7 August 2023
By email
: [FYI request #23446 email]
Tēnā koe Thomas
I refer to your information request dated 9 July 2023 made under the Official Information Act 1982
(the Act). You have requested information in relation to the UCAT thresholds for entry to the 2024
Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MB ChB) and Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS)
programmes at the University of Otago.
Please see below our responses to each of your questions.
1. The UCAT thresholds determined for the commencing class of 2024 for the MB ChB and BDS
programmes. If they have not been determined yet could a follow up be sent once they
have been.
MB ChB:
The MB ChB UCAT criteria is set annually by the University’s Medical Admissions Committee. The
UCAT thresholds for entry to the 2024 MB ChB programme have not been set yet. They are expected
to be set in December 2023.
In case it is helpful, the thresholds for entry to the 2023 MB ChB programme were as follows:
• Verbal Reasoning: threshold set at or above the 20th percentile.
• Situational Judgement: threshold set above the lowest 10th percentile.
• Scores for Decision Making, Quantitative Reasoning and Abstract Reasoning were not
considered.
BDS:
The BDS UCAT criteria is set annually by the University’s Dental Admissions Committee. The UCAT
thresholds for entry to the 2024 BDS programme have not been set yet. They are expected to be set at
the end of September 2023.
In case it is helpful, the thresholds for entry to the 2023 BDS programme were as follows:
• Verbal Reasoning: threshold set at the bottom 22nd percentile.
• Decision Making: score of 630 or above met the threshold.
• Scores for Situational Judgement, Quantitative Reasoning and Abstract Reasoning were not
considered.
As noted above, the 2024 UCAT thresholds for the 2024 MB ChB and BDS programmes have not been
set yet. Accordingly, we have declined this part of your request pursuant to section 18(g) of the Act as
the information requested is not held by the University, and there are no reasonable grounds to
believe it is held by, or more closely connected with the functions of, another agency. We would
welcome a new request from you later in the year if you are interested in receiving the 2024 UCAT
thresholds once they have been confirmed.
2. If any exemptions are/have been made for UCAT scores for any reasons such as:
a. Candidates missing the set threshold for a specific section by 5%-10%
b. Candidates missing set thresholds in one section by receiving good scores in others.
c. Situations in which UCAT threshold scores are waived for candidates.
Domestic applicants across all categories for both programmes (except the Alternative category for
MB ChB), must have a valid UCAT score. However, the Medical and Dental Admissions Committees
may, from time to time, decide not to apply the UCAT thresholds to specific categories. For example,
for entry to both programmes in 2023, the thresholds were only applied to applicants applying via the
General and Rural sub-categories for Health Sciences First Year and Graduate category applicants.
No exemptions are made for individual UCAT scores as applicants must meet the thresholds in order
to be considered for admission where the thresholds are applied. The thresholds are considered to be
strict, therefore candidates missing the set thresholds by 5% - 10%, or missing the threshold in one
section but receiving good scores in the others, are declined entry to the MB ChB and BDS
programmes.
3. If candidates for the programme who have not met the thresholds set previously have had
their application further considered for admission into either of the programmes regardless
As noted above, no exemptions are made for individual UCAT scores as applicants must meet the
thresholds in order to be considered for admission where the thresholds are applied. Applicants who
do not meet the required UCAT thresholds are ineligible for entry to the MB ChB and BDS
programmes.
I trust that this information will be helpful.
If you are not satisfied with our response to your information request, section 28(3) of the Act
provides you with the right to ask an Ombudsman to investigate and review this response. However,
we would welcome the opportunity to discuss any concerns with you first.
Yours sincerely
Kelsey Kennard
Official Information and Compliance Coordinator
Office of the Registrar