These questions can be answered from various perspectives or angles: emotional arguments, and rational arguments using decision-making theory.
We understand how difficult it is to choose a UCAT prep and the intricacies of navigating through the complex medical admission process. You have come here because you already know that MedEntry is the best UCAT prep course, and you are trying to decide which of our packages is the best for your needs. But here are some further reasons why past students have found MedEntry superior for their Medical Entry guidance. If you are looking for the cheapest product, we are afraid MedEntry is not for you. If you are not serious about medical/dental school, then MedEntry is not for you, either.
Best Reviews
- Don't just take our word for it, check out the hundreds of glowing Google and Facebook reviews of our workshops posted by our happy and successful students. MedEntry's global offices have over 4000 reviews at a star rating of 4.9+, far exceeding that of any university. It is common to see the following feedback: 'The best lecture I have ever attended'. MedEntry has better and more reviews on Google by far, compared to any other prep organisation. If you can trust Google, you can trust MedEntry!
- If an organisation (like most others) has no or few reviews, its a sure indicator that they are over promising and under delivering.
- Quality Guarantee: We are so confident in the unbeaten quality of our teaching, philosophy and ethos that we offer this guarantee to you: Find any educational institution with more and higher ratings on Google and Facebook than MedEntry, and we will offer our course for free!
- Law of Large Numbers: Always go with the provider about whom you have information from a large sample size; not just because one or two people recommended. With MedEntry, you can publicly view postings on the independent Google Reviews from over 3000 past students. That is at least two orders of magnitude more than that for other UCAT providers.
- Organic rankings on Google: When you search for 'UCAT’ on the internet, the first UCAT Prep (or few) entry is MedEntry (in organic, not paid Ads). Google for example takes into account numerous factors such as trustworthiness, reviews, quality, longevity of the company etc of sites in their rankings. If you can trust Google, you can trust MedEntry!
- If any students/parents do not choose MedEntry for UCAT and medical interview training, it is most likely because they would not have done their research. Don't become another victim of and get sucked in by, the snake oil salesmen!
Quality Preparation
- We do research and develop our teaching based on our own analysis of thousands of UCAT questions, our own decades of expertise in medical education, our experience in teaching medical students, as well as looking at an enormous number of sources as well as attendance at relevant international conferences. Let us do the hard work for you, so you can concentrate on revising and practising.
- Our UCAT teaching workshops are based on andragogy principles to make it personal. There is plenty of time for interaction, small group activities and videos to keep you focused. Our aim is for you to have fun while learning.
- There is intense time pressure in the exam. We will teach you techniques to help you answer questions quickly, efficiently and elegantly. We will also provide advice on how to revise and make a study plan.
- All students are provided with UCAT exams and practice questions delivered via the latest online platform that exactly replicates the live UCAT. Since the computer platform is created by us (not licensed to us by an external company like other prep courses), we can provide authentic advice on the best way to practice using the UCAT platform.
- Since most of the best and motivated students from top schools in Australia and New Zealand choose MedEntry, you will be interacting and learning with the best.
- We have the collective wisdom of over 25,000 students whom we helped get into med schools, in addition to our own unparalleled expertise.
- We have been in aptitude testing game (using Online Learning Platform) for longer than any in the world (since 1998): US tests such as SAT are not truly aptitude tests: they are more like achievement tests. UK ones started in this game only since 2010. No other prep institution has been around as long for preparation for med entry aptitude tests and has as much experience (in AU, IE, UK, NZ).
- We’ve seen hundreds of prep companies come and go, over the last 22 years, because they offer poor quality service. The fact that MedEntry is the only institution to last all this time in the medical entry space means that we provide quality service - our trust is earned.
Decision making theory
- Time, Place, Number argument: If a large number of people across time and place are doing something, it must have some fundamental basis/value to it. Large numbers of practising doctors (over 20,000) have used our services for over 20 years, across various countries including Ireland and New Zealand.
- Decision making theory is based on the fundamental principle: Expected Value = Probability x Benefit. If you think the probability of getting into medicine will increase by 1% by doing the MedEntry course, the probability is 0.01 (or 0.5 if you think it will increase by 50%). The benefits include tangible and intangible benefits. Intangible benefits are things such as a lifetime of satisfaction in pursuing the career that you always wanted (which may be difficult to quantify). Tangible benefits are easier to quantify: if you don’t get in and have to go to Bond, Melbourne or Macquarie University, you will need to pay about $400,000. If you don’t ever get in, it is x $ million in lost income. If the Expected Value as calculated above is higher than what you have to pay for the MedEntry UCAT course, it is worth it. Otherwise, it is not! So, do this simple calculation!
