Registration Procedures

This page contains information for examinees taking MERAV, the assessment center for post-graduate admission to medical schools. Please read it carefully. When paying for the test you will be asked to confirm that you have read the information below, including the privacy policy.

 

General Information

Examinees in the MERAV medical school assessment center must hold an Israeli identity card or valid passport. Please make sure to bring with you to the test the document that you used when registering.

NITE reserves the right to pursue any course of action it deems appropriate in cases where it suspects that an examinee has registered for the test for a purpose other than that for which the test was designed and/or because of external motivations.

It is forbidden to register for the test in order to infringe on NITE's proprietary rights. This includes copying, disclosing, or conveying test items, whether to provide instruction and preparation for the test or for any other purpose.

Test Score Validity

According to medical school policy, the scores in MERAV are valid for admissions for a period of three years. For example, the scores of a candidate who sat the test in 2016 were valid for admissions in 2016, 2017, and 2018. If a candidate sat the test more than once within a three year period, the highest of their scores will be used in the admissions process. For more information, refer to the medical schools’ own handbooks and websites.

Test Languages

Analytical Reasoning Test: During the coming test administration, which will take place on April 29, 2022, candidates may choose whether to be tested in Hebrew or Arabic.
Candidates who made Aliyah to Israel within the past seven years may submit a request to receive additional time on the test. Authorization for additional time will be given by the universities. Requests should be sent, along with the relevant official documents, to the university where the candidate registered for the test. Approval of their request by the respective university will give candidates an additional half hour on the Analytical Reasoning Test.

Personal/Biographical Questionnaire and Assessment Centers: The institutions performing the screening tests have decided that these components will be given only in Hebrew. It should be noted that these components are not designed to test a candidate's linguistic capability, and thus, raters are directed not to take this capability into account in their ratings.

Shalev questionnaire: Before beginning to complete this online questionnaire, candidates may select which language they wish to be tested in: Hebrew or Arabic.

 

Registration for the Test

General

The educational institutions determine which candidates for medical school will be assigned to the assessment center.

The MERAV center consists of two sections. The first section is a test of Analytical Reasoning administered by NITE – the National Institute for Testing and Evaluation. The summons for this part of the test will be sent by NITE to the email address submitted by candidates during registration. The second section of MERAV includes filling out a personal/biographical questionnaire and participation in an assessment center. The summons for this section will be sent by NITE to the same email address. Candidates who have valid scores from an earlier MERAV test may choose whether to retake the assessment center, the personal/biographical questionnaire, or both. The Analytical Reasoning Test and filling out the personal/biographical questionnaire will take place at Tel Aviv University, Bar Ilan University or Ariel University. The assessment center will take place at MSR – the Israel Center for Medical Simulation at Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer (the same location as the MOR assessment center).

Initial summons to both sections will be sent about a month before the test date to the email address submitted during registration. Examinees are responsible for ensuring that the test dates do not clash with other commitments such as travel abroad or army reserve duty.

In most cases, medical school candidates who register for both four-year and six-year programs and are allocated to the second section of MERAV will participate in the MERAV assessment center.

A candidate who is allocated by mistake to both the four-year and six-year assessment centers should inform the NITE Registration Center immediately. It is an examinee’s responsibility not to participate in more than one assessment center. An examinee who participates in more than one assessment center will not be entitled to a refund, and only the earlier score will be taken into account.

Note: examinees must attend on both of their assigned test dates. Examinees are requested to arrive punctually at the appointed time.

Allocation to Test Days

Detailed information on the dates of each section of the test appears on the NITE website.

Candidates summoned to the first section of the MERAV center – the Analytical Reasoning Test – will receive an email including a link to the center’s website, where they can choose to take the test at Tel Aviv University, Bar Ilan University or Ariel University. The number of examinees at each site is limited. When all places at a test site are filled, the system will not allow it to be selected. After selection of a test site and payment of the fee, the site will display the exact location and time for the test.

