Cardiff Medicine Applicants 2012

Just got a letter from Cardiff saying I was rejected because of my academics. 7A*'s,3A's so 25 points. gutted! was 25 the cut off then?

2 A*'s - Bio and Chem
8 A's
with a B in English Language

Realistically is it worth applying?

2 A*'s - Bio and Chem
8 A's
with a B in English Language

Realistically is it worth applying?

It's a tough call without knowing more about your experience. If you read further up this thread, there's an example of someone with a GCSE score of 20 (i.e. the same as yours) getting an interview, so it is possible. However, I think you would also need some fairly strong work/voluntary experience to support your application. Cardiff seem to put a lot of emphasis on work/vol experience, especially if other areas of your app are not as strong.

Just got a letter from Cardiff saying I was rejected because of my academics. 7A*'s,3A's so 25 points. gutted! was 25 the cut off then?

I would have thought your academics are GREAT! (Unless the grades didn't include English Language, Sciences or Maths).
Do you think may be they typed the letter wrong and it was really supposed to be non-academic?.. How are your non-acadamics like?

A lot of you here are questioning why you didn't get an interview/offer when your academia is so good, but I'm sorry to say guys, it isn't about the academia. The grades and qualifications they ask for is just a way to select for interview, and a way to be able to limit the number of applicants to what is probably the most competitive of all courses.
What it comes down to is everything else but your academic skills - what you've written in your personal statement, what you've talked about at your interview. If it hasn't come across to them well enough that you have a life outside of school, you will not be interviewed/get an offer.
Also remember that every single applicant has 2 weeks work experience at a hospital, a week at somewhere else, a years voluntary work at a care home. You have to stand out. If this is all you have, then your personal statement must be written in a way that makes it stand out from the tens of thousands other sheets of paper in that pile.
Students who have taken a gap year, and have spent a year doing all sorts of wonderful things helping out or working abroad seem to find it easier to get offers - mainly because they stand out!
At the end of the day, the harsh reality is that medicine is so competitive, that if you don't make those interviewers remember you, or if your personal statement does not interest the person marking it, you will be overlooked in an instant.

Good luck to all of you still waiting, and even better luck to you guys that will be reapplying next year

If this was the case then they would say that you were rejected due to your non academics. But when they tell a load of people that you have been rejected due to your "academic score not meeting the threshold", me included then we will have our suspicions considering our scores were 24 or 25. So now there's a problem, they're advertising one thing and implementing another system, or they just didn't realise how competitive it would be this year.

If the problem was indeed due to the personal statement or not enough work experience etc then tell me, but the academics aspect is just a joke and kind of feels like a slap in the face.

EDIT: The letter also outlines that they look at academics first, then non academics and then interviews, so it was rejection on the first hurdle apparently.

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I agree that the admissions process at Cardiff isn't perfect, but speculating over things without knowing the truth is pointless.
I find it hard to believe that a candidate with 25 or even 24 points would be rejected for their academics, as GCSEs are the ONLY form of academic assessment (unless you have known A2 grades).
You should phone up Cardiff and ask them for a more detailed reason, the admissions people are lovely and I'm sure they'll be happy to help.

Trust me when I say that this is the case.
I understand that it doesn't make much sense when they say you have been rejected due to your academics not meeting the threshold.
The letter says they look at your academics, and then non-academics, but it doesn't mean they have already 'set the threshold' and will reject anyone under their already decided threshold. It means that anyone with obviously not good enough grades will be rejected, but for anyone else, the non-academics will be looked at too before inviting for interview.
The fact that others with lower academics have interviews will be because
everyone's personal statement is looked at before offering interviews, and if these guys' statement was brilliant, then of course they will be interviewed - as i said, it isn't all about academics.
The same goes if say, someone with amazing academia, and therefore very high number of 'points' has a rubbish personal statement, and not much experience - what would be the point in wasting time interviewing when obviously they don't know what they're letting themselves in for with medicine? Of course this situation is rarer, but the same principle applies.

In your case, i would suggest that, yes, your academics were good enough to 'make the cut', but your personal statement/range of experience wasn't.

Your letter said you were rejected on academic purposes because that's the 'first step' for interview selection, and will be the deciding factor for the majority of people. So, basically they will send this very same letter to everyone who is rejected before interview - can you imagine how much time it would take to go through every single applicant and write a personal letter as to why they haven't been offered an interview? Although they should be doing this, it isn't realistically possible, and at the end of the day, it isn't in their best interest.
This is the same for most unis btw, not just Cardiff - they send out a general/vague letter.

I definitely agree that they should tell you, and that you should be given a proper reason as to why you were rejected, but you have to understand that it isn't realistic to expect them to do this for the thousands of you that have applied.
I think if you phone them and ask, you may be given a better answer.

I agree that the admissions process at Cardiff isn't perfect, but speculating over things without knowing the truth is pointless.
I find it hard to believe that a candidate with 25 or even 24 points would be rejected for their academics, as GCSEs are the ONLY form of academic assessment (unless you have known A2 grades).
You should phone up Cardiff and ask them for a more detailed reason, the admissions people are lovely and I'm sure they'll be happy to help.

Thank you, you make a valid point, I'm going to make an appeal like the letter says to do. It's worth a shot.

Do we know if Cardiff will be rejecting/offering post-interview students this week?

thanks

Good luck, it can't do any harm.

And referring to the above post, the PS is the non-academic form of assessment.

I would have thought your academics are GREAT! (Unless the grades didn't include English Language, Sciences or Maths).
Do you think may be they typed the letter wrong and it was really supposed to be non-academic?.. How are your non-acadamics like?

As my 2A*, 8 As and a B in English Language isn't suffice for Medical school at Cardiff, would achieving 4A's at AS level increase my points tally to get over the threshold to apply?

Pretty sure they don't look at AS level results, only GCSE's and achieved A2's.

So the personal statement is considered academic? If I was rejected due to the personal statement, then say "personal statement" instead of confusing everyone and saying academic, if the reason was non academic then I'm sure they would have said so.

I'm just angry now that if they are beating around the bush. Just muster up the guts and say "personal statement" or "non academic". It's not that difficult really. I highly think that is likely though. Cardiff and other unis for that matter surely wouldn't act like this?