Mature student - msap test tomorrow!

H16

Hi,

I have been offered a conditional place at uni and now have to sit the msap test tomorrow. So it all hangs on this.... having spent the whole day looking up on forums and what people have said that have took the test in the past I am now filled dread! The example one they give didn't give me much confidence but now from what people have said I am more in a panic. Apart of me now wishes I hadn't bothered!
Do you know what score you have to get to pass it?
I am 30 now and my school days seem a very distant memory plus I've had kids since then and sure 75% of my brain has evaporated :rolleyes:

My interview went well but does everything hang on this test now. Not told many people as scared how thick I'll look if I fail it as uni has already offered me a place - anyone done the test??

Korasa

Yeah, I and a few hundred others sat the MSAP in February. I thought it was the only date the test would be offered this year. Odd. But yes, took the exam and it was certainly a bit difficult but not massively so. It focuses on written English and reasoning if you are going into humanities and social sciences. There is also a science paper to be taken if you are going into a science subject.

Only advice I can really give you is to read through the questions intently, especially in the multiple choice section. Make sure your writing is up to scratch as you will be expected to write two short essays for module one. They also expect you to stay on topic when it comes to the essays, no drifting off on random tangents. They are looking for meaningful content, not fluff.

I wouldn't worry overly so on spelling, they are willing to overlook incorrect spelling for the most part as long as it isn't too glaring. Also, time management is key here. You are only allotted one hour per module. Many people found writing two essays in one hour rather difficult, myself included. The essays don't need to be massive, a page and a half to two pages seemed to be an average. That said, take 5 minutes to plan out your essay. Look up some essay templates on Google, helped me a lot.

Lastly, and i know this seems hard at the moment, but try and keep calm. If your mind is racing due to anxiety it is difficult to form a coherent thought so before the exam, take a minute to take a few breaths and calm your nerves. Keep calm and you will do fine.

Well, that's about all I can offer anyway. I got 110 in the exam if it is of any interest to you and that score seems good enough to have gotten me a place in uni.

Best of luck to ya!


( if there is something I haven't covered in enough detail please feel free to ask)

honb

Hi i am in the same position as you i am also 30, passed through interview and personal statement. And iv a conditional offer that i get a decent score on msap. I sat it yesterday at salford university. How did you find the test? X

H16

Hiya,

Yea I was at salford uni yesterday aswel, what table number were you? - how awful was that??!!
I am seriously 90% sure I have failed. The essays were the most stupid choices to choose from and I actually sat there for the first 10 minutes just staring at it hoping it would either change before my eyes or the ground would open me up and swallow me whole!
The questions were mainly guesses.

What course have you applied for?

honb

I was at 33. No essay choices wasn't great. I just made the most if them. And maths was awful my answers were more a process of elimination then guesses between what was left.iv applied for counseling and psychotherapy. I thought there could have been more support before test . Alother hangs on these results! What have you applied for? What table were you at? Xxx

H16

sent you a private message

Wotsits

Hi, I took the MSAP at Salford as well. I think I did okish in part one, although its hard to tell but at least I finished the essays. Part 3 however was so difficult. I ran out of time before I managed to finish the paper. When the examiner said 10 minutes left, I'd only done about half the paper, so I just had to make rough guesses at what was left. What is really frustrating is not knowing what score you need to get in order to pass. Do we need to get most of the questions right or half or what? Really disappointed in myself as I thought I would do much better in that section and It was the essays I was most worried about.

H16

I thought it was all fairly hard if I'm honest. My last section was mainly just guesses anyway, some i didn't have a clue!
I don't know what the pass rate is, not sure if it depends on the course or a set score.
I do know the results are out 22nd june (this sat) not sure if we find out then or just the uni but either way won't be long now!

Good luck to you

Wotsits

Hi H16, good luck to you too :-). Everyone I've spoken to about the test so far has said they found it difficult as well, i'm hoping this will be reflected in the marks we will need to pass. I think there was just too much to do in the two hours we had!