21st March 2016
What Interviewers look for in prospective medical students (Part 1)
Many of the personal qualities that the HPAT aims to assess in prospective medical students are the same qualities that are required to be a good doctor. Whilst the HPAT can only assess what you put on a paper in multiple choice format; the medical interview that will follow, can look for these qualities in person. Your choice of words, body language, attitude and way of thinking will all b ...
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21st March 2016
One on one with a medical school interviewer
I was fortunate enough to have jumped through the hurdles that lie on the way to medical school, and there are quite a few benefits on the other side. One of these is being able to talk to doctors, health professionals or community members that have had previous experience as interviewers. The following is an excerpt from a conversation I had with a past interviewer to understand what they are ...
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24th February 2016
Building the right mind set for success on the day of the HPAT
From the moment you first hear stories of the HPAT and how difficult it can be until the first step you take to enter that exam centre, only you can decide the mind set and approach that will embody your HPAT experience. There are two ways to view this exam; either as a roadblock that is there to hinder you on the path to success or simply a stepping stone towards getting you into your dream c ...
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21st February 2016
PROBLEM SOLVING APPROACHES
There are many different approaches to problem-solving that have been established in psychology. Firstly, there’s the Thorndike paradigm, which involves blind trial and error1. More purposeful approaches are the Gestalt approach, and the cognitive approach. The Gestalt approach involves solving problems as a whole2. You see the problem, you see what you have, and then you try to see how every ...
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21st February 2016
Extra-curricular activities: important or irrelevant?
Amidst the stress of preparing for the HPAT and studying for your other exams, it may be tempting to not spend time on extra-curricular activities, so that you can focus on getting the marks you need to get into medicine. After all, they won’t contribute directly to your score, right? However, participating in extra-curricular activities, whether it be joining your local cricket team, volun ...
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21st February 2016
Navigating the LMS
For many students, HPAT preparation begins with enrolling in a HPAT tuition program such as MedEntry. But boy, there sure is a lot of stuff on here, isn’t there? How exactly should you use all of the resources, such as Practice Exams, Drills and Eureka? In this post, I’ll share how I navigated the MedEntry LMS to ultimately achieve 100th percentile in the HPAT. The HPAT is such an important ...
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1st February 2016
VIDEO GUIDES NOW EVEN EASIER TO ACCESS
The new LMS provides even easier access to your HPAT video guides. Simply click on the blue ‘Video Guides’ icon under the ‘Learn’ category to access all of your HPAT preparation video guides. On the LMS you will find video guides that cover all three HPAT sections: Logical Reasoning and Problem Solving, Understanding People and Non-Verbal Reasoning. You will also find specific guides coveri ...
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1st December 2015
MedEntry has a new-look Learning Management System
The LMS has a fresh new look and it is even more user-friendly than before! When you log in you will see that we have made it even easier to access all those awesome HPAT resources on the LMS. Put simply, you can select to either Learn, Practice, Check or Get Help. Learn..............instant access to the MedEntry guides, forums and extra skills development modu ...
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13th July 2015
Improving your HPAT skills in Logical Reasoning & Problem Solving / Section 1
Rather than assessing your knowledge, the HPAT is an exam which isolates certain deductive skills that will be important in work as a doctor and requires you to apply them in various scenarios. Therefore, if you wish to succeed in the HPAT, you will need to nurture these skills, sharpen them and know exactly when to use them. If your eager mind has begun this uphill climb towards HPAT success ...
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13th July 2015
How to identify and understand emotions in HPAT (Understanding People / Section 2)
Medicine is largely a people-oriented career, which is one of the reasons HPAT tests how well you can understand people in a personal and professional setting. Whilst you can try to “study” for this section of the exam, the best way to develop and refine your interpersonal skills leading up to the HPAT is via emotional reflection and understanding certain concepts. ‘Understanding People’ quest ...
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