UCAT 2026 Changes Explained: Abstract Reasoning Removed and New Scoring

The UCAT has been restructured, and if you are preparing from older materials you need to know what is no longer on the test. The biggest change is that Abstract Reasoning has been removed entirely. The exam now has three cognitive sections — Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making and Quantitative Reasoning — alongside the Situational Judgement Test. With one section gone, the total score has changed too: the cognitive sections are now scored out of 2700 rather than the previous 3600. Decision Making has been expanded and now carries more questions and more time than before. Situational Judgement is unchanged in spirit and is still reported in bands rather than a single numerical score.

Here is the current structure (always confirm the latest timings on the official UCAT website, as they can be fine-tuned between cycles). Verbal Reasoning: 44 questions in 22 minutes. Decision Making: 35 questions in 37 minutes. Quantitative Reasoning: 36 questions in 26 minutes. Situational Judgement: roughly 69 questions in around 26 minutes. Each of the three cognitive sections is scaled from 300 to 900, giving a total out of 2700. Situational Judgement is reported in Bands 1 to 4, with Band 1 the strongest. The headline takeaway: Decision Making is now the most time-rich cognitive section, so it deserves a proportionate share of your preparation.

Abstract Reasoning was removed because it added less predictive value than the other sections and was considered highly coachable — students could drill pattern-spotting without it reflecting the reasoning skills medicine actually demands. Trimming it focuses the test on verbal, logical and numerical reasoning that map more closely onto clinical thinking. There is a strategic consequence worth understanding. With three cognitive sections instead of four, each one carries more weight in your total, so a single weak section now hurts more than it used to. Balanced preparation across all three — rather than leaning on a strong section to rescue a weak one — matters more under the new format.

Three practical adjustments. First, stop using any practice materials that still include Abstract Reasoning; that time is better spent elsewhere. Second, reweight your schedule towards Decision Making, which now offers the most marks and rewards method. Third, make sure your questions and mocks reflect the 2026 format and scoring, so your practice scores actually mean something. The simplest way to start on the right footing is to benchmark yourself on the current format. You can take a free MediSpoon diagnostic to see your performance across the three cognitive sections and the SJT, so you know exactly where to focus from day one.