Thinking Skills Assessment

Last updated

The Thinking Skills Assessment (TSA) is a generic admissions test, which is used as part of the admissions process for entry to some undergraduate courses at the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, and formerly, University College London.

Contents

History

TSA was developed and is run by Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing. It was developed to help universities assess whether applicants have the skills and aptitudes considered essential for Higher Education study. Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing produces and distributes practice materials, including specimen questions and past papers, on their website.

The test was first introduced for undergraduate entry to the University of Cambridge in 2001 and was used as part of the admissions process for a number of undergraduate courses. It is currently used for application to the Land Economy course only. [1]

In 2007, the University of Oxford introduced TSA as part of its admissions process for Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE). At this stage, the test was known as the ‘PPE Admissions Test’. The use of TSA was extended for entry to Economics and Management in 2008; to Experimental Psychology, and Psychology and Philosophy in 2009, Geography, Philosophy and Linguistics, and Psychology and Linguistics in 2012, and in 2015 to Human Sciences. Since 2016, candidates applying for Chemistry have been required to sit a version of TSA consisting of Section 1 of the test only (TSA S1), with History and Economics requiring the same from 2017. [2] From 2018, the University of Oxford no longer required applicants to take TSA for entry to their Geography course.

From 2008 to 2021, University College London used TSA to assist in the selection of applicants to European and International Social and Political Studies (EISPS). From 2022 onwards, UCL replaced TSA with its own Thinking Skills Test (TST), which is modelled on TSA Section 1 but is delivered and marked internally. [3]

Format

TSA consists of one or two sections, depending on the university and course being applied for. Section 2 is used in addition to Section 1 by the University of Oxford for certain courses.

Scoring

The multiple-choice answers (Section 1) are marked by Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing with 1 mark available per question. Final scores are calculated to one decimal place on the TSA scale (running approximately 0–100) using the Rasch statistical technique.

The writing task component of TSA (Section 2) used by the University of Oxford is reviewed by admissions tutors. [5]

An average score is about 60, so around 28 out of 50 raw marks. If you score 70 or above, you will find yourself in the top 10 of candidates – this equates to about 38 out 50. [6]

Timing and results

The University of Cambridge and The University of Oxford

For the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford, TSA is held in late October/early November as a pre-interview, paper-based test taken at schools, colleges or authorised test centres globally. Results are issued in mid-January of the following year, via Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing’s results online portal.

Usage

The exact use of results varies between the subjects which use the test, and candidates need to refer to their chosen course for precise details. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graduate Management Admission Test</span> Computer adaptive test (CAT)

The Graduate Management Admission Test is a computer adaptive test (CAT) intended to assess certain analytical, writing, quantitative, verbal, and reading skills in written English for use in admission to a graduate management program, such as a Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. Answering the test questions requires knowledge of English grammatical rules, reading comprehension, and mathematical skills such as arithmetic, algebra, and geometry. The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) owns and operates the test, and states that the GMAT assesses analytical writing and problem-solving abilities while also addressing data sufficiency, logic, and critical reasoning skills that it believes to be vital to real-world business and management success. It can be taken up to five times a year but no more than eight times total. Attempts must be at least 16 days apart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Graduate Record Examinations</span> Standardized tests

The Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) is a standardized test that is part of the admissions process for many graduate schools in the United States and Canada and a few other countries. The GRE is owned and administered by Educational Testing Service (ETS). The test was established in 1936 by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law School Admission Test</span> US and Canadian standardized test

The Law School Admission Test is a standardized test administered by the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) for prospective law school candidates. It is designed to assess reading comprehension, analytical reasoning, and logical reasoning. The test is an integral part of the law school admission process in the United States, Canada, the University of Melbourne, Australia, and a growing number of other countries.

The Sixth Term Examination Papers in Mathematics, often referred to as STEP, is currently a university admissions test for undergraduate courses with significant mathematical content - most notably for Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. Starting from 2024, STEP will be administered by OCR, replacing CAAT who was responsible for administering STEP in previous years.

The Undergraduate Medicine and Health Sciences Admission Test was a test previously administered by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) in Australia and New Zealand to assist in the selection of domestic students for health science courses, including most medical and dental degree programs, as well as other health science practical studies such as physiotherapy and optometry. The UMAT was used for domestic applicant selection into undergraduate courses only. Applicants for graduate medical education must take the Graduate Medical School Admissions Test, and foreign applicants must take the International Student Admissions Test. Each year, the UMAT was held on a single day in two sessions, morning and afternoon, typically in late July or early August at test centers in major cities in Australia and New Zealand, as well as a few other global cities.

University admission or college admission is the process through which students enter tertiary education at universities and colleges. Systems vary widely from country to country, and sometimes from institution to institution.

