How to Prepare for the BMAT: The Ultimate Guide

The BMAT is a university admissions test required for entry to NTU Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine and several UK medical schools (only four of which are recognised in Singapore – Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial and UCL).

In a separate article on university admissions tests, I explicitly state that you can DIY your way through the preparation without spending a single cent. This is especially true for the BMAT, where everything you need, from exact details of the test format to seventeen years’ worth of past papers, can be found on the official BMAT website.

I agree wholeheartedly with Oxford when they advised, quite bluntly:

So with that, let’s go ahead and discover how you can prepare well for the BMAT and attain your desired results without wasting any money at all.

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Step 1: Get to know the BMAT test format

Take a look at this helpful overview of the test format, based on the official BMAT website:

Section	What does it test?	Questions	Timing
Section 1: Thinking Skills	Generic skills in problem solving and critical thinking	32 multiple-choice questions – 16 on Problem Solving – 16 on Critical Thinking	60 minutes
Section 2: Scientific Knowledge and Applications	The ability to apply scientific knowledge typically covered in school Science and Mathematics by the age of 16	27 multiple-choice questions – 7 on Biology – 7 on Chemistry – 7 on Physics – 6 on Mathematics	30 minutes
Section 3: Writing Task	The ability to select, develop and organise ideas, and to communicate them in writing, concisely and effectively	One writing task from a choice of three questions	30 minutes

Then, save and scan through the BMAT test specification (PDF). That’s it. Everything else you’ll be able to glean from looking through and attempting the practice papers.

Step 2: Brush up on key concepts tested in BMAT

How can I identify what I need to revise?

That’s where the BMAT test specification document comes in handy. The important part to look through in greater detail is really “BMAT Section 2: Assumed Subject Knowledge” from page 7 onwards.

All the content required should have been covered in school for Chemistry and Mathematics. So really what you need to pay special attention to is only the Biology (page 8) and Physics (page 25) sections.

If you did not take Physics in Junior College (e.g. BCMX)

Generally, for BMAT Physics, everything should have been covered in secondary school, except P3.3: Force and extension, P3.6: Momentum, and the whole of P7: Radioactivity.

Here are extremely useful PDF documents where I’ve clearly highlighted the content that you need to learn or revise:

If you did not take Biology in Junior College (e.g. PCMX)

Generally, for BMAT Biology, everything should have been covered in secondary school, except B1.2 Prokaryotic cells, B6.2 Stem cells, and B9.5a Communicable diseases.

Here are extremely useful PDF documents where I’ve clearly highlighted the content that you need to learn or revise:

How can I revise all the content as efficiently and effectively as possible?

When I just started my BMAT preparation, I spent ages digging up my old secondary school notes and downloading past notes and documents. I downloaded an eBook and tried to read through the Physics section. I even borrowed JC Physics lecture notes from my friend. In the end, I used none of those.

That’s because I discovered that there’s an amazing resource on the BMAT website itself that will give you all the content knowledge you need to study.

BMAT Section 2 Guide – The best and only resource you’ll need

To access the BMAT Section 2 guide:

1. Click on the link above (or on the BMAT website: Preparing for BMAT > Section 2 preparation).
2. Click on Access the guide.
3. Click on Create new account at the bottom of the page.
4. Enter your username, password, and details, and click on Create my new account.
5. Click on the link sent to your email to confirm your account.
6. Sign in at the login page.
7. (Optional: Bookmark the course page for quick access in the future.)

You will get access to texts that cover every point in the BMAT test specification for Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Mathematics. This resource is good enough. In fact, it’s the best and you can rely solely on it.

Some reasons why I like this resource so much (and why it was the only one I used):

• It is not overly lengthy unlike typical textbooks. This makes it easy to read and digest. Furthermore, it contains just the right amount of information, considering that all the questions will be MCQs i.e. you do not have to be able to write any explanations with exact phrasing.
• It is organised exactly according to the BMAT test specification. It covers every item on the list, in that sequence. That makes it so easy to find the part(s) you need and target your revision to certain sections. It also makes it superior to your own notes (since none of your secondary school or JC notes were based on the BMAT specification).
• It is published by UCLES – the examination board that sets the BMAT test. Not only does this mean that the content is tailored to the BMAT, you can expect reliable and accurate information. With other online sources or notes, you can never be 100% sure of their credibility. (Quote Oxford: “Companies and individuals offering help with BMAT do not have a special insight into the nature of the test.”)

TLM Biology Notes – Relevant sections for BMAT

The A-Level H2 Biology notes on this site are condensed into the main points for each topic, complemented by a wealth of useful diagrams. Same for the O-Level Biology notes.

BMAT Physics Formula Sheet

Generally, your approach to any BMAT Physics question is:

1. Write out the values given in the question.
2. Work out which formula to use based on the variables given.
3. Rearrange the formula and solve the equation.

