The relationship between school type and academic performance at medical school:A national, multi-cohort study

Acknowledgements We thank UKMED for releasing the data for this project via a competitive bid process. We are grateful to the following for their support of the application to UKMED for this and other research projects: Dr Sally Curtis (University of Southampton, UK), Dr Sandra Nicholson (Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, UK), Professor Peter Johnston (NHS Education for Scotland, UK) and Dr Rhoda MacKenzie (University of Aberdeen, UK). We thank Daniel Smith and Andy Knapton of the General Medical Council of the UK for their support for the application and throughout the project, particularly regarding data linkage and troubleshooting. We thank Dr Gordon Prescott (University of Aberdeen, UK) for the statistical support. Funding This study is part of Ben Kumwenda’s doctoral programme of research funded by the UKCAT Research Panel, of which JC and RG are members.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

A preliminary study of the relations between solar flares and solar magnetic fields

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Correction:The relationship between school type and academic performance at medical school: A national, multi-cohort study (BMJ Open (2017) 7 (e016291) DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-016291)

The paper should have the following Acknowledgements section: Acknowledgements Data Source: - UK Medical Education Database ("UKMED") UKMEDP26 extract generated on 12/08/2016. Approved for publication on 27/03/2017. We are grateful to UKMED for the use of these data. However, UKMED bears no responsibility for their analysis or interpretation. The data includes information derived from that collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited ("HESA") and provided to the GMC ("HESA Data"). Source: HESA Student Record 2007/2008 and 2008/2009 Copyright Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited. The Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited makes no warranty as to the accuracy of the HESA Data, cannot accept responsibility for any inferences or conclusions derived by third parties from data or other information supplied by it.</p

UKCAT and medical student selection in the UK - what has changed since 2006?

Background: The United Kingdom Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT) is an aptitude test used since 2006 within selection processes of a consortium of UK medical and dental schools. Since 2006, student numbers have increased in medical training and schools now have an increased focus on widening access. A growing evidence base has emerged around medical student selection (Patterson et al., Med Educ 50:36-60, 2016) leading to changes in practice. However, whilst some papers describe local selection processes, there has been no overview of trends in selection processes over time across Universities. This study reports on how the use of the UKCAT in medical student selection has changed and comments on other changes in selection processes.Methods: Telephone interviews were conducted annually with UKCAT Consortium medical schools. Use of the UKCAT was categorised and data analysed to identify trends over time.Results: The number of schools using the UKCAT to select applicants for interview has risen, with cognitive test results contributing significantly to outcomes at this stage at many universities. Where schools use different weighted criteria (Factor Method), the UKCAT has largely replaced the use of personal statements. Use of the test at offer stage has also increased; the most significant use being to discriminate between applicants at a decision borderline. A growing number of schools are using the UKCAT Situational Judgement Test (SJT) in selection. In 2018, all but seven (out of 26) schools made some adjustment to selection processes for widening access applicants. Multiple Mini Interviews (MMIs) are now used by the majority of schools. Whilst medical student numbers have increased over this time, the ratio of applicants to places has fallen. The probability of applicants being invited to interview or receiving an offer has increased.Conclusions: More medical schools are using the UKCAT in undergraduate selection processes in an increasing number of ways and with increasing weight compared with 2007. It has replaced the use of personal statements in all but a few Consortium medical schools. An increased focus on academic attainment and the UKCAT across medical schools may be leading to the need for schools to interview and make offers to more applicants.</p

Stable carbon isotopes of dissolved inorganic carbon for a zonal transect across the subpolar North Atlantic Ocean in summer 2014

The stable carbon isotope composition of dissolved inorganic carbon (δ13CDIC) in seawater was measured in samples collected during June–July 2014 in the subpolar North Atlantic. Sample collection was carried out on the RRS James Clark Ross cruise JR302, part of the “Radiatively Active Gases from the North Atlantic Region and Climate Change” (RAGNARoCC) research programme. The observed δ13CDIC values for cruise JR302 fall in a range from −0.07 to +1.95 ‰, relative to the Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite standard. From duplicate samples collected during the cruise, the 1σ precision for the 341 results is 0.08 ‰, which is similar to our previous work and other studies of this kind. We also performed a cross-over analysis using nearby historical δ13CDIC data, which indicated that there were no significant systematic offsets between our measurements and previously published results. We also included seawater reference material (RM) produced by A. G. Dickson (Scripps Institution of Oceanography, USA) in every batch of analysis, enabling us to improve upon the calibration and quality-control procedures from a previous study. The δ13CDIC is consistent within each RM batch, although its value is not certified. We report δ13CDIC values of 1.15 ± 0.03 ‰ and 1.27 ± 0.05 ‰ for batches 141 and 144 respectively. Our JR302 δ13CDIC data can be used – along with measurements of other biogeochemical variables – to constrain the processes that control DIC in the interior ocean, in particular the oceanic uptake of anthropogenic carbon dioxide and the biological carbon pump. Our δ13CDIC results are available from the British Oceanographic Data Centre – doi:10.5285/22235f1a-b7f3-687f-e053-6c86abc0c8a6

What impact has the United Kingdom Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT) had on selection to undergraduate medicine and dentistry in the UK?