- Probabilistic thinking: If there is 1% chance of winning a lottery worth 4 million dollars, how much should you be willing to pay to buy that lottery ticket? Try this before reading on for the answer! Anything below $40,000 is worth it. Apply such thinking to any decision in life, including decisions of whether to spend money for UCAT Prep!
- If a $500 course helps you ace the UCAT which has 90% failure rate that you would otherwise have failed and have to wait at least a year (the opportunity cost of one year of lost earnings plus $300 to resit and stress due to uncertainty), you have got a bargain. The number one advice from Financial Advisers on how to become financially independent and retire early if that is what you want: "Start earning early. Compounding is the eighth wonder of the world."
- Rational and smart decision makers tend to choose MedEntry for their UCAT prep, because if you have done your research, you will find our UCAT program far superior in every respect (some emotional decision makers may choose other prep). Further, independent and motivated learners tend to choose MedEntry, so when you learn with MedEntry, you are learning with the best.
Give it your best shot!
- Research shows that those who are happy in life are likely to be those who were able to pursue the career they wanted. Can you put a value on happiness? The intangible value is invaluable. Do you want to lead a life where you will always feel, "I should have given it my best shot?" - which is one of the regrets of many people later in life?
- If you have doubts about whether medicine is the career for you, ask yourself, "Would I be having this doubt if I got a perfect score on the UCAT?"
- You need to give the effort you know you could give - not for your parents or anyone else, but purely for the freedom that comes with knowing that you did your best. You want options. If you didn't go to medical school, you don't want it to be because of some test. You don’t want to feel imprisoned by the exam. Don’t you want the freedom to choose your path, rather than have it chosen for you?
- Some students may do well without doing our program: but such students will do even better if they participate in our program. Remember even in the 99th percentile there is a big range in scores. There are several benefits of reaching your highest possible potential: you will be ranked even higher, so you will be more likely stay in a city campus rather than being posted to a rural campus; universities keep your entry ranking throughout the course and use it in various ways; if you are ranked high enough you may even be offered a scholarship.
- Research on 'What we regret' shows that 54% of people regret education/career related matters (e.g. that they didn’t try hard enough). Compare this with the next most common regret: partner choice/romance which is only 15%! Do you want to be one of those 54% of people? Doing MedEntry course will be worth it, because it is less likely you will have such a regret.
Help for your ATAR and future career
- The thinking and test taking skills you will learn during the MedEntry UCAT course will help you in obtaining a higher ATAR and it will also be useful for GAMSAT prep in case you need to sit that test. It will also be useful for any career since you will hone cognitive skills required to be successful in ANY profession.
- Research published has shown that those who "aim high at school" are destined for later success, whatever career they pursue later in life. Medicine is by far the hardest course to get into, in most countries.
- Most students say that attending the MedEntry UCAT workshop has increased their motivation, and made them a more efficient and effective learner. Additionally, some inside knowledge and information that is not available elsewhere is provided at the UCAT workshop.
- You will be able to network with motivated and able students from various schools in your city, other states and overseas – many of whom will be your colleagues in medical school. For several reasons, only the most able and motivated students attend the MedEntry workshop, so you can discuss UCAT questions and efficient, effective and elegant ways of arriving at the answer. With MedEntry, you will be learning only with the best students.
- You will hear from current medical students about how they used MedEntry to obtain excellent scores on the UCAT, as well as what to expect from studying at university. It is an invaluable opportunity to obtain first-hand tips from people who have gone through it all before, and to be able to ask any questions you might have about the UCAT or university.
- We offer discounts and guaranteed entry into our sought-after MedEntry Medical Interview Training workshops in November for students who are enrolled in our Platinum Package - after which over 97% of students obtain an offer.
- We will teach you proven methods that you can use in all areas of the exam (as well as school/University) to boost your scores.
Don't settle for second best
- Would you let someone who couldn’t get into medicine, teach you, on how to get into medicine?
- Avoid double disappointment: one for getting a low UCAT score and the second for not prepping properly using a trusted UCAT provider such as MedEntry. MedEntry provides peace of mind by being a risk-free, trusted, quality prep for UCAT and interviews.
