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Questions regarding medicine

Hiya! Please answer my of questions thank you!:biggrin:

I know I have asked this a couple of times but I just need reasurance. Can I study medicine with my gcse grade: 1A* (chem), 3A's (bio + maths) and 5B's?

Which Uni's will I stand a chance in applying? Anything I can do to increase my chances?
I'm considering joining med society because our school will bring in people from the nhs and we get some insight into the departments. + i've wrote letters to pharmacies, opticians and Gp's for work experience, I just need to buy stamps.

Any tips for what I should include in the letter to increase my chances of getting a placement?

I'm also thinking about having 2 of my gcse's remarked (english literature 3 marks off an A but I only did half of the paper :/ and physics i'm 6 ums off an A). Do you think it's likely that it will get pushed up?

Alevels:
I've started sixth form 3 weeks ago - i'm stessed with being on top of my work - is it normal to be revising the topics you went over in class, not revising extra topics that what we haven't been covered? (cuz we only have 2 lessons a week so we have to rush through a lot of content).

Oh and how did you revise biology? - theres just too much memorisation + I find it hard to condense the notes because all of the book's content is important to know/apart of the spec (+ some topics arent mentioned on the spec yet my teacher says I need to know it like the laser microscope).

Sorry for the huge amount of questions, words and spelling mistakes (i bolded the questions)
(edited 7 years ago)
BUMP
Please reply
Firstly, A-levels are far more important than GCSE's, if you really want a place, you need to aim high and work really hard. Universities would be fools, if they regarded a B at GCSE far more important than an A at A-level. Remember there is a big jump between GCSE's and A-Levels. If you are willing to do high-demanding courses which require AAA, you need to plan your time and what you are doing now is great, but I would highly recommend if you do go over (even if you skim read the topics you are going to do the upcoming lesson), because then you would know at least 10% of the information. Work experience enhances your personal statement. Apparently, there is one in the October half-term in London so go check that out.
These questions have been asked, and answered, many times before. Look for the answers rather than expecting them to be given to you. Don't keep bumping your own thread.
Thank you so much for the reply :smile:

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Reply 6
Medicine is a very competitive and demanding course, and to be frank, your GCSEs are definitely below average of an applicant.

Some universities are less strict regarding GCSEs and some more strict. You just have to do your research on entry requirements.

Your GCSEs aren't terrible, so a good amount of work experience/voluntary work and great a levels will make your application strong.

Things such as being part of a medical society, doing charity events or doing placements really appeal to the universities, so make sure you do plenty of 'above and beyond' work during your year.

And you are not the only one :smile: I'm also starting Biology and I'm already feeling pressured about the amount of work and memorisation we have to do. I usually spend my weekdays doing the homework and weekends doing the memorisation and reviewing what I learnt in the week.
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by shohaib712
Hiya! Please answer my of questions thank you!:biggrin:

I know I have asked this a couple of times but I just need reasurance. Can I study medicine with my gcse grade: 1A* (chem), 3A's (bio + maths) and 5B's?

Which Uni's will I stand a chance in applying? Anything I can do to increase my chances?
I'm considering joining med society because our school will bring in people from the nhs and we get some insight into the departments. + i've wrote letters to pharmacies, opticians and Gp's for work experience, I just need to buy stamps.

Any tips for what I should include in the letter to increase my chances of getting a placement?

I'm also thinking about having 2 of my gcse's remarked (english literature 3 marks off an A but I only did half of the paper :/ and physics i'm 6 ums off an A). Do you think it's likely that it will get pushed up?

Alevels:
I've started sixth form 3 weeks ago - i'm stessed with being on top of my work - is it normal to be revising the topics you went over in class, not revising extra topics that what we haven't been covered? (cuz we only have 2 lessons a week so we have to rush through a lot of content).

Oh and how did you revise biology? - theres just too much memorisation + I find it hard to condense the notes because all of the book's content is important to know/apart of the spec (+ some topics arent mentioned on the spec yet my teacher says I need to know it like the laser microscope).

