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MEGATHREAD - The Ultimate 'Am I Good Enough For Medicine?' Angst Thread Mk II

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As long as you apply tactically and read up on admissions to see what they want, you'll be fine. For example, Southampton have entry requirements of 7Bs and above, then after that they don't look at it anymore. Good luck.

Thanks for your help! :smile:

it's the B in maths i'm most worried about.

Reply 7521

AverageExcellence

TBH i dont think gcses count for toffee, A levels are what they focus on most. Oxbridge only look at gcses as one of their final critiques. dont worry about it.

Reply 7522

bm_sewell

yeah. i was thinking of applying to UCL or Leicester, maybe, because i think they have quite low GCSE requirements.

Reply 7523

BlissJunkie

Original post by bm_sewell

Thanks for your help! :smile:

it's the B in maths i'm most worried about.

I think some places may not like that, but you'll have to look that up. Avoid Kings, Bristol, Oxford, Cardiff and Birmingham, as far as I know.

Reply 7524

myyrh

Original post by bm_sewell

yeah. i was thinking of applying to UCL or Leicester, maybe, because i think they have quite low GCSE requirements.

Avoid Leicster, they may have low requirements but they have a point system in place to score GCSEs.

Reply 7525

bm_sewell

Original post by myyrh

Avoid Leicster, they may have low requirements but they have a point system in place to score GCSEs.

oh right, cheers! :smile:

Reply 7526

lukas1051

They probably won't disadvantage you if you apply tactically, as others have said, but with those results do you really think you're cut out for medicine anyway? I mean if you have a good reason then fair enough, but if not, well medicine is very competitive, most applicants will probably have better grades than you, and most will probably carry forward that consistency to A-level. If you do well at A-level then fair enough, you'll probably be fine, but just make sure you know what you're capable of.

Reply 7527

username854791

I think you will be fine, You have all the required ones above a C and thats good. Just the other aspects of the application right and you'll have a chance.

Reply 7528

bm_sewell

Original post by lukas1051

yh, i've always wanted to do medicine and i think my a-level results should be good as i'm carrying on with the sciences. i have a lot of experience in health and social settings also, which should help with my application :smile:

Reply 7529

ophtho

Original post by bm_sewell

I don't see anything wrong with those gcses. I have only one A at gcse and I have an offer to study medicine. You can apply to places with lower gcse requirements and also places like Kings. The only thing is you have to have a high UKCAT or BMAT in the case of UCL. So take the UKCAT and if its very high you can apply to the UKCAT heavy uni's as they won't care about your gcses with such high UKCAT

Reply 7530

bm_sewell

Original post by brionyak

well done on your offer :smile:

What uni did you get the offer from?

Reply 7531

Squshy_Olorin

Original post by bm_sewell

Your GCSEs aren't bad, people have got worse and gotten into medicine. But yeah brionyak is right, try and aim for a high UKCAT/BMAT just to be safe :smile:

Oh and for UCL you only need the BMAT and as long as your score is above average (usually around the 4.5 mark for section 1 and 2) you 'll be fine too as they look as your application as a whole. Last advice is don't apply to GCSE loving med schools such as Birmingham :smile:

Reply 7532

Leonidas12

I am currently in my A2 year, doing Chemistry, Biology and Maths. I did Physics at AS but dropped it.

My AS Grades were beyond awful(Chem-D, Phys-D, Bio-C, Maths-B) so in january I did some of the A2 modules together with half the AS modules, with the plan of doing the other half in June.

I did better this time, all my resits were As or Bs but unfortunatly my chem unit 4 was D and bio unit 4 was C.

I am now taking 11 exams in June as a last chance to get 3As as I believe the revision I did for the last two batches of exams was sub-par.

I have started revision already for the exams and just was curious. Has anyone else managed to come up from such poor results or is it a lost cause?

Reply 7533

Giggy88

It's not easy, but definitely possible.

My friend had 13 exams in yr 13, June and came out with A's in the exact same subjects you are doing. The thing about chemistry and maths is that it's just practice, practice practice.

It all depends about how intense your revision is going to be in the coming 2 months. If you learn all definitions for chemistry and do as much worked examples as possible for maths and chem it will nearly become second nature and in the exam you usually know half way through reading the questions whats being expected as it becomes second nature.

Bio is a bit more trickier. Depending on your examboard biology exams have started to consist of much more how science works questions and more analytical ideas rather than the excessive recall questions that most people expect. Therefore for bio its extremely important to understand what the question is asking you to do as small variations in understanding is where you start dropping marks.

Most importantly stay motivated and try your best, that's all you can do at the end of the day.

Good luck

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 7534

louistoffee

If you get AAAc, and achieve it, you can apply to a fair few med schools, although some want AAAb, so it may be worth resitting the C for a B or an A in maths.... As for GCSEs, they use them to differentiate candidates, i.e. a student is more likely to be academic with 8A* than they are with A/B/C grades, although it isn't always the case, and although good GCSEs are favoured, it's not to say it's the be-all and end all, I know a guy with two offers for medicine with 6A*, and a guy who got none with 10. Medicine want people who can communicate, not academic bots.

Reply 7535

gemma sweetman

I want to study medicine at university in a few years, will i be eligable to get in with my current GCSE grades?
Biology- A*
Chemistry- A
Physics-A
Maths- A
Statistics-A
English Lit-A
English Lang-A
History-A*
R.E-A
German-B
Human health and physiology-A
Business studies-A

Reply 7536

Reina

My grades generally good (GCSE: 8A*, 4As) and I seem to be doing ok at AS level, though I won't know for sure until exams, but the thought of University in general makes me uncomfortable - especially something as competitive as medicine.

Up until now, I've always just followed revision guides and specifications, so I don't know how good I'll be at doing things by myself at University and I don't really know much about medicine.

Not sure whether not knowing much at this stage is an issue or not because obviously I'll be going to uni to learn, but with so many people saying "read medical journals" etc. I'm starting to wonder whether I need to know loads before applying.

My practical skills also suck in Biology and Chemistry - nothing ever works like it's supposed to, though that may be my fault or a result of the practical itself being awful since no one's practicals ever seem to work...

...I think that's it.

So many jumbled thoughts :s-smilie:

Reply 7537

Raj K

of course you can...just work extra hard for a levels too and get those A's ! (:

Reply 7538

gemma sweetman

so do GCSE's not matter too much then? because i always thought that you needed practically all A* st GCSe to even be in with a chance at a medical school.

Reply 7539

chocolate102030

I'm a new on this thread so please help and answer!

I'm currently in year 12 and study A level maths, biology, chemistry and sociology. I would absolutely LOVE a career in medicine but am totally UNSURE whether I should apply since it is so competitive.

GCSE grades were 6.5 A* 4 As and I am predicted As in all my A levels- I recently got 3 Bs and 1A in my January modules (I don't think I quite sussed out how to revise properly but am DEFINITELY confident I will got As overall)

I know that my GCSE grades aren't great but I am part of a scheme called REALISING OPPORTUNITIES and it means that I could be accepted with a few grades lower than required-so they are ok for me!

I also have the following work experience planned: a week in a chemist, week in a hospital and week in a doctor's surgery. I am also deperately looking for some kind of volunteering- no luck yet :frown:

My extra currciculars include debating at regional level, hockey, running a sports club for year 7s and helping younger children to read every week. I am also head girl at my college.

Do you think it is REALLY worth me applying, I certainly do not want to waste a year of my life by not getting through and I do not want to take a gap year gaining more experience or volunteering or whatever. Thanx for your help!

I would also like add that I already have a weeks experience at a dentist (year 10) but do you think this is even relevant for medicine?