Top Tips for UCAT Decision Making
9 months ago by Rob
In the UCAT Decision Making subtest students will be presented with a variety of question types. The questions presented are characteristic, but often unusual. It is therefore important that you practice answering Decision Making UCAT questions, and develop familiarity with each type.
This blog describes five key tips to help you answer Decision Making UCAT questions quickly and accurately.
Know the strategies for each question type
There are six major question types in the Decision Making subtest of UCAT:
- Logical puzzles: you are presented with a series of statements describing people or objects. You will be required to arrange or sequence them to solve a ‘game’.
- Syllogisms: You are required to evaluate whether a series of conclusions areise from a given set of premises.
- Recognising assumptions: you are required to consider a proposal, and identify the strongest argument for or against that proposal.
- Venn diagrams: you are either required to interpret a Venn diagram, or choose a Venn diagram which represents a series of statements.
- Probability: you are required to reason using basic probability principles.
- Interpreting Information: you are required to evaluate a series of five statements, deciding if the statement does or does not flow logically from the information presented. The information can be in the form of a passage or graph.
Each question type requires a specific approach to answer it efficiently and accurately. These strategies are outlined in detail in the MedEntry UCAT Course.
Identify and work on your weaknesses
Because each question type in the Decision Making subtest of UCAT requires different skills, it is important to gain an early appreciation of which question types you find most difficult. You should then work on those UCAT questions, learning the strategies required to approach them and practicing on them to improve your skills.
MedEntry makes this process easy by carefully analysing your performance, and identifying the question types which require more practice. You can then work on these specific types of question in the MedEntry QBank, UCAT subtest mocks and exams, allowing you to hone your skills.
Understand probability principles
Some questions in the Decision Making subtest of UCAT require you to have a basic understanding of probability principles. For example, you should understand the following concepts:
- Independent and dependent events
- Conditional probability and mutually exclusive events
Questions in the UCAT Decision Making subtest will often require you to set up and solve basic probability equations. It is vital that you practice doing this to maximise your score in this UCAT subtest.
Understand Venn diagrams
Many questions in the Decision Making subtest of UCAT require an understanding of Venn diagrams. You will be required to:
- Calculate the number of objects or people within various overlapping regions in a Venn diagram
- Interpret a Venn diagram to choose a conclusion which follows
- Choose an appropriate Venn diagram which represents of a series of statements
Furthermore, often creation of a simple Venn diagram is useful in answering syllogisms questions. Therefore, to succeed in the Decision Making subtest of UCAT, it is vital that you understand how Venn diagrams work, and how to interpret them quickly and accurately.
Use your noteboard
In the Decision Making subtest of UCAT, your noteboard is a very useful tool to answer questions quickly. It is useful to draw a table, diagram or Venn diagram to solve Decision Making questions. It can also help to note down key rules, and key calculations that need to be made to arrive at an answer. Writing down information not only reduces the load on your short term memory (which is vital in UCAT), but it also avoids making simple errors.
