• My percentiles are not improving. What should I do?

  This can happen. It is important not to be disheartened; there are several reasons why your percentile may not increase. Some of these are: Even though you are improving, all other MedEntry students you are being compared to are also improving. This is especially true of the latter exams, as only the most prepared and able students complete these exams. You are therefore being compared against a much tougher cohort of students. The manner in which exams are completed is not standardised. SomFew readers

• My percentiles are really low.

  It is important to note that the percentiles given are MedEntry percentiles. This means you are being ranked against other MedEntry students, not the wider HPAT cohort. This is important because MedEntry students have been given the benefit of training and are generally more motivated, hard-working and able than other students. Thus, you are being ranked against a much more able cohort than you will be when the HPAT exam occurs. For this reason, a percentile that may not look impressive (for exaFew readers

• Is the overall MedEntry exam percentile weighted?

  Yes. MedEntry weights the overall percentile feedback for individual exams in the same way as the actual HPAT exam (40/40/20 for sections 1/2/3)Few readers

• The percentiles that I get are sometimes high and sometimes low. Why is this?

  It is normal for your scores and percentiles to change over the course of your preparation. Several factors impact the score you receive during a mock exam - for example, your level of concentration, stress, timing technique - even luck with guessing! Answering just a few questions incorrectly or correctly can make a big difference to your scores and percentiles. It is important to avoid placing too much emphasis on the ups and downs of your practice scores from week to week, and avoid spendingFew readers

• Why aren't there percentiles for drills?

  Percentiles are not provided for drills because they are not accurate and may be misleading. This is because students can attempt the drills more than once. For example, someone attempting a drill for the first time could be compared against someone who has attempted the drill ten times. In contrast, percentiles are provided for practice exams because students attempt the exam once.Few readers

• How are percentiles for MedEntry's exams calculated?

  Percentiles are calculated by comparing your performance in OLP exams with those of other MedEntry students who have completed that exam. In order to ensure percentiles are as accurate as possible, only those students who complete exams under timed conditions have their exam data used for calculation of percentiles. Students who do not complete exams under timed conditions are still provided with percentiles, however, they are advised that the percentiles given may be an inaccurate indication ofFew readers

• What does 'percentiles' mean?

  A common question that students have is: "I got 24 questions right out of 48, why isn’t my percentile 50?" The answer is that percentage is not always the same as percentile. So what is a percentile score and what does it mean? The technical definition for percentile is: "The value below which a percentage of data falls" whereas a percentage score indicates the proportion of a test that someone has completed correctly. For example: A class of 20 students had the following scores on their most reFew readers

• What is a good HPAT score?

  The HPAT score required to get into medicine depends on various factors, including the university/course to which you are applying and your leaving cert score. In general, a HPAT percentile of at least 80 is usually required. For information on the scores required to enter various courses, please read the information in the University Admissions course on the OLP. RemFew readers

• My raw scores are not improving.

  Remember that it is the not the raw score or percentage of correct answers that the HPAT Consortium is concerned with; it is your percentile. This seemingly subtle difference is very important. Your ultimate scores are a rank against all other candidates who are attempting the test. This is why the number of correct answers in the practice exams does not matter in itself. What matters is that you are improving, becoming more comfortable with questions and understanding concepts. Please note thatFew readers

• My practice exam result comes up as 'insufficient student attempts'.

  A certain minimum number of student attempts is required for an accurate percentile to be calculated. If the message "Insufficient student attempts" comes up, it means that not enough MedEntry students have attempted that exam. When enough students have attempted the exam, a percentile will be displayed.Few readers

• My percentiles are changing. Why is this?

  While the database is being populated with grades from students, you may find that your percentiles fluctuate. Note that the percentiles are dynamic and are instantaneously updated as more students attempt exams.Few readers