Step 3: Do (tons of) BMAT practice papers

Start from earlier years and work towards the most recent ones

Past papers are available from 2019 going all the way back to 2003. Explained answers are provided for the specimen paper and 2014 paper only.

I recommend starting from the earlier years (e.g. 2012) and working your way to 2019. (Ignore 2003 to 2008 first in case you don’t have time to finish that many.) This is so that you’ll be doing the most recent years’ papers close to the date of the actual test.

Plan everything out before you start

Have a calendar or a simple list of dates where you can plan out exactly which papers you’ll do on which day. You can integrate it with your A-Level revision timetable. (This initial planning step basically ensures that you’ll be able to finish the number of papers you set out to do.)

I began my BMAT revision proper only after Prelims. I started with one BMAT paper a day (alternating between Section 1 and Section 2), while going through a few sections of the BMAT Section 2 guide every day. Only six days before the test date did I bump it up to two papers (Section 1 + Section 2) a day.  

Always time and score yourself

Timing is so important, especially for BMAT in which the main challenge is finishing the paper on time. Not once did I finish a practice paper within the time limit. (I remember taking roughly 1.5 h for Section 1 and 45-50 min for Section 2.)

Scoring gives you an idea of where you stand. With every practice paper, therefore, aim to improve both your timing and your score.

Recommended course of action for every BMAT practice paper

1. Set a timer (1 h for Section 1, 30 min for Section 2) and start doing the paper.
2. Stop doing the paper once time is up and mark out which questions were not attempted. Start a stopwatch and complete all remaining questions.
3. Add up the total time taken and record this on your paper.
4. Mark your paper. Use the score conversion provided with the answer key to obtain your BMAT score (leaving out all questions not attempted within the time limit). Record this together with your raw score on your paper.
5. Review your mistakes and any questions you were unsure of.

Step 4: Familiarise with BMAT Section 3

Section 3: Writing Task is the where preparation may seem the most futile. You can, however, take concrete steps towards improving your score. The first is to get a good idea of what the task demands.

Read through the Section 3 marking criteria

Reading the Section 3 marking criteria gives you a general idea of how you’re being graded. You should be getting A for “quality of English”, although 5 for “quality of content” is much harder to attain.

Read sample BMAT essays

I didn’t find the sample responses given on the BMAT website extremely helpful. (They give three samples with examiner comments, graded 3.5A, 2.5A, and 3A – not exactly the scores you should be aiming for.)

You can read those, taking note of the examiner comments. But also try sourcing for “model essays” that you can emulate. (You may want to borrow books from seniors or the library to ensure quality and not waste any money.)

Step 5: Try writing a few BMAT essays

Confession: I think I only wrote one complete BMAT essay for practice. This is because I half-thought it a waste of time and effort since the questions we’re getting will be entirely different anyway.

But if you do try, time yourself (30 min) and print out the single-page Section 3 answer sheet to simulate the actual test. Also, I’ve compiled all the BMAT Section 3 questions available on the BMAT website (2004 to 2020, and Specimen) into one document for easy reference.

P.S. I was sort of going with the above approach. I did try to read up before the test. In the end, the 2019 “medical” question turned out to be: “Teamwork is more important for surgical innovation than the skills of an individual surgeon.” Well. So another piece of advice: just use common sense and prior knowledge (e.g. content you remember from GP).

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List of free downloads on this page

1. BMAT Biology Specification – Not in O-Level Syllabus
2. BMAT Biology Specification – Not in A-Level H2 Syllabus
3. BMAT Physics Specification – Not in O-Level Syllabus
4. BMAT Physics Specification – Not in A-Level H2 Syllabus
5. TLM Biology Notes Relevant Sections for BMAT
6. BMAT Physics Formula Sheet
7. BMAT Section 3 Past Papers

List of recommended resources for BMAT preparation

Free online resources

1. BMAT | Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing – the official BMAT website
2. BMAT practice papers | Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing – 17 past papers from 2019 to 2003 and one Specimen paper (explained answers provided for 2014 and Specimen)
3. BMAT Section 1 guide | Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing – 7 example questions for Section 1 which you can work through to familiarise with the types of questions that can be asked, before doing the practice papers
4. BMAT Section 2 guide | Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing – the amazing ‘textbook’ (notes) covering all the required content knowledge for Section 2

(Almost no other resources are offered for free. Neither are they half as good as those you can access for free from the official BMAT website, as listed above.)

Books (completely optional)

1. How to Master the BMAT by Chris Tyreman and Christopher See
2. Mastering the BMAT by Christopher Nordstrom, George Rendel, and Luke Baxter

(Books are not necessary. However, if you want to get any books then just stick to one of these two. You don’t have to get “700 BMAT questions” or any books of the sort since you won’t even finish all the practice papers on the BMAT website anyway.)