The veterinary SAQ and SJT guide

Several UK vet schools ask applicants to complete short answer questions, or SAQs, after the UCAS deadline, and some use situational judgement style questions, or SJTs. These stages are poorly documented and cause a great deal of anxiety, because there is little public guidance on what good answers look like. This guide explains what they are, which schools use them, and how to prepare.

An SAQ is a set of short written questions about your motivation, your work experience and your understanding of the profession, usually completed online to a deadline after you apply. An SJT, or situational judgement test, presents realistic scenarios and asks how you would respond, testing your judgement, ethics and professionalism rather than factual knowledge. Some schools blend the two, and several use the written stage in place of, or as a route into, a traditional interview.

Bristol relies on a Supplementary Assessment Questionnaire instead of an interview, which makes the written stage central rather than supplementary. For 2027 entry the RVC and Aberystwyth set a supplementary questionnaire, Nottingham ranks applicants with an online situational judgement test (SJT), Glasgow sets an online ethical reasoning test, and Harper and Keele scores reflective questions on its Vocational Experience form. The exact format, length and timing vary by school and can change from year to year, so always confirm the current process on each school's admissions page and on our UK vet schools hub.

Become A Vet prepares applicants for every written stage UK vet schools set after the UCAS deadline, one to one with Dr Rebecca Massie, a practising vet. That includes unlimited reviews of your SAQ and questionnaire answers, and practice for situational judgement and ethical reasoning tests.

The questions test your motivation, your understanding of the profession, and your judgement in realistic situations. Strong answers are structured, reflective and specific, and they draw on genuine work experience rather than general enthusiasm. Treat each answer like a miniature, evidenced argument: make your point, back it with a concrete example, and reflect on what it shows.

Because so much of the SAQ draws on your placements, the work you put into your work experience and your personal statement pays off directly here. For schools that interview as well, our vet school interview questions guide covers the same ethical and welfare themes that SJT scenarios test. The scenarios themselves often draw on current issues in the profession, so it is worth reading around the cost of veterinary care, antimicrobial resistance and contested welfare debates such as the badger cull. We prepare you for exactly the format your schools use, review your answers carefully, and help you express your thinking clearly under time pressure.