Mastering the BMSAT Test in 2024: General Preparation Tips And Section Strategies
In this blog, we provide students with general BMSAT preparation advice (how to structure your prep, adjust your mindset and gear up for the test), as well as specific guidance on how to approach different questions and useful resources for preparation.
What is the BMSAT and how is it different from the BMAT?
As of 2024, the BMSAT is replacing the BMAT for admission for medical science for 2025 entry to Oxford University. The BMSAT is a computer-based test which students have 90 minutes to complete. The test consists of 80 questions and is split into four subjects with 20 questions devoted to each: Maths, Physics, Chemistry, Biology. The BMSAT is very different to its predecessor. It only tests GCSE level content and no longer has an essay component. While this change may feel intimidating, there are lots of ways you can boost your preparation for the BMSAT and build confidence, despite the limited sample resources available. This BMSAT blog offers useful guidance for how to hone your subject knowledge and confidently approach the Oxford BMSAT exam.
General preparation for the BMSAT
Get used to shifting gears
The BMSAT is essentially four different exams back to back. Your GCSEs have prepared you to sit each subject in isolation, generally on different days, whereas this paper asks you go to apply yourself across a range of subjects within the same 90 minute exam. It’s important to practise the different sections back to back and get used to shifting gear between them.
Use your time well
The start of year 13 is a stressful time for Biomed applications. Not only is the pace of your subject studies increasing, but you have to send in your personal statement and prepare for the BMSAT. , Make a timetable of when you want to begin BMSAT revision based on how much time you can realistically devote to it. We recommend doing a little bit most days and starting earlier than anticipated. This is going to be much less stress-inducing than cramming in the final two weeks. Additionally, have a plan of what you are covering each day to maximise efficiency e.g practice questions, wider reading, or science revision.
Look after yourself
This follows on from the last point; application time is a tough period but you can get through it! Give yourself a day off each week from anything and everything Biomed and focus on your wellbeing. Don’t burnout before you even get an interview!
How to Prepare for the BMSAT
The best way you can prepare yourself for the BMSAT is by ensuring you know GCSE level content back to front. Unlike the BMAT, which tested beyond the syllabus content and Medical knowledge, the BMSAT only tests GCSE content. However, just because the content is GCSE doesn’t mean the questions will be as straightforward. The BMSAT will be testing your ability to apply GCSE content in new ways and to new question types, so you need to be confident in understanding (not just reciting!) GCSE content for the BMSAT exam.
BMSAT Preparation Tips:
Make sure you understand the underlying theories and processes behind the content you’re learning. A great way to do this is to try and explain it to someone else (e.g. a friend or a parent).
Make sure you cover content from other GCSE syllabi, not just the one you’ve studied. Different exam boards will require you to know different information. Here are the national GCSE syllabus for sciences and Maths. These documents can be used as a useful specification for your BMSAT revision but you need to be sure you also practise applying it in new and challenging ways.
Don’t be thrown if content feels unfamiliar. The BMSAT paper is designed to challenge you but you should be able to answer every question with your understanding of GCSE content. By staying calm and finding ways to apply what you already know to you to the questions, you will likely be able to get to the answer.
Make sure you memorise your formulae! You won’t be given an equations page in the BMSAT exam so you need to know and memorise important GCSE formula. This is especially true for Physics where lots of the questions rely on you knowing the formulae to solve them.
Where can I access BMSAT resources?
As the BMAT was only introduced for 2025 entry, there are relatively few resources available online. The University of Oxford are uploading a BMSAT practice test here, though you can already access a sample test of 20 questions here.
The limited BMSAT resources available means it’s important to be smart with how you practise.
One way to prepare for the BMSAT is using past BMAT papers. Section 2 of the BMAT exam is particularly similar to the new BMSAT exam, so this can be a great starting point for your preparation. While your exam won’t be the same format, the questions will challenge you and test your application of GCSE knowledge in similar ways to the BMSAT.
Another useful option, is going back to GCSE past papers. BMSAT questions will vary in their structure and be less straightforward than GCSE questions; however, they are useful way to reinforce your understanding of the content. If you select some of the more challenging application of knowledge questions from different GCSE exam boards, these will more closely simulate the BMSAT. Equally, you could look for A Level questions that ask you to apply GCSE knowledge in a new way.
Taking the time to collate practice resources is a worthwhile way to allow you to test and consolidate your knowledge and practise applying it in ways similar to the BMSAT exam.