- What is important in UCAT is not the percentage of questions you get right, but your percentile ranking. If you only use the free UCAT practice tests, you will not know your true percentile ranking (how you are performing in relation to other students), or your strengths and weaknesses. Because most students who prepare for UCAT do MedEntry and most students who get into medical schools do MedEntry, you will be able to compare your performance in the practice tests with the best students in Australasia. When you do MedEntry, you can be confident that you are learning with the best!
- There are many preparation providers around - many of them have little or no expertise but have slick websites and marketing; numerous 'one-man' bands, con-artists etc They also over-promise but under deliver. Some deliberately set out to criticise market leaders (MedEntry) and make baseless allegations to cover their own inadequacies, lack of competence and quality. Beware of these!
- Choosing the right preparation provider can be critical in whether you enter medicine or not. Choose a trusted, proven and recommended med entry preparation course! Go with the internationally trusted brand.
- Some students engage in poor quality UCAT prep (by tutors, school based coaching, online, or 'free taster' courses) and think it is sufficient. Remember that if a service is free, you are not the customer but the product! Such students also assume that the MedEntry workshop will be similar. Nothing could be further from the truth. There is massive difference in outcomes of professional services (legal, accounting, health etc) depending on the service provider you choose. The improvement could be as little as 0% to as high as 100%. The same is with educational services, in particular UCAT prep. Invest in your future with a Trusted UCAT prep institution.
- We offer our own independently created questions (by our expert item designers and validated by psychometricians) so that you have everything you need for your preparation. We do not use any external company's resources (as is the case with other prep companies). We decide which questions are best. Since we teach using the resources we create, there is authenticity, alignment, relevance, passion and value in what we do.
- We hear reports of competitors criticising us on trumped up charges (during their courses and on forums run by them). Doing so demonstrates their insecurity, poor quality products, unsubstantiated aggrandised claims of their services, results and overall unprofessionalism. That alone should a warning for you to stay clear of them. MedEntry's team is comprised of doctors and academics - we pride ourselves on providing quality products in a professional manner.
- Steer well clear of those companies which provide only a post office box number or email address (and not a street address) and no landline number. They are likely to be 'fly-by-night’ operators! They also make exaggerated and misleading claims of 'partnerships’ with various organisations.
- Situational Judgement test questions are based on the Australian code of ethics for doctors. The health system is different to the UK's National Health Service. Our courses are targetted to the Australian and New Zealand systems of health and codes of practice.
- Our courses involve several full days of instruction (unlike other courses which are often only one day long).
- There are several reasons why the UCAT Official site will not provide you with the full range of questions that are likely to appear, and will not advise you on efficient strategies for solving them. One reason is that the more you know, the harder their job becomes in creating difficult questions with a high point biserial coefficient.
- The 'UCAT Consortium’ recommends using up-to-date prep material: books will not be up-to-date, wheres as online resources can be and are updated by MedEntry constantly and become live immediately.
- Beware of the "Free" seminars that turn out to be marketing scams. Their sole aim is to spam you by emails, phone calls, and engage in such aggressive selling tactics.
- There is lots of misinformation about MedEntry’s services: being the leaders, competitors particularly target us. The only thing most of them are good at, is in bagging the competitors! They also make outrageously false claims about themselves (eg various partnerships with multiple universities, reviews, success rates)
- Australian students tend to do better than UK students in UCAT, particularly at the critical top end of the bell curve, because most such students are better prepared with MedEntry. MedEntry offers boutique prep without the high price tag.
- Since most students who get into medicine use MedEntry, you benefit from the "Network Effect"
Further Reading
Please read "About Us" on the MedEntry homepage.
Please also read the following related important FAQS:
Under: About MedEntry:
- Why should I choose MedEntry?
- Does the MedEntry program really work?
- Why are there conflicting opinions on the usefulness of UCAT Preparation?
Under: Products & Services
Under: UCAT Workshops
Under: Does MedEntry UCAT Prep help?
- Do I need to train for the UCAT?
- Does MedEntry program really work? Where is the evidence?
- Is it essential to attend a UCAT Workshop?
- Do I need to train for my interview?
- I hear that the UCAT is hard, so why shouldn't I pursue the graduate medical entry path?
Under: UCAT: