What Is a Good IMAT Score?
Real 2025 cut-offs for every university, score simulations, and the strategy to reach your target
In this guide
- 1 Why most students misunderstand IMAT scores
- 2 How IMAT scoring and cut-offs actually work
- 3 Question breakdown: where your score comes from
- 4 Official cut-off table: 2023, 2024, 2025
- 5 Score simulations: what does each pattern get you?
- 6 Subject strategy: maximum points, minimum wasted time
- 7 Real student: 58 → 71 in 5 months
- 8 FAQs
Why Most Students Misunderstand IMAT Scores — and Panic Around Cut-offs
Every year, thousands of IMAT applicants fixate on a single cut-off number — usually Milan's — and build their entire preparation around it. This is the wrong approach.
Some students see 72.9 and spiral into panic. Others see 50.9 (Bari, 2025) and assume they barely need to prepare. Both are making the same mistake: treating cut-offs as fixed targets rather than what they actually are — the result of a competition between thousands of students in a single year.
The panic trap
Sees Milan's cut-off at 72.9. Decides they can't compete. Under-prepares. Scores 63. Could have gone to Naples.
The strategic approach
Picks target cities first. Finds relevant cut-offs. Adds a 3-point buffer. Builds a score goal. Prepares to hit it.
There is no single "good" IMAT score. There are your target universities, your current score, and the gap between them. Everything else is noise.
How IMAT Scoring and Cut-offs Actually Work
The IMAT is a zero-sum competition, not a pass/fail exam. Your score doesn't determine entry — your rank does. Cut-offs are not announced before the exam. They are discovered after it, once the available seats are filled.
+1.5
Correct answer
−0.4
Wrong answer
0
Unanswered
⚠️ Common Mistake: Guessing Randomly
Random guessing has a negative expected value of −0.02 pts per question. Students who guess on every uncertain question often lose more points to penalties than they gain. Only guess when you can eliminate at least one option — at that point the expected value turns positive.
Cut-offs shift every year based on applicant pool quality, not exam difficulty alone. A harder paper can actually lower the cut-off because everyone scores less. This is why tracking trends across multiple years matters far more than obsessing over any single year's figure.
Practice with official IMAT past papers
Every official paper from 2011 to 2025 — the essential foundation for any serious IMAT preparation.
Question Breakdown: Where Your Score Actually Comes From
The IMAT has 60 multiple-choice questions. Understanding the weight of each section is the foundation of any intelligent study strategy.
| Subject | Questions | Max Points | % of Total | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biology | 23 | 34.5 | 38% | ⭐ #1 Priority |
| Chemistry | 15 | 22.5 | 25% | ⭐ #2 Priority |
| Maths & Physics | 13 | 19.5 | 22% | #3 |
| Logic & Reading | 9 | 13.5 | 15% | #4 |
| TOTAL | 60 | 90 | 100% | — |
⚡ High-Yield Insight: Biology and Chemistry together account for 63% of all available points. A student who masters these two subjects and scores average in the rest will outscore most people who study everything equally.
Official Cut-off Scores: 2023, 2024 & 2025
All figures below are official non-EU thresholds from the Italian Ministry of Education. 2025 is the most recent exam. The next IMAT exam takes place in September 2026 — no results yet.
| University | Field | Seats | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 ★ | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milan | Medicine | 15 | 60.2 | 75.7 | 72.9 | 🔴 Hardest |
| Pavia | Medicine | 35+5 | 53.3 | 71.5 | 71.9 | 🔴 Hardest |
| Bologna | Medicine | 20 | 59.1 | 74.5 | 71.1* | 🔴 Hardest |
| La Sapienza | Dentistry | 6 | 59.10 | 73.1 | 71.8 | 🔴 Hardest |
| La Sapienza | Medicine | 13 | 50.8 | 73.4 | 65.8 | 🟠 Competitive |
| Tor Vergata | Medicine | 20 | 53.4 | 60.6 | 69.1 | 🟠 Competitive |
| Turin | Medicine | 30+2 | 49.0 | 70.8 | 67.1 | 🟠 Competitive |
| Parma | Medicine | 45 | 50.1 | 59.1 | 67.6 | 🟠 Rising Fast |
| Luigi Vanvitelli | Medicine | 50 | 47.3 | 63.2 | 66.2 | 🟠 Rising Fast |
| Padova | Medicine | 25 | 49.5 | 71.6 | 65.4 | 🟠 Competitive |
| Bicocca | Medicine | 18 | 54.2 | 72.6 | 65.1 | 🟠 Competitive |
| Federico II | Medicine | 45 | 52.0 | 68.1 | 63.1 | 🟡 Moderate |
| Siena | Dentistry | 2 | 51.3 | 69.3 | 52.0 | 🟡 Variable |
| Cagliari | Medicine | 20 | — | 56.5 | 54.7 | 🟢 Accessible |
| Marche | Medicine | 60 | 43.0 | 60.3 | 58.2 | 🟢 Accessible |
| Messina | Medicine | 56 | 36.9 | 61.4 | 58.2 | 🟢 Accessible |
| Bari | Medicine | 11 | 31.2 | 65.8 | 50.9 | 🟢 Variable/Low |
Source: Italian Ministry of Education official IMAT results. * = provisional. Cut-offs shown are for non-EU candidates.
⚠️ Common Mistake: Using Old Cut-offs as Your Target
Notice Bari: 31.2 in 2023, 65.8 in 2024, 50.9 in 2025. Cut-offs are volatile. Never use a single year's figure as your target — and never assume a "low" university is easy just because it was low in one year.
Score Simulations: What Does Each Pattern Get You?
