3rd July 2025
Options for Studying Medicine: In Ireland and Abroad
The easiest, cheapest and most direct route into medicine in Ireland is the undergraduate route, which requires you to sit HPAT. However, if you have not been able to gain entry into medicine via this route, there are other options for pursuing medicine. Studying medicine in Ireland Studying medicine in Ireland has many advantages, including: Being able to remain in ...
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1st July 2025
Didn’t Do Well in HPAT? Here’s How to Bounce Back in 4 Steps
The HPAT is one of the two criteria for undergraduate medicine in Ireland, often holding equal weighting to the Leaving Cert. There are many factors that can influence performance in HPAT, and receiving a lower mark than expected may feel like all our efforts have gone to waste. I’ve been there before, and although it may feel like the end of the world (I certainly felt that way), I can ...
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25th June 2025
I Didn’t Get a Good Enough HPAT Score. What Should I Do?
After spending months working through HPAT guides, completing practise exams and labouring over difficult drills it can be devastating when HPAT results day arrives, and you realise that you have not achieved a good enough HPAT score to get into medicine. It is completely understandable that to feel extremely disappointed, but it is very important that you have a clear idea of the other option ...
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25th June 2025
How to Interpret Your HPAT Results
HPAT results have been released! You will have received an email from ACER with details on how to access your results. This blog contains information for how to interpret your HPAT statement of results. What do the numbers on the HPAT Statement of Results mean? Your HPAT Statement of Results will display two measures of your performance: HPAT score and HPAT percentile. ...
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25th June 2025
HPAT Results: What to Do With Your CAO
HPAT results are usually released in late June. After months of waiting to find out your HPAT results, it can feel quite overwhelming to finally receive them! After all of the hard work and preparation for HPAT, everyone wants to get a great HPAT score. However, it is important to know what to do if things don’t go as well as you had hoped. It’s not the end of the world and if you ...
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24th June 2025
HPAT Results Will Be Released Soon! Here Are Some Frequently Asked Questions and Answers Regarding HPAT Results
HPAT results are due to be released in late June. You may have questions about your HPAT results, how they are calculated and what they mean. This blog seeks to answer those questions. When will I receive my HPAT 2025 results? You will receive your HPAT 2025 results in late June. ACER does not normally release a specific date when HPAT results are made available, ho ...
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24th June 2025
Medicine, the HPAT, the CAO and One BIG Mistake to Avoid
For any Leaving Certificate students hoping to go on to study medicine, the HPAT (Health Professions Admission Test) and the CAO (Central Applications Office) are two well-known abbreviations which are of great importance to you as you prepare for life after the Leaving Certificate. For me, I wasn’t certain until the very end of 6th year as to what exactly I wanted to do after school. ...
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2nd June 2025
5 Tips for Leaving Cert Exams From a Current Medical Student
So the dreaded time of the leaving cert exams has rolled around once again and I’m sure many of you are trembling in your seats at the mere mention of it. But trust me when I say that I can completely relate with you. This time last year I was in your position, getting ready to sit the leaving cert, my head flooded with feelings of excitement and anxiety for what lay ahead. I know t ...
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15th May 2025
Distributed Practice and the HPAT: What You Need to Know Part 2
In part 1 of this blog, we looked at why it is important to study with distributed practice for the HPAT. In part 2, we will look at how to implement distributed practice into your HPAT plan. How to implement distributed practice for HPAT Here are some tips and strategies on how to best use distributed practice in your HPAT preparation (you can also use them in your secondary ...
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15th May 2025
Distributed Practice and the HPAT: What You Need to Know Part 1
Over the last few years various catch-phrases have circulated in the education sector: “study smarter not harder”, "do less work for more reward” and others. They can seem too good to be true. Nevertheless, there is one system that eclipses all others in the research conducted, the widespread implementation and the unanimous praise it has received from sci ...
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