What skills do I need for Section I?

As for all sections of the UMAT® Exam, Section 1 does not require to memorise any information, however in order to do well, you must have mastered (and honed) several important skills. The main skills involved in solving Section I questions are:

• understanding and deconstructing schematic information

• performing basic quantitative manipulations of data

• identifying relevant information and synthesizing it in a schematic way

• distinguishing between necessary, sufficient and contributory causes/conditions

• applying deductive inference  

• distinguishing between correlation and causation

• identifying patterns in data and making plausible hypotheses

• complex problem solving

Most questions require multiple skills but as you begin your UCAT training, it is important that you identify and work on the skills in which you are the weakest. A good UMAT® Exam preparation course will usually provide practice UMAT questions tagged by skills, which will allow you to practice a specific skill.

I’ve tried to summarise here what each of these skills involves:
 

Understanding and deconstructing schematic information

• May include plots, pie charts, bar charts, tables, flow charts, drawings…

• This skill is most frequently required in ‘data interpretation’ but may also be involved in ‘problem solving’ and ‘scientific experiments’-type questions

• You should aim to be familiar with the most common types of graphs and make sure that you understand all the basic concepts such as axes, abscissa, ordinate, coordinates and slopes. Look out for common sources of confusion such as confusion between absolute numbers and frequencies, the presence of non-linear scaling on the axes or mixing up distance, speed and acceleration.
   

Performing basic quantitative manipulation of data

• May include basic arithmetic or unit conversion
• Can be required in any of the categories but most frequent in “data interpretation” and “logical reasoning”-type questions
• You should aim to become confident at performing simple arithmetic without a calculator. Learn to check if potential answers are far apart enough that calculations can be approximated. Be familiar with the metric system and unit conversion
   

Identifying relevant information and synthesizing it in a schematic way

• Relevant information must be extracted rapidly from dense and complex excerpts. Creating flow chart or diagrams to organise information is often the most efficient way to achieve this.

• You should aim to improve your reading skills and attention to detail in complex excerpts. Practice active reading: underline text as you read and take notes quickly in a schematic way.
   

Distinguishing between necessary, sufficient and contributory causes/conditions

• A cause or a condition can be sufficient, necessary or contributory

• Understanding these basic concepts is essential to solving questions in all categories

• You should aim to understand the difference between these concepts and learn to identify words that are generally markers of causality (verbs such lead, generate, cause…) and conditionality (if, in the event that…), as well as words that may indicate necessary causes (is required, is necessary, is essential, is a pre-requisite…), sufficient causes (always, guaranties…) and contributory causes (contributes to, a factor in, adds to…).
   

Deductive inference: categorical, conditional and disjunctive syllogism  

• Syllogism questions are frequent in the UMAT® Exam, but sound deductive skills are required for all types of questions

• You should aim to understand the 3 main types of syllogisms: conditional syllogisms (if A is true, then B is true), categorical syllogisms (if A is part of C and B is part of A, then B is part of C), disjunctive syllogisms (either A or B are true but both cannot be true). Practice solving them quickly and learn to use Venn diagrams to help you.

• Remember that UMAT® Exam examiners like to use absurd, counter-intuitive statements in their syllogism questions, so practice ignoring your common sense on these.
   

Distinguishing between correlation and causation

• Many types of questions hinge on that distinction, and it is also a vital part of making hypothesis in “scientific experiment” questions

• You should aim to be able to recognise when a common/opposite trend in 2 variables is due to:

        1.   chance

        2.   the variation of an unknown 3rd variable while the 2 variables displayed have no direct effect on one another

                3.   the effect of one variable on the other
 

Identifying patterns in data and making plausible hypotheses

• This is a complex skill, as it requires mastering most of the above-listed skills. It is the most important skill in “scientific experiment” questions

• You should aim to become familiar with the main concepts in scientific experiments, such as controls, replicates, double blinds and get as much practice as possible on real UMAT® Exam questions.
   

Complex problem solving

• Solving puzzles can be challenging and no single strategy/drill can be recommended, however the following approaches may be of use

• Divide and conquer: break down a complex problem into smaller, solvable problems

• Abstraction: solve the problem in a more simple/familiar model before applying it in the real system

• Trial and error: test each possible hypothesis until the correct/incorrect one is identified

• Lateral thinking: approach solution indirectly and creatively. For instance, you may try to rephrase the problem: instead of saying A is inside of B, you may say that A is NOT outside of B or even that A must be smaller than B

• Common errors/hurdles:

 

Avoid unnecessary constraints: don’t place boundaries on the task if they are not explicitly stated in the problem e.g. if you are asked to connect several dots, don’t assume that you must use a continuous/straight/curved/single line unless it is explicitly stated

Avoid functional fixedness: this is when you can’t find the solution because you can’t see past the most common function/meaning of a known object. For instance, you may struggle to solve puzzles that involve unnatural syllogisms, as in a statement such as “If all cows are birds and all birds are planes”, it can be hard to dissociate your common knowledge of what a bird is to think of it only as a part of the group “plane”.

Avoid mental set: learn to be comfortable with several approaches to solving a given problem. This is to avoid always falling in the same pattern and be stuck using a potentially time-inefficient strategy. 

 

Good luck and happy studying!