Entrance Exams

If you want your child to go to one of UK’s best universities or study a complex and technical subject, there is a large chance that they will need to take an entrance exam. Certain subjects such as Law, Medicine and Maths your child might have to take specialised aptitude tests. If your child wants to study at Oxford or Cambridge, almost every subject requires your child to score highly in some tricky tests. If there is one critical mistake I have seen students make over the years, it's this: there is too much emphasis on other components of the admissions process, and then the student drops the ball with the entrance tests. Here are some ways to ensure your child does not do the same.

Start now.

Almost none of the entrance exams have content that must be memorised before taking the test. The content is either based on things your child has already studied in school, or the paper is testing the skills a student has rather than the knowledge they have acquired. For example, the Thinking Skills Assessment, which is the Oxford entrance exam for subjects such as PPE, asks students to read several paragraphs of text on random topics and then point out some of the biggest flaws or strengths in what they have been presented. A potential consequence? Students rest on their laurels, because they know they won’t have to spend hours regurgitating information. But in many ways, this makes the test harder. Your child cannot cram. Instead, they have to cultivate an aptitude for specific skills. So, your child should start early. As a rule of thumb, your child should start preparing a year before they will sit the test. In addition to all of this, your child needs to learn the format of the paper and learn it quickly.

They lie about not being able to practice.

Due to the skills-based nature of admissions tests, students sometimes worry that they cannot practice. They assume they either have “got it” or they haven’t. This could not be further from the truth. Consistent practice is one of the only ways students can hope to improve their scores. Some universities used to claim that there was no way to really prepare for the exam, but that is not true. I would advise you to tell your child to treat these exams the same way someone would prepare for a sport competition. You can only really improve by doing. The students I know who have succeeded are the ones who have done past papers over and over again. Almost every entrance exam has many practice papers online for free, so there should not be a barrier to entry.

Find others.

Another way to get additional information on the entrance exam is through reaching out to people who are either A) going to take the paper at the same time your child is or B) have taken the paper in the past few years (especially if they got into the university). You child could reach out to your school to receive contact details for previous applicants or ask their social networks for current test takers. A lot of papers are multiple choice, so when marking a paper, there are times where you cannot determine why an answer was wrong or why another answer is correct. Having a second voice who can also provide insight is invaluable.

There are more resources than you think.

Beyond the past papers that universities offer, there are countless other resources your child could access. For a relatively cheap sum, you can purchase additional papers from places such as Amazon. Beyond this, YouTube and the Student Room is your child’s best friend. There is a large bank of resources where people try to help each other out, as well as share experiences and provide advice. Using these in combination with practice tests can help provide a holistic view of the paper and provide additional advice that your child would not be able to obtain alone.

Thinking about an entrance exam can be stressful, but if there is one thing I know for sure, it is a lot less stressful than having to cram everything last minute. With these tips, I am confident that your child will have the tools and resources to gain a competitive score in these tests.

Deadline countdown (Sep '25 intake):

• Oxbridge or UK Medicine (Sep '25) - 15 October 2024 - 90 days left.
• USA Early Decision (Sep '25) - 01 November 2024 - 107 days left.
• MBA and Postgraduate (Sep' 25) - 01 December 2024 - 137 days left.
• USA Regular Decision (Sep' 25) - 01 January 2025 - 168 days left.
• UK Undergraduate (Sep' 25) - 29 January 2023 - 197 days left.