The National Admissions Test for Law, or LNAT, is an admissions aptitude test that was adopted in 2004 by eight UK university law programmes as an admissions requirement for home applicants. The test was established at the leading urgency of Oxford University as an answer to the problem facing universities trying to select from an increasingly competitive pool with similarly high A-levels. With effect from its second year, the LNAT is required for UK and overseas applicants alike. There are now nine participating law schools and hundreds of test centres worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical school in the United Kingdom</span>

In the United Kingdom, medical school generally refers to a department within a university which is involved in the education of future medical practitioners. All leading British medical schools are state-funded and their core purpose is to train doctors on behalf of the National Health Service. Courses generally last four to six years: two years of pre-clinical training in an academic environment and two to three years clinical training at a teaching hospital and in community settings. Medical schools and teaching hospitals are closely integrated. The course of study is extended to six years if an intercalated degree is taken in a related subject.

The Graduate Medical School Admissions Test is a test used to select candidates applying to study medicine, dentistry, optometry, pharmacy and veterinary science at Australian, British, and Irish universities for admission to their Graduate Entry Programmes. Candidates may take the test in a test centre in one of the 6 countries, being Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States, offering the test.

The Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT) is a group of four scholastic aptitude tests used for admission into undergraduate programs at Australian universities, for students without a recent Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR). Some universities require STAT testing for admission to particular programs or courses. The Australian Council for Educational Research designs the examinations. The central tertiary admissions centre in each Australian state and territory and the University of Tasmania administer the STAT examinations.

The University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT) is an admissions test used in the selection process by a consortium of universities in the United Kingdom, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand for their medical and dental degree programmes. UCAT is needed, except very few universities, for admission into undergraduate medical degrees in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and UK. Launched in 2006 as the UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT), it was renamed in 2019 following the launch of the test in Australia and New Zealand.

The English Literature Admissions Test (ELAT) was a subject-specific admissions test, used as part of the admissions process for undergraduate courses in English language and literature, combined English and modern languages and classics and English at the University of Oxford. As of 2016, ELAT had also been used by the University of Cambridge for admission to its undergraduate English course.

The BioMedical Admissions Test (BMAT) is an aptitude test used as part of the admissions process for Medicine, Biomedical Sciences and Dentistry in some universities in the United Kingdom, Singapore, Spain, Malaysia, Thailand, Hungary, Croatia and the Netherlands. As of 2024, most participating UK universities have scrapped the BMAT in favour of UCAT.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Exam</span> Educational assessment

An examination or test is an educational assessment intended to measure a test-taker's knowledge, skill, aptitude, physical fitness, or classification in many other topics. A test may be administered verbally, on paper, on a computer, or in a predetermined area that requires a test taker to demonstrate or perform a set of skills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical College Admission Test</span> Standardized examination for prospective medical students in the United States and Canada

The Medical College Admission Test is a computer-based standardized examination for prospective medical students in the United States, Australia, Canada, and the Caribbean Islands. It is designed to assess problem solving, critical thinking, written analysis and knowledge of scientific concepts and principles. Before 2007, the exam was a paper-and-pencil test; since 2007, all administrations of the exam have been computer-based.

The International Medical Admissions Test (IMAT), is an aptitude test used as part of the admissions process for some Italian universities. These universities offer undergraduate courses that are taught in English and open to applicants outside of Italy. The test has sometimes been incorrectly referred to as the 'Italian Medical Admissions Test'.

Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing provides admissions tests for a range of university level courses and assessments in thinking skills and behavioural styles. It is part of Cambridge Assessment, a not-for-profit department of the University of Cambridge, England. It stopped delivering admissions tests at the end of 2023, thus effectively ceasing operations.

The Test of Mathematics for University Admission is a paper-based test sometimes used in the United Kingdom and other countries in Africa and the United States all assess the mathematical thinking and reasoning skills needed for undergraduate mathematics courses or courses featuring mathematics. A number of universities across the world accept the test as an optional part of their application process for mathematics-based courses.

In the United Kingdom there are various standardized tests for admission to university. Most applicants to universities in the UK take national examinations such as A-levels or Scottish Highers. Separate admissions tests are used by a small number of universities for specific subjects, many of these administered by Cambridge University's Admissions Testing Service.

References

  1. ↑ "Land Economy". Undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk. 17 July 2017. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  2. ↑ "Courses requiring TSA Oxford : Candidates intending to apply for entry to one of the following courses at the University of Oxford are required to take TSA" (PDF). Admissionstesting.org. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  3. ↑ "UCL EISPS : How to apply". ucl.ac.uk. 22 March 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  4. ↑ "Thinking Skills Assessment (TSA) - Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing". Admissionstesting.org. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  5. 1 2 "Scoring and results - TSA Oxford - Cambridge Assessment Admissions Testing". Admissionstesting.org. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  6. ↑ "TSA Scoring: What Is A Good TSA Score?". uniadmissions.co.uk. 16 September 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.