Medics’ test may misread empathy

A test used to help select medical students may not be properly predicting the levels of empathy it intends to identify in applicants, a study has found.

Research at University College Cork raised questions about the Health Professions Admissions Test (HPAT).

It was introduced in 2009 as an additional factor to Leaving Certificate results when picking entrants to the five main undergraduate medical schools, including the one at UCC which admits around 100 school leavers every year.