Here is how different combinations of correct, wrong, and blank answers translate into final scores — and which universities they unlock.
| Performance Pattern | Correct / Wrong / Blank | Final Score | Unlocks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bio+Chem mastered, average elsewhere | 50 / 2 / 8 | 74.2 | ✅ All universities incl. Milan, Pavia, Bologna |
| Strong Bio+Chem, weaker logic/math | 47 / 5 / 8 | 68.5 | ✅ Most universities incl. Turin, Tor Vergata |
| Balanced across all sections | 44 / 8 / 8 | 63.8 | ⚠️ Federico II, Cagliari, mid-tier options |
| Cautious — skips all uncertain questions | 40 / 0 / 20 | 60.0 | ⚠️ Marche, Messina, southern universities |
| Guessing randomly on everything | 12 / 38 / 0 | 2.8 | ❌ Nowhere. Don't do this. |
🎯 Key Insight: You do not need to be perfect across all sections. Scoring very well in Biology and Chemistry — 63% of total questions — and performing adequately elsewhere is a fully viable path to 70+.
Understand every question, not just the answer
Step-by-step IMAT worked solutions that break down the reasoning, method, and exam logic behind each question.
Subject Strategy: Maximum Points, Minimum Wasted Time
🧬 Biology — Your Highest-Leverage Subject
⚡ High-Yield Strategy
- • Prioritise: genetics, cell division, DNA replication, immune system, ecology — these repeat every year
- • Target 18–22 correct out of 23. That alone is worth 27–33 points — half your total score
- • Use LOCOMOTIVE's Biology Syllabus Breakdown → to identify your specific gaps
⚗️ Chemistry — High ROI, Punishes Carelessness
⚠️ Common Mistake
Rushing unit conversions and stoichiometry under time pressure. These are questions students get wrong not from lack of knowledge, but from not drilling the mechanics until automatic.
⚡ High-Yield Strategy
- • Core topics: atomic theory, bonding, mole calculations, organic reactions, acids/bases
- • Target: 11–14 correct out of 15. Each dropped question here costs 1.5 pts directly
📐 Maths & Physics — Don't Let Time Kill You
⚠️ Common Mistake
Spending 4+ minutes on a single calculation and losing time for easier questions elsewhere. If a question takes more than 90 seconds — mark it and move on.
🧠 Logical Reasoning — Underestimated, Undertrained
🎯 Key Insight: Improving from 4 to 7 correct here adds +4.5 points — equivalent to nailing 3 extra Biology questions. Read the question before the passage. Practice elimination under timed conditions. Don't dismiss these 9 questions.
Real Student: 58 → 71 in 5 Months
📖 Student Story — Mariam, Egypt
Mariam, a pharmacy graduate from Egypt, sat a diagnostic mock in January 2025 and scored 58 points. Biology was passable. Chemistry was destroying her — wrong-answer penalties alone were costing nearly 8 points per mock.
Month 1–2
Rebuilt Chemistry from scratch. Cut wrong answers in Chem from 8 → 2.
Month 3
Targeted Biology gaps — genetics and cell division specifically.
Month 4
Full timed mocks every 5 days. Analysed every wrong answer before the next mock.
Month 5
Logic/reading drills. Strategy refinement — when to skip, when to guess.
58
January
71.4
September
"I was ready to give up after that first mock. The score improvement wasn't magic — it was a systematic plan and showing up every day."
— Mariam A., Egypt → University of Naples Federico II, 2025
The pattern that made the difference: Mariam didn't study more hours — she stopped losing points she'd already earned. Eliminating Chemistry penalties added nearly 8 points without answering a single extra question correctly. Wrong answers are the most expensive thing in IMAT.
Want a personalised study plan like Mariam's? → Get your free LOCOMOTIVE Starter Pack →
Frequently Asked Questions
There is no single answer — it depends on your target universities. As a general benchmark, 70–75 in practice papers keeps most universities within reach. Top universities (Milan, Pavia, Bologna) required 71–75 in 2025. Southern Italian universities had thresholds in the low-to-mid 50s. Pick your cities first, then set your target score accordingly.
Milan had the highest non-EU cut-off at 72.9, followed by Pavia at 71.9 and Bologna at 71.1. La Sapienza (Dentistry) was 71.8. These are based on official results from the 2025 exam — the most recent IMAT held.
Approximately 47–48 correct answers with the rest left blank. If you have 5 wrong answers, you need around 50 correct to compensate. Keep wrong answers below 5 where possible — each one costs 0.4 points that you already earned.
Skip if you're completely uncertain. Guess only when you can eliminate at least one option — at that point the expected value turns positive. Never guess randomly across the board: the expected score from random guessing is effectively zero, and the penalty compounds quickly.
Yes — Messina, Marche, and Bari had 2025 cut-offs in the 50s. But cut-offs are volatile: Bari was 31.2 in 2023 and 65.8 in 2024. Targeting 65+ is a safer baseline that keeps more options open regardless of year-to-year fluctuations.
The next IMAT exam takes place in September 2026. The most recent exam was IMAT 2025. Results and cut-offs for 2026 will only be available after the September exam is held and marked.
You've read the guide. Now build the score.
The students who get in don't just know more — they prepare smarter. Here's where to start:
Free Starter Pack →
Syllabus, 2023–2025 cut-off data, study schedule template
Free Mock Exam →
60 questions, full scoring, instant performance breakdown
Past Papers Hub →
Every IMAT paper 2011–2025, with annotated model answers
Telegram Community →
4,000+ IMAT students. Q&As, mock results, resources.
Every week you delay is a week your competitors don't.