Why Is The HPAT So Important?
1 year ago by Tom
The Leaving Cert, and its points system, is an important part of the process of being eligible to study at university. However, for those who want to study medicine, the HPAT (Health Professions Admission Test) is also a crucial component of the medical school admissions process. If you are an aspiring medical student, it’s vital to understand why HPAT is so important and why you need to prepare for it.
Here are three reasons why HPAT is important.
Without HPAT, you can’t study medicine in Ireland
Firstly, the HPAT is important because without it, you cannot study medicine in Ireland, regardless of your Leaving Cert points. The HPAT was implemented to assess various cognitive and interpersonal skills that are crucial in the field of medicine. Students are tested in their abilities in logical reasoning, problem-solving, non-verbal reasoning and understanding people. It was felt that such competencies should bear weight on an individual’s suitability to medicine. Whether you agree with the HPAT or not, it’s there for a reason and you have to succeed in it to be considered for medicine.
Leaving Cert points are adjusted when applying for medicine
The second reason HPAT is so important relates to how the HPAT and Leaving Cert points for medicine are calculated. A medicine applicant can achieve a maximum of 865 points when CAO and HPAT points are combined. This is because medicine applicants’ points are subject to adjustment once they surpass 550 points. Above 550 points, every bracket of five points is worth one point. For example, a student who achieves between 551 and 555 points is awarded 551 in a medicine application and a student with between 556 and 560 points, is awarded 552 points. This means that after adjustment, the maximum Leaving Cert points a student can obtain when applying for medicine is 565.
Given that most students applying for medicine are likely to excel academically, and likely to achieve in the range of 550 Leaving Cert points, the main factor that will distinguish between medicine applicants is HPAT.
In the 125 points' margin between 550 and 625 Leaving Cert points, medicine applicants are faced with only a 15 point difference. Even students who achieve full marks in the Leaving Certificate (625) can miss out on a place in medicine because of a poor HPAT score. Therefore, your HPAT score can have a huge bearing on whether or not you achieve the required points to get into medicine.
For example, University College Dublin is normally the highest points course for medicine in Ireland. Even students who got the highest possible results in their Leaving Cert still need to get at least 170 points (approximately 80th+ percentile) in the HPAT to gain entry into this course.
Medicine is a highly desirable course to study
Medicine is a highly desirable career and therefore, the road to medical school is a competitive one. The number of applicants always significantly outweighs the number of available places, resulting in medical schools seeking out candidates who demonstrate excellence both academically and in qualities that are displayed via HPAT.
As mentioned previously, it is likely that students eager to study medicine are among a stronger cohort of applicants that will excel in their Leaving Cert. With HPAT as the other core determining factor for entry into medicine, proper preparation for HPAT is essential to stand out among other applicants and gain admission to your desired medical school.
These are the reasons why HPAT preparation is so important, alongside your Leaving Cert study. So what are you waiting for? Start preparing for HPAT now!
