of applicants every year, and we use two variables (which carry the same weight), there is no actual BMAT cut-off. How well you need to do in BMAT will be entirely dependent on how well every other applicant does, and how well you have done in GCSEs (if you have taken them). A slightly weaker performance at GCSE may be compensated for by a very good BMAT score, and vice-versa. However, to offer a rough guide, we would suggest that the typical average applicant should be working towards a 6 (a 7 is still fairly rare) in sections 1 or 2; do note that sections 1 and 2 receive greater weighting (40% each) than section 3 (20%).
Cambridge	BMAT score used alongside Personal Statement and grades.
UCL	BMAT scores used alongside UCAS application. No cut-off but high scores in each section will strengthen an application; Section 3 essay used as discussion in interview.
Imperial	BMAT cut-off scores are calculated each year, as a result of ranked candidate BMAT scores versus number of expected interview sessions. As a result, the absolute BMAT cut-off changes each year. However, the BMAT cut-off scores from previous admissions cycles may be used as a guide. For 2017 entry, the minimum scores required were: a score of 4.5 in section 1; a score of 4.6 in section 2; a score of 2.5 and grade B in section 3.
Brighton and Sussex	BSMS scores the BMAT out of 28 (9 marks for Section 1, 9 for Section 2 and 5 marks for each element of Section 3) we then rank all applicants according to their total score out of 28 and work down the rankings to fill our interview places. For 2017 entry, applicants without contextual data who scored 17.5 or above were invited for interview (the cut off score will vary each year).
Leeds	We have decided to a method similar to our previous use of UKCAT using the total score offered by each candidate which will be compared with all the other applicants to Leeds scores. Those in the top 20% will receive the full mark available for this part of their application and those in the bottom 20% will receive the lowest mark available for this part of their application. From this you can see that we do not use a pre-determined cut-off threshold. The BMAT total score will be calculated from a sum of the scores achieved in section 1, 2 and 3 although section 3 will have half the weighting of the other sections as it will be revisited during the interview stage of the selection process. We will initially weight the BMAT score in the same proportion which we used to give the UKCAT i.e. roughly 15% of the weight given to academic scoring and half that given to the personal statement.
Lancaster	Lancaster Medical School calculates the total BMAT score by combining the individual scores for Sections 1, 2 and 3. Section 1 is scored out of 9; Section 2 is scored out of 9; and Section 3 is scored out of 5 (for quality of content). We do not use the quality of English score (A-E).