Sorry for the huge amount of questions, words and spelling mistakes (i bolded the questions)


Can you study medicine with your GCSE Grades?: Yes, certain universities really don't look that much at GCSE grades as long as you meet the minimum requirements (e.g. Bristol don't care about GCSEs as long as you have an A in English Language and Maths). However, you have to understand that you're going for the most competitive uni course with one of the lowest acceptance rates whereby most successful applicants will have 5 A*s or more at GCSE. Therefore, it would be extremely beneficial to absolutely smash your A Levels (I'm talking at least AAA, preferably A*AA) and complement them with an amazing personal statement (charity work - care homes are the best for this, work experience - wide range of medical work such as GP, endoscopy, anaesthetists, etc., musical instrument or sports at a competitive level, etc.).

Which unis do you stand a chance at applying?:

Barts, Keele, Brighton, Kings, Imperial, etc. but only if you're willing to get at least around A*AA for your A Levels.

Should you remark?:English Literature yeah sure, but Physics seems very unlikely tbh.

Is it normal to revise work you go over in class?:

Not only is it normal, it's vital considering that you have hardly any lessons per week. I have over three times as many lessons as you do per week but I still have to go over the stuff in class because I don't understand it fully and I got 9 A*s at GCSE.

Medical school is a ****ing pain with a huge work load and if you can't handle A Levels you definitely won't be able to handle medical school. You seem extremely smart nonetheless though and honestly if you persevere and revise loads (and I mean loads) at home you'll be fine. How to revise?: Use your textbook to write notes which are catered around the specification and do loads of practice questions from past papers (even tho we have a new spec now the old spec is the same stuff so use the old past papers too.)You won't memorise stuff long term so you need to make really good, neat notes which are detailed but easy to revise from. To memorise them combine a variety of techniques; information recall is the most important thing here tho. Read the information, then copy it out again on a rough piece of paper or say it out loud without looking at the notes. You want to make sure that you understand the processes as well; you can't purely regurgitate information. Understand why things are the way they are, look through things logically - this makes revision much easier since it all actually makes sense.
Once you know the concepts and understand them, go through past paper questions on that topic for your exam board and try them. Then go over the mark scheme; don't be lenient to yourself be extremely strict. Use the mark scheme to find out exactly what the examiner wants for certain questions and then supplement your notes using the mark scheme. You don't want to be writing too much or too little. Initially you'll probably do ****, that's the same for everyone; but overtime you'll improve and do better if you stay motivated to put in the shitload of work which is required.

Oh and for Maths (if you're doing it at A Level), you just need to practice loads. Go through the theory (CGP, class notes, textbook, etc.) and find worked examples to actually understand what you're supposed to do; then do loads and loads of practice questions until the whole thing becomes second nature.


Hope I helped. I'm sure you can do amazing in your A Levels you just have to do loads and loads of work every week at home to make sure you understand everything and don't get left behind in class. Honestly, don't get stressed out. If you learn things properly and consolidate them well now you'll be a lot less anxious come exam time and you won't be cramming and you'll be a lot more confident and therefore you'll perform better.
Thank you for help!
Haha at least I'm not the only one :smile: when do you make your revision notes? And how do you do it exactly if you don't mind me asking?

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OMG this is the best reply ever!!!

Thank you so much for the detailed answer :biggrin: yeah I agree with the physics remark. I'll go to my old school and ask for the remark of english lit.

I was thinking about typing up some notes on digital flashcards which I could go over in yhe bus (this would provide an extra way to revise)

How do you deal with motivation - that's what screwed me over when it came to GCSE's and how did you prepare for the January mocks - I want to get above a c at minimum (however most students usually get Ds in them mocks except for students who retook the year)
I think that doing exercise and eating well plays a major factor in revision - I never used to do either in year 11 and always felt tired to revise and unmotivated

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