If you’d like, a U2 Tutor can create supplementary resources in the style of the BMSAT specimen to give you more opportunities to get comfortable with the exam format and practise answering BMSAT-style questions. They will also provide you with tailored feedback and revision support to improve your BMSAT performance
Tips for the BMSAT Exam
Tip 1. Read the question stem first
The questions have a lot of information in them and it can become very time consuming to attempt to assimilate the information before reading the stem and going back to find the relevant bits. If you read the question stem first you’ll be able to filter out the less relevant bits as you read the extra information. After you have glanced over everything, read the question stem again to make sure you have interpreted it correctly.
Tip 2. Not all questions are the same
Some questions will stump you; this test is not designed for you to get 100% on. However, the questions are all worth the same number of marks. If you have read through everything and don’t know where to start then move on and come back to it later, you’ll be subconsciously processing it as you continue so you might have better luck second time round.
Tip 3. Learn to Love Estimating
There is no calculator in the BMSAT, despite some of the questions seemingly deserving one. Work on your mental maths to whittle down the time spent working through the maths answers but, ultimately, estimating saves the most time. A few of the questions will have stupid calculations involved that will take too long to get an exact answer for, and you will probably make an error anyway. The multiple choices reflect this uncertainty and are different enough that rounding and estimating will still guide you to the right answer.
Tip 4. Keep your cool and trust you know the answer
While BMSAT questions might look intimidating, remember that a lot of questions are asking you to look at already familiar content from a new perspective and testing your ability to apply your knowledge in new ways. The worst thing you can do is panic because you don’t recognise the name of a process or experiment and assume you won’t be able to answer the question. Stop, breathe and think: is it similar to any other process you covered at GCSE? Could you make an educated guess based on your knowledge of scientific principles?
Tip 5. Get familiar with the online format
Make sure you devote a small chunk of your preparation time to actually getting familiar with the online exam format. You can use the sample test to get to grips with the online portal and logistics of the test, giving you one less thing to worry about on the day.
How can a BMSAT tutor help me with BMSAT prep?
Working with a BMSAT tutor is a really useful way to streamline and enhance your Biomed application. U2’s team of BMSAT tutors have all studied at Oxbridge themselves and are highly knowlegable about the Biomed entrance process, keeping up to date with changes. Having studied the subject themselves, they are familiar with the range of ways in which GCSE knowledge can be applied and tested in the BMSAT exam and are therefore uniquely placed to support students with their BMSAT preparation.
A U2 BMSAT tutor can create bespoke resources for students. This will allow them to gain a better sense of what the exam looks like and feel more prepared to sit it. It will also give them ample opportunity for practice which is a huge advantage when there are few past paper resources available. The tailored feedback of a BMSAT tutor will allow students to quickly improve, targeting their areas of weakness and building their knowledge for the BMSAT entrance exam.
Looking for wider support with your Biomed Application?
We’ve created a great guide to crafting an excellent personal statement for Biomedical sciences which you can read here.
Our co-curricular division, Minds Underground™, also has a range of informative resources available, such as our Mind-Enhancing Articles Medicine section. Sign up to our Curious Minds newsletter to be sent interesting STEM resources (ideal for personal statements) to your inbox each month.
We host a Medical Club every Saturday during term times, where you will discuss & critique the latest medical issues and news, hosted by our Oxbridge medics. The Club is a precursor to our Medicine Summer School, which takes place June-August, see PDF.
In November, we also host an online mock interview day specifically tailored for Medicine and Biomed applicants. Find out more here.
How can U2 help prepare you for the BMSAT & wider Biomed application?
U2 offer admissions test preparation either as part of our wider Medical School/ Oxbridge Mentoring programmes or as separate ad hoc tuition (book a free consultation to discuss options).
The Process:
1) We suggest an Oxbridge Biomed graduate as a mentor and send their full CV for review. Our mentors are deeply familiar with the admissions process to study Biomedical Sciences, and we have tutors who specifically specialise in BMSAT admissions test preparation.
2) We typically suggest beginning with a 1.5 hour informal assessment/ taster session, where the mentor will informally assess the student’s current performance level for test (and interview if desired). Following this, we issue a report with feedback, and structure a plan to best prepare.
3) BMSAT Session Components:
Our customisable BMSAT course is five sessions of two hours each. N.B. This can be customised to the student depending on the level of support required, but gives an indication of what preparation with a BMSAT tutor can involve/ how it would be structured.
Frequency of sessions can be decided between student and tutor. Honing the skills necessary to succeed in the BMSAT test can begin early in Year 12. When the student and mentor run out of past papers, they will work through similar questions curated by the tutor. We offer BMSAT practice online or in-person in London.
Individual sessions from £70/h.