Examinees allocated to the second stage of the MERAV center – questionnaire and assessment center – will be sent an email including a link to the center’s website, where they can choose to take the test at Tel Aviv University, Bar Ilan University or Ariel University. They may also select a group of dates and times for the assessment center. When all places for a group are filled, the system will not allow it to be selected.

Registration Procedures

Changing Your Test Date

If you are unable to attend on the assigned date, you should immediately notify the NITE Medical Schools Admissions Registration Center. You will not be required to set an alternative date. If you have been allocated a test date and decide not to take the test, you should also notify the appropriate center immediately so that your time slot can be allocated to another examinee.

The medical school faculties have determined that an examinee allocated to either of the assessment centers who declines to take the test at the allocated center may not take the test at the other center, but will be deemed to have withdrawn from the test at all centers in that year.

Payment for the Test

Candidates summoned to the first section of the MERAV center, the Analytical Reasoning Test, will be sent an email with a link to the MERAV website for payment by credit card, along with a username and password. The fee will be charged in one payment.

Candidates summoned to the second section of the MERAV center, the questionnaire and assessment center, will be sent an email with a link to the MERAV website for payment by credit card, along with a username and password. The fee will be charged in one payment. At this stage a candidate can select whether to pay the fee for only the personal/biographical questionnaire, only the assessment center, or both.

Examinees must pay for participation within 72 hours after the summons is sent. An examinee who fails to pay the participation fee within this period will be deemed to have withdrawn from the test during that year.

When registering for online payment, make sure to enter correctly the ID number (Israeli ID card including check digit, or foreign passport number) with which you registered for the course.

 

Information on the Test

Test Conditions

The Analytical Reasoning Test and filling out the personal/biographical questionnaire take place in university test halls with standard seating facilities. As at any university, these halls vary in terms of size, seating facilities, etc. (for example, there may be either chairs with writing boards, or tables and chairs). Candidates are required to take the test in the lecture hall to which they are assigned.

During the test, use of the following is strictly prohibited: calculators (including those on wristwatches), clocks (including stopwatches) that make sounds, cellular telephones, other communication devices, laptops and electronic instruments of any kind, dictionaries, books, papers or any other study aids.

There is a tight schedule at the assessment center, and examinees are required to transition rapidly between stations. The staff of the educational institutions, MSR, or NITE will be available to direct and assist examinees.

Air conditioning systems will be in operation throughout the assessment day – please dress accordingly.

Smoking is prohibited in all the examination halls.

Filming at the Assessment Station at MSR (the Israel Center for Medical Simulation)

Video cameras are installed at a number of the assessment stations at MSR to record the proceedings. At the beginning of the assessment day examinees assigned to MSR will be required to sign a consent form for filming. All film clips will remain confidential and will be used only for purposes of instruction and research. The clips will not be used as part of the process of accepting or rejecting candidates.

Registration Procedures

Special Accommodations for the Analytical Reasoning Test and the Personal/Biographical Questionnaire

In order to maintain fairness for all examinees taking the test, special test accommodations are granted only to examinees with a disability that seriously affects their functioning.

The following applicants are entitled to submit a request for special test accommodations:

• Applicants with medical, physical, psychiatric, or learning disabilities, attention disorders or ASD, who believe that they need special accommodations in the analytical reasoning test
• Applicants with a physical condition (e.g. advanced pregnancy, size, confinement to a wheelchair, etc.) that prevents them from entering a regular classroom or sitting in chairs with attached writing surfaces
• Applicants with physical limitations or a significant writing disability, who believe that they need special accommodations for filling out the personal/biographical questionnaire.

 

Applicants to medical school who believe that they are entitled to special test accommodations may submit a request to the Special Test Accommodations Unit at NITE. This request should be sent before they receive their MERAV test notification and no later than the last date for submitting a request for special test accommodations, as it appears each year on the NITE website and the sites of the educational institutions.

