Approach to Section 3

Section 3 is a test of your communication skills, skills which are vital to the professions BMAT test-takers wish to enter and to high scores throughout university exams. Therefore, you must be able to address a question in a concise and organised way to score well.

  • 30 minutes to write 1 essay

  • 1 side of A4 lined paper (and the question paper for planning)

  • 3 Titles to choose from (As of 2017, the vet question no longer exists).

  • All essays are marked by 2 examiners, and the average of the two scores yields your section 3 score.

  • A score of 3A or above is usually good enough to meet a cut-off, as part of a general application, obviously the higher the better.


The examiners will be looking to see when arriving at the score: 

  • Has the candidate addressed the question in the way demanded?

  • Rephrased the proposition / defined any obscure terms

  • Proposed reasonable counter-arguments

  • Proposed a reasonable conclusion which logically resolves the arguments of both sides.

  • Have they organised their thoughts clearly?

  • Have they used their general knowledge and opinions appropriately?

Any essay to which all of the above questions can be answered YES will score 3 or above.