USAT Guide: HEC Undergraduate Studies Admission Test (USAT)

Undergraduate Studies Admission Test (USAT) is a newly introduced admission test by Higher Education Commission (HEC). The HEC through its educational testing council (ETC) will conduct USAT for admissions at the undergraduate level in universities all over Pakistan. USAT is on the pattern of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and covers all the disciplines of Engineer, Medicine, IT, Management, and Social Sciences at the undergraduate entry level. The students after qualifying respective USAT would stand eligible for all relevant universities in Pakistan. Here in this USAT Guide, I am going to share with your the complete information about USAT, USAT categories, USAT syllabus, and all other necessary things a student is required to know.

Content Index

USAT Introduction
USAT Syllabus

• Verbal Reasoning
• Quantitative Reasoning
• Subject Knowledge
• Essay Writing Skills

USAT Marks Distribution
USAT Categories
Question Distribution for Each USAT Category
Who Can Apply for USAT?
USAT Pass Percentage
When USAT Exam will be Held?
University Role in USAT
How to Apply for USAT?
USAT Bank Challan Fee
Cut-off dates for USAT 2022
Is USAT Necessary?

USAT Introduction

Due to the postponement of the unified undergraduate program envisaged in the “Undergraduate Education Policy 2020” of HEC, the “Undergraduate Studies Admission Test” (USAT) is redesigned. There are six (06) categories of the USAT now being offered in different academic disciplines. This test is valid for all public and private sector universities or Degree awarding Institutes (DAIs) of Pakistan (other than Medical Colleges/Universities).

The candidate is required to apply for admission as per the universities’ announcements, along with a copy of the ETC USAT result card.  The result of the USAT is announced within 4 to 5 weeks of conduct and it remains valid for one (01) year. There’s no restriction on applying for USAT. You can apply as many times as you want.

USAT Syllabus

The USAT syllabus focuses more on knowledge and skills and it is thus expected to measure what a test taker learns in secondary and higher secondary education and what it needs to succeed in an undergraduate program.

A major portion of the test is designed to measure the cognitive abilities of the candidate. USAT consists of the following knowledge, skills, and behavioral areas:

Verbal Reasoning

This section measures the candidate’s ability to analyze written material, synthesize information, and recognize relationships between words and concepts.

Quantitative Reasoning

It measures the ability to understand basic concepts of arithmetic, algebra, equations, geometry, vectors, graphs, statistics, and problem-solving. Quantitative reasoning ability is considered to be the most reliable predictor of future success.

Subject Knowledge of Academic Discipline

This subject knowledge section tests the student’s knowledge of the subject covered in his corresponding academic discipline. It is reflected in the USAT version name for that specific discipline.

Essay Writing Skills

You can write an essay either in English or Urdu language. It is an assessment of the student’s verbal ability and communication skills. The structure of the essay, arrangement of ideas, logical analysis, vocabulary, and grammar all of these have respective weights.

USAT Marks Distribution

USAT is comprised of two (02) parts. Part- 1 is based on 75 MCQs. Part 2 includes essay writing skills. You can attempt the Essay in Urdu or in English languages.

Any score above 50 percent is considered a USAT qualifying score.

The marks distribution of USAT is given below:

USAT Categories

The USAT is conducted in the following six (06) categories. These categories are:

Question Distribution for Each USAT Category

The question distribution for each USAT academic discipline is given below:

USAT-E Engineering

USAT-M Medical

USAT-A Arts & Humanities

USAT-CS Computer Science

USAT-GS General Science

USAT-COM Commerce

Who Can Apply for USAT?

The following students can apply for USAT:

• All the students who have passed the Secondary School Certificate (HSSC) or equivalent 12 years of education can apply for USAT.
• All those students who have appeared in the final examination and awaiting results can also apply for USAT.

USAT Pass Percentage

The USAT passing percentage is 50%. Any score above and equal to 50 is considered a qualifying USAT score. The maximum mark in a USAT exam is 100.

When USAT Exam will be Held

USAT is held every three (03) months time. The test is conducted quarterly basis in the major cities of Pakistan simultaneously. HEC will upload USAT yearly exam calendar on the HEC ETC website. You can register for a USAT through the ETC website.

University Role in USAT

All universities in Pakistan will continue to announce their admission programme independently. Students applying to universities accepting USAT will submit the USAT-(category). The universities are bound to accept the scorecard of the USAT in the weightage-base merit list of the university.

How to Apply for USAT?

• To apply for USAT you must register through the ETC website.
• If you have any questions, then you can visit the onlinehelp.hec.gov.pk website or visit your nearest HEC regional office.
• The submission of an application comprises two steps; profile completion using the “My profile” section and application submission using the “Undergraduate Studies Admission Test”. The links are available on the menu panel on the left-hand sidebar of the online portal.

HEC will accept only submitted applications. If you have a saved or incomplete application then your application will be stand rejected.

USAT Bank Challan Fee

• The test fee for USAT is Rs. 1200. Candidates will deposit the fee in HBL account no. 1742 7900 133401 titled as Higher Education Commission.
• The bank fee challan is available at ETC online registration portal.
• All candidates are required to upload the paid challan duly stamped by an HBL branch on the ETC registration portal.

The test Fee is non-refundable and non-transferable.

Please remember it is mandatory to bring the original copy of the bank challan on the test day along with your NIC.

Cut-off dates for USAT 2023

Cut-off dates will be publish every time in the new paper. The last date for online registration for USAT is about 15 days from date of advertisement.

Is USAT Necessary?

Yes, the USAT is made necessary by HEC all over Pakistan for admission at the undergraduate level.

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