Processing your request does not guarantee that you will receive a test notification. The universities alone determine the list of candidates eligible to take the test.
The above also applies to candidates who registered for medical school but have received neither a test notification to take the MERAV nor a rejection letter.
At the request of the educational institutions, NITE provides the medical schools with all relevant information pertaining to candidates who have applied to that particular school, including documentation used to support requests for special test accommodations.

Specific instructions are found here.

 

Special Cases

Candidates Unable to Take the Test for Medical Reason

If an examinee does not attend a test on the assigned date for medical reasons, or is forced to leave before the start of the test or during the test for medical reasons, and wishes to have the case considered by the exceptional circumstances committee at NITE, the examinee must be examined on the day of the test at an emergency medical center or hospital emergency department (not by a family physician). The examinee should send NITE an official document from the examining physician explaining why the examinee was unable to take the test on the assigned date, or why the examinee left during the test. This document should include a diagnosis of the medical condition as a result of which the examinee was unable to take the test or remain until the end of the test, specification of the recommended treatment, including number of sick days, and details of the examining physician. The document should be sent by email, with a covering letter from the examinee, to the registration center for medical school admissions at NITE within seven days from the test date. Please contact the registration center by phone to ensure that the documents have been received. The committee will only assess the examinee’s request in cases where it is clear that medical conditions prevented the examinee from taking the test.

Candidates Unable to Take the Test for Other Reasons

An examinee who fails to attend on the assigned date other than for medical reasons, such as the death of a first-degree relative or an emergency reserve duty call-up (“Tzav 8”), and wishes to have the case considered by the exceptional circumstances committee at NITE, should send a request explaining the exceptional circumstances which made attendance impossible to the registration center for medical school admissions at NITE within seven days from the test date, and attach any relevant document corroborating the circumstances preventing attendance. Please contact the registration center by phone to ensure that the documents have been received. The committee will only assess the examinee’s request in cases where it is clear that exceptional circumstances prevented the examinee from taking the test.

Registration Procedures

Cancelling Registration

Because of the special character of the MERAV center, including the limited number of participants and the fact that last-minute cancellations deny other candidates the opportunity to sit the test, there are strict rules concerning cancelling registration.

Candidates who cancel after paying the fee will receive a refund as required by law, as detailed below:

Refund for the personal/biographical questionnaire: candidates who paid the fee for the personal/biographical questionnaire and cancelled registration, or failed to attend to fill out the questionnaire will receive a full refund, after deduction of a ₪60 processing charge.

Refund for the admissions center: except as otherwise required by law, candidates who cancel more than one week before their first assigned test date in the second section of the assessment center (biographical questionnaire or assessment center) will receive a refund of 85% of the fee paid for the assessment center. Candidates who cancel registration less than one week but not less than 48 hours before their first assigned date, will receive a refund of 70% of the fee paid for the assessment center. Candidates who cancel registration less than 48 hours before their first assigned test date, and candidates who fail to attend on their first assigned test date, without cancelling registration, will receive a refund of 55% of the fee for the assessment center.

In order to receive a refund of the fee for participation in MERAV, send an email request to the registration center for medical school admissions at NITE, email address premed_admin@nite.org.il. The request should include the candidate’s full name, ID number, exact address to send the refund cheque and telephone number.

 

Reporting Test Scores

Scores in the Analytical Reasoning Test will be reported to all institutions that use the MERAV center. Within a few weeks from the test date candidates will be sent a written notification from the educational institution detailing the next stages in the admission process to the four-year course.

The scores are also sent to the examinee's email address, unless the examinee opted out of receiving scores by email.

A few days after the scores are reported to the institutions, candidates will be able to view their scores in the Analytical Reasoning Test by logging on to the NITE website with their ID number and password.

Scores in the second section of MERAV are a combination of the score in the assessment center (70% weighting) and the score in the personal/biographical questionnaire (30% weighting). The combined score will only be calculated for examinees sitting both parts of the test in the same year.

