Verbal Reasoning

The verbal reasoning section of the UCAT assesses your logical and critical thinking skills.

  • It consists of four passages with four questions each. 

  • There are two question types: True, false or can’t tell questions and inference questions.

Types of questions

Inference

For these types of questions, you need to make a conclusion based on the passage so they are more time-consuming because you might need to read the whole passage to get the correct answer. 

True/False/Can’t Tell

●     True - can be inferred /stated in the passage

●     False - cannot be inferred from the passage

●     Can’t tell - not enough information present.

●     It is relatively easier to know if the statement is true or false from the passage because there is usually a statement in the passage that affirms or negates the statement in the question but can’t tell is a bit trickier because you have to read the passage very carefully to make sure it is not stated in the passage and therefore a conclusion cannot be made.

●      Make sure not to use any prior information you may have about the topic and don’t make assumptions. It is vital to focus only on what the passage states.

Top Tips!

Look out for qualifiers in the passage and question 

  • There could be soft qualifiers for example might, could, possibly, some 

  • Or strong qualifiers like always, never and must 

  • You could read the passage first before reading the question or read the question first then read the passage, do some practice and figure out what strategy works best for you. 

  • Reading the passage first allows you to understand the questions fully and makes pinpointing what part of the passage the question is talking about easier but it can be a time-consuming approach.

  • Reading the question first allows you to pick out keywords and saves time however you might miss out on crucial information elsewhere in the passage and it also prevents you from understanding the text as a whole.

  • Pick out key things from the passage like key dates, verbs and nouns.  

  • Read the questions very carefully, it is very easy to miss out on keywords like not or except. 

  • If you're not sure, don't waste time on a question, make an educated guess, flag and move on. 

  • Read books, newspapers and articles to practice reading fast and picking out keywords. 

  • Don’t rely on your prior knowledge for this section, focus solely on what the passage states. 


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