FAQs about Situational Judgement Tests (SJT)

Pre-Med & Medical School
1

What are Situational Judgment Tests?

SJTs are behavioral assessments used by some medical schools to evaluate how an applicant handles hypothetical work-related scenarios. Instead of testing technical knowledge, SJTs test “soft skills”—conflict resolution, problem-solving, teamwork, communication skills, ethics, empathy, self awareness and professionalism.

What SJTs are required by medical schools?

There are 2 SJTs which are commonly required for medical school admission consideration. Casper (Acuity Insight) and PREview (AMCAS).

Casper is a 90 minute long exam that is taken online. Acuity Insight has specific software and hardware requirements in order to be able to take the exam.

See: Tech Requirements for Casper - Take Casper

The test is divided into 12 sections, 8 video-based scenarios and 4 word-based scenarios.

Each scenario is followed by 3 probing questions to which the test taker has 5 minutes to respond.

To help ensure fairness, every question is graded by 3 different evaluators. Scores are reported as quartiles with 4th quartile being the strongest performance and 1st quartile being the weakest.

PREview is a 75 minute long, remotely proctored, multiple choice exam. Like Casper, AMCAS has specific software and hardware requirements in order to be able to take the test. The exam cannot be completed on a phone or tablet.

PREview is entirely text-based and uses health-profession based scenarios. A test taker is given a scenario and asked to rate the effectiveness of several given potential responses. Scoring is based on how well the test taker’s responses align with those of a panel of professional healthcare workers.

(continued)

1 Like
2

Which Medical Schools Require a SJT?

CASPER (As of May 2026)

Allopathic Medicine (MD)

  1. Baylor College of Medicine
  2. Boston University Aram V. Chobanian & Edward Avedisian School of Medicine
  3. Burnett School of Medicine at TCU
  4. California University of Science and Medicine
  5. Central Michigan University College of Medicine
  6. Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell
  7. Drexel University College of Medicine
  8. East Tennessee State University James H. Quillen College of Medicine
  9. Louisiana State University New Orleans – School of Medicine
  10. Medical College of Wisconsin
  11. Meharry Medical College
  12. Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
  13. Netter School of Medicine Quinnipiac University
  14. New York Medical College
  15. Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University
  16. Rush University Medical College
  17. Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
    1. Temple University Lewis Katz School of Medicine
  19. Texas Tech Health Sciences Center El Paso
  20. Tulane University School of Medicine
  21. University of Colorado Denver Medical School
  22. University of Texas at Tyler School of Medicine
  23. University of Texas Health Science Center Houston, McGovern Medical School
  24. University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, Long School of Medicine
  25. University of Texas Medical Branch, John Sealy School of Medicine
  26. University of Texas Southwestern
  27. University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine
  28. Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine
  29. Wake Forest School of Medicine

Osteopathic Medicine (DO)

  1. Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine
  2. Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine NY/MT
  3. University of Northern Colorado College of Osteopathic Medicine
  4. William Carey University College of Osteopathic Medicine

(continued)

1 Like
3

PREview (As of May 2026)

REQUIRED

  1. Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine
  2. Mercer School of Medicine
  3. St. Louis University School of Medicine
  4. Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine at the University of Utah
  5. Thomas J. First College of Medicine at Belmont University
  6. University of Alabama at Birmingham Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine
  7. University of California, David , School of Medicine
  8. University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine
  9. University of Hawaii, John A Burn School of Medicine
  10. University of Massachusetts, TH Chan School of Medicine

RECOMMENDED

  1. Alice J. Walton School of Medicine
  2. Cooper Medical School of Rowan University
  3. Des Moines University Doctor of Osteopathy Medicine
  4. Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine
  5. George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Science
  6. Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans
  7. Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine
  8. Morehouse School of Medicine
  9. Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
  10. Oklahoma State University Center for Health Science College of Osteopathic Medicine
  11. Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine
  12. Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
  13. Uniformed Services University of Health Science F. Edward Herbert School of Medicine
  14. University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
  15. University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine
  16. University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health

School that Require a SJT—and PREview Satisfies the requirement

  1. Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
  2. Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
  3. University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio Joe R and Theresa Lozano Long School of Medicine

~~

Medical schools are constantly re-evaluating their admissions process. Please check with the admission webpage/admissions office of a specific medical school to see if it requires a SJT for an admission application.

(continued)

1 Like
4

Are There Any Other SJTs?

Yes, some medical schools use a MMI-type interview to test the “soft skills” of applicants.
An MMI interview format is one that presents an applicant with a series of skits or orally read scenarios and asks the applicant to respond to the scenario. Responses may be filmed for later review by the admissions panel.

How to Prepare for a SJT?

The only way to prepare is to do trial scenarios. Both Casper and PREview offer some mock scenarios for applicants to try. There are also other commercially available prep materials that offer additional scenarios for practice.

Applicants need to learn to be mindful of the time constraints for each scenario response. Casper requires fast typing. Applicants are not judged on their spelling or grammar, but on the overall content of their response.

Be mindful of the principles of health care when constructing one’s response—empathy with the patient, the autonomy of and respect for the patient, the confidentiality of all medical information, open communication & teamwork with colleagues, justice and fairness for all individuals involved.

(continued)

2 Likes
5

How are SJTs Used by Medical Schools During the Admissions Process?

Unfortunately, there is no clarity about this. Every medical school has its own policy about how much weight (if any) a SJT score is given.

1 Like