The score in MERAV ranges from 150 to 250. The average score is 200, with a standard deviation of 20.

Once the educational institutions have received the score, candidates will be able to view their combined score and the scores in the individual sections (personal/biographical questionnaire and assessment center) by logging on to the NITE website with their ID number and password.

As requested by the educational institutions, NITE informs the medical schools of every detail concerning applicants relevant to their application to study medicine.

 

Reevaluation of the questionnaire and Assessment Center

You have the right to request a reevaluation of the processing of the answers to the Analytical Reasoning Test and the assessments made at the assessment center. In NITE’s experience, the probability of finding an error in the data processing is extremely small. A fee is charged for the reevaluation, but in the event that an error is discovered, this fee will be refunded in full. Requests for reevaluation should be submitted to the NITE Scoring Department within three months of the test date, or by logging on to the website.

Note: the score in the assessment center is based on independent predictions and assessments by a number of skilled analysts, which are equivalent to a long process of repeated examination.

Summons for Retesting

During the scoring process, NITE conducts routine checks to ensure that each examinee's scores accurately reflect his or her ability. Sometimes NITE has a problem assessing a test score because of technical problems or irregular or inconsistent results. In such cases the examinee will be summoned to retake the test at NITE's offices in Jerusalem, and the test scores will be withheld until the matter has been resolved. Only after the examinee is retested will NITE make a decision how to proceed. A written summons for retesting is generally sent to such examinees within six weeks of the test date; however, it may also be issued at a later date. In addition, in response to any attempt at cheating, copying, or receiving a score through illegal means, NITE has the authority to prohibit the examinee from taking any test it administers for a period of 12 months.

 

Compromising the Integrity of the Test and Cheating

NITE views very seriously any attempt to compromise the integrity of its tests, including any behavior that infringes on the confidentiality of the test or the use of its results. We also view very seriously any attempt to obtain a score by illegal means, such as copying during the test or impersonating someone else. Among other things, cheating may lead to situations in which unsuitable candidates are accepted, sometimes even at the expense of candidates who are better qualified for the study program in question. The National Institute for Testing and Evaluation has methods for detecting cheating and attempts to compromise test integrity, and reserves the right to react to such situations using all means at its disposal and at its discretion. These may include:

1. Invalidating the test
2. Prohibiting an examinee from taking any test administered by NITE for a period of 12 months
3. Filing a civil suit
4. Submitting a complaint to university or college disciplinary committees

Please note: Impersonating another person (such as sending someone to take the test in your place) is a criminal offense. If someone is suspected of committing such an offense, a complaint will be filed with the police and with university disciplinary committees.

 

Complaints and Objections to the Test Procedures

An examinees with objections relating to the MERAV assessment centers should apply in writing to the NITE Customer Relations Department within seven days from the test date. All such applications to NITE should include the examinee’s full name, ID number, the type of test and date and time. Complaints may be sent to the Customer Relations Department or using the complaint form on the NITE website.

 

Contact Us

National Institute for Testing and Evaluation

POB 39020 Jerusalem 9139001

Tel: 02-6759555

Fax: 02-6759543

Sun.-Thurs. 8:30-15:30

 

Topic	Relevant Department	Phone 02-6759555	Fax	Email/Other
·  Score reporting to institutions and examinees · Requests for reevaluation	Scoring Department	Extension 2		score@nite.org.il
· Special test accommodations	Special Test Accommodations Unit	Extension 3	02-6750640	NITE Special Test Accommodations Unit (MERAV) P.O. Box 39020 Jerusalem 9139001
· Inquiries about the test · Complaints	Customer Relations Bureau	Extension 4	02-6750640
MERAV Center · Registration · Assignment · Changes to assigned dates · Cancelling registration	Coordination Unit for MERAV Medical School Admissions Test	02-6750612		premed_admin@nite.org.il