Advice on applying to med schools in UK

I am a Canadian student looking to student dentistry in the UK. I have completed grade 12 and got an average of 90% in my top 6 courses including Biology, Chemistry, Calculus, Advance Functions, English and Challenge & Change in Society. I have about 50 hours of shadowing and currently studying for UKCAT. I just had a couple questions regarding admission to the undergraduate medicine program.
1) What schools are good to apply to and that I have a chance to get admission in to?
2) Is a 90% average in competitive standing?
3) If I write the UKCAT in July, is there any way I can still try for admission in July or will I have to wait for September 2017?
4) Can reference letters be from a doctor you shadowed or a tutor that is a certified teacher or does the reference letters have to be from a teacher that taught me during my grade 12 year?

I am a Canadian student looking to student dentistry in the UK. I have completed grade 12 and got an average of 90% in my top 6 courses including Biology, Chemistry, Calculus, Advance Functions, English and Challenge & Change in Society. I have about 50 hours of shadowing and currently studying for UKCAT. I just had a couple questions regarding admission to the undergraduate medicine program.
1) What schools are good to apply to and that I have a chance to get admission in to?
2) Is a 90% average in competitive standing?
3) If I write the UKCAT in July, is there any way I can still try for admission in July or will I have to wait for September 2017?
4) Can reference letters be from a doctor you shadowed or a tutor that is a certified teacher or does the reference letters have to be from a teacher that taught me during my grade 12 year?

I am a Canadian student looking to student dentistry in the UK. I have completed grade 12 and got an average of 90% in my top 6 courses including Biology, Chemistry, Calculus, Advance Functions, English and Challenge & Change in Society. I have about 50 hours of shadowing and currently studying for UKCAT. I just had a couple questions regarding admission to the undergraduate medicine program.
1) What schools are good to apply to and that I have a chance to get admission in to?
2) Is a 90% average in competitive standing?
3) If I write the UKCAT in July, is there any way I can still try for admission in July or will I have to wait for September 2017?
4) Can reference letters be from a doctor you shadowed or a tutor that is a certified teacher or does the reference letters have to be from a teacher that taught me during my grade 12 year?

Thanks @raniafern, hopefully we can help!

Hi gurkarand

Do you have any schools in mind that you would like to apply for?

Obviously the Canadian schooling system is very different to the UK schooling system. Testing is a very important part of UK education and the test scores mean a great deal to English students as their ability to test well will affect their ability to attend university.

With all of that said it all begins with an application. Just as you would with a Canadian school you will need to begin the admissions process with an application, including a personal statement. This is your opportunity to represent yourself well.

My advice would be to research the universities that you would like to apply for and begin the admissions process. For some tips on writing a killer personal statement you should watch this video. Do let me know if you have any questions.

Making sure you are fully prepared for the UKCAT is another good way of giving yourself the best chance of being accepted into medical school. So starting as soon as you can with this is a good idea.

There are many ways that you can do this, either on your own with books, practice questions and mock papers or it might be a good idea to look into an online UKCAT course.

I am conscious of not bombarding you with information so will leave it there and hopefully I have answered some of your questions. Do give me a shout if you have any more questions or you would like some more pointers with your personal statement or UKCAT prep.

Good luck with it all.

UniAdmissions

Hi

@UniAdmissions will probably be in a better position to answer you.

As for your 3rd question, if you answer the UKCAT this year, you will apply with these scores, viz the UCAS or otherwise, and would be eligible for 2017 entry.

4) Your letter of recommendation is usually from a mentor, which can be a tutor (probably the best bet) or even your teacher. There isn't really anything against doctors whom you've shadowed, but I don't know if they've known you long enough to consider them your mentor.

I'm sorry I can't answer your other questions, since I'm no expert on this topic. I'm simply a student who's applying for Medicine, 2017 entry. If there's anything else you need, feel free to PM me

Great reply by yourself and uni admissions. I cant really top that!

I would also like to add though, it is important to contact the individual dental schools for more info. I know the requirements vary from school to school so it is important that you ask them questions directly.

From my own experience, if you want a quick response, message the school via their twitter/facebook page.

They always respond quicker than via email! A nifty trick that works with all companies/organizations by the way!

Thanks!

And hey, I didn't know that! I've got a whole list of Med schools that I will be contacting soon to ask about their terms of admissions (which aren't listed on their website ), so you suggest I ask them on twitter? I ain't on Facebook, but I could make an account if I need to.