The United Kingdom Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT) Consortium was established in 2005 with the aims of achieving greater fairness in selection to medicine and dentistry, widening participation in medical and dental training and improving the evidence base around selection in the UK. The UKCAT was first used in selection in 2006. This thesis aimed to determine the impact UKCAT had on selection to medicine and dentistry in the UK, to document the development of the organisation and to establish the extent to which UKCAT had achieved its original aims. Having established the research evidence base in existence in 2005, documents were reviewed to present a picture of both organisational and test development. A further literature review specific to UKCAT was undertaken alongside a systematic review of the literature relating to the predictive validity of the test. Drawing on data collected on an annual basis from universities, how the use of the test in selection had changed was described. A qualitative analysis of interviews with admission tutors was used to further evaluate the impact of the test and in particular the extent to which UKCAT had met its original aims. Findings indicate that UKCAT now plays a significant part in decisions made regarding most applicants to medical and dental training. The test has largely replaced the scoring of personal statements in selection processes and there is evidence that it predicts performance in medical school. The test is both an effective and efficient tool for discriminating between the many high performing candidates. Use of the test has not widened participation and universities have increasingly used the test differently in selection for this candidate subgroup. The landscape around selection continues to develop, impacted by developments in technology, COVID, increasing applicant numbers and the potential of post-qualification admissions. Drawing on the findings in the thesis, proposals regarding the development of the test, priorities for future research and the candidate experience are put forward to inform future developments in UKCAT. These include further evaluation of subgroup performance differences in the test, commissioning of future predictive validity cohort studies and exploring coaching effects on test performance

Can Large Language Models Create New Knowledge for Spatial Reasoning Tasks?

The potential for Large Language Models (LLMs) to generate new information offers a potential step change for research and innovation. This is challenging to assert as it can be difficult to determine what an LLM has previously seen during training, making "newness" difficult to substantiate. In this paper we observe that LLMs are able to perform sophisticated reasoning on problems with a spatial dimension, that they are unlikely to have previously directly encountered. While not perfect, this points to a significant level of understanding that state-of-the-art LLMs can now achieve, supporting the proposition that LLMs are able to yield significant emergent properties. In particular, Claude 3 is found to perform well in this regard

UCAT and dental student selection in the UK - what has changed?

Introduction The University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) has been used since 2006 by a consortium of UK medical and dental schools to assist in undergraduate selection. In 2019, UCAT was used by 30 universities (14 dental schools). Aim To report how UCAT use has changed in undergraduate student selection in the UK. Methods UCAT use was categorised and trends identified from annual telephone interviews with dental school admission tutors; this process started in 2011. Results Dental schools using UCAT rose from 8 (2006) to 14 (2020). The most significant use of the test to select applicants for interview was as a weighted factor; at offer stage, UCAT was most used to discriminate between applicants at borderlines. A growing number of dental schools are using the Situational Judgement Test (SJT) in selection (2019, n = 6). In 2019, eight schools adjusted selection processes for widening access applicants. Multiple mini interviews are now used by the majority (n = 10) of dental schools. Conclusions UCAT represents a significant factor in selection to UK undergraduate dental programmes and is used by all but two dental schools. In most schools, UCAT contributes in a substantial way to selection outcomes and strength in test use has grown over time

Transient Burning Rate Model for Solid Rocket Motor Internal Ballistic Simulations

A general numerical model based on the Zeldovich-Novozhilov solid-phase energy conservation result for unsteady solid-propellant burning is presented in this paper. Unlike past models, the integrated temperature distribution in the solid phase is utilized directly for estimating instantaneous burning rate (rather than the thermal gradient at the burning surface). The burning model is general in the sense that the model may be incorporated for various propellant burning-rate mechanisms. Given the availability of pressure-related experimental data in the open literature, varying static pressure is the principal mechanism of interest in this study. The example predicted results presented in this paper are to a substantial extent consistent with the corresponding experimental firing response data