[The Polar Dude]

(Original post by Elwyn)
Sorry if it sounds like I'm pointing out the obvious but it sounds like your PS was a little weak. I see you've already decided to reapply, which I think is a good decision. Undertake some more voluntary work to bolster your application, and get a nice early start on your PS. Best of luck!

Alright then, thanks

[awaitingmydream]

(Original post by The Polar Dude)
Hey,

So I've been forced onto a gap year with 4 pre-interview rejections for medicine mainly to do with my personal statement
I had a poor UKCAT and okish BMAT but not good enough
Since my UKCAT was poor, I was forced to rule out many medical schools

Applied to:
Imperial
BSMS
Keele
Liverpool

-I don't want to do any other course apart from medicine, my heart is set on medicine
-I added an extra choice on UCAS track last week to do biomed at UEA but I'm having second thoughts, I don't want to do biomed as an alternative. GEP?
-medicine abroad? Well, I really want to do medicine in the UK but parents are saying I have the option to do it with Nigeria
-not sure if GMC would accept it by the time I graudate etc..
-If I don't get AAA in A level, medicine won't happen for undergraduate entry therefore, I'm a bit stressed/worried but I'm working hard atm

Any advice?
Also, teacher and other friends keep pressuring me to do biomed at UEA. UEA said I should write a revised PS by next tuesday to be considered.

Why don't you accept the course at East Anglia or go on UCAS extra to find another related course. Accept it. Then wait until results day to decide whether you're actually going to go or take a gap!

[awaitingmydream]

(Original post by Doctor.)
Hang in there

Same position. What would you do if worst comes to worst? Would you take another gap?

[Doctor.]

(Original post by awaitingmydream)
Same position. What would you do if worst comes to worst? Would you take another gap?

Impossible, unless I want to live on the street

[The Polar Dude]

(Original post by awaitingmydream)
Why don't you accept the course at East Anglia or go on UCAS extra to find another related course. Accept it. Then wait until results day to decide whether you're actually going to go or take a gap!

I would do this but then I think that I'm rushing into things.
I don't like research at all and I'm not keen on it, so biomed/biochem/pharmacy would be a bad idea for me.

A gap year will allow me to explore my options and make a rational decision

[manupalace]

(Original post by The Polar Dude)
I would do this but then I think that I'm rushing into things.
I don't like research at all and I'm not keen on it, so biomed/biochem/pharmacy would be a bad idea for me.

A gap year will allow me to explore my options and make a rational decision

Pharmacy doesn't force you into research and there are quite a few places available in extra.

[aggie30]

(Original post by awaitingmydream)
Why don't you accept the course at East Anglia or go on UCAS extra to find another related course. Accept it. Then wait until results day to decide whether you're actually going to go or take a gap!

Yh your advice is basically what I'm doing I got offered a few courses from UEA and chose Biomed but after receiving my 3rd rejection on only option left being leeds which I'm certain ill be rejected from I've emailed UEA to ask if I can be considered for pharmacy instead so ill firm that and at the same time plan for a gap year so if I get 3A's on results day then ill take the gap year At first i was all ready to give up but I know deep down that if I don't give it another shot ill always regret not trying

[Varsh05]

(Original post by haleem)
All 4, but the morale of the story is... not all medical schools have the same admissions policy, and some clearly dont give a crap about GCSE's

Okayy,which one are you going to??

[rkate]

I've now had all 4 rejections, 3 without interview- Bristol, Cardiff, BSMS and rejected post interview by Manchester.
GCSE's 6A*'s 4A's
AS- AAAb
A2 predictions- 3 A's
UKCAT 667
Volunteered in a hospital for a year, had some good work experience, part time waitressing, volleyball etc so i thought PS was ok!
Now feeling pretty glum Still waiting feeback from bristol and cardiff- the other two's feedback wasn't very specific..
Anyone have any suggestions as to what i could improve when i re-apply?

[.eXe]

(Original post by rkate)
I've now had all 4 rejections, 3 without interview- Bristol, Cardiff, BSMS and rejected post interview by Manchester.
GCSE's 6A*'s 4A's
AS- AAAb
A2 predictions- 3 A's
UKCAT 667
Volunteered in a hospital for a year, had some good work experience, part time waitressing, volleyball etc so i thought PS was ok!
Now feeling pretty glum Still waiting feeback from bristol and cardiff- the other two's feedback wasn't very specific..
Anyone have any suggestions as to what i could improve when i re-apply?

reapply. academically i think you're good to go, it might have been your PS that let you down for most schools. just take a gap, get some strong WE and write a much more comprehensive PS and I think you should be fine. Lots of gap years get in on their 2nd application. goodl uck.

[rkate]

(Original post by .eXe)
reapply. academically i think you're good to go, it might have been your PS that let you down for most schools. just take a gap, get some strong WE and write a much more comprehensive PS and I think you should be fine. Lots of gap years get in on their 2nd application. goodl uck.

Thanks

[Cityshy]

Hi sorry to "spam" I certainly don't mean to, I'm in the same boat as lots of you, I'm a re-applicant.

I'm doing a little research project on the difficulties of getting into medical school in UK, and writing about how lots of applicants meet the academic requirements, and other requirements, yet still get rejected. It's subjective to the amount/quality of the applicants each year, not just about ticking the boxes academically/UKCAT/PS, and I'm arguing there's no 'guaranteed' way to get into medschool but there are improvements one can make to enhance their chances, and finding a correlation between applicants applying to particular medschools.

Please help me out by answering my survey (Just 10 questions, anonymous). And if you're busy or don't want to, then just ignore this post! http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/YTGKRV8

*corrected spelling

[Dave11]

Four rejections, received one from Peninsula post interview today. Never felt like such a failure. Looking back, I was quite nervous during my Peninsula interview which may have been why I was rejected (they have yet to provide reasoning), but I got two rejections without interview as well.

My GCSE's were 8A*s and 5 A's, My UKCAT was 702.5, My BMAT was 6.2/5.8/1.5A (which is the reason Cambridge gave for rejecting me post interview) and I've got A*AB already (I was a year ahead at school) and I asked the universities if they would still consider me if I did a retake to bring my B up to an A (I was really ill for most of year 12 and missed a lot of school as a result, and when I informed all four universities I applied to. they were very positive about it). My references were flawless and I did about 20 drafts of my personal statement, improving it as much as I possibly could, and everyone from teachers and UCAS officers to Medlink staff, the Medify personal statement staff and healthcare professionals said it was brilliant.

...all of that sounds so pretentious, and for that I apologise. I'm just so angry with myself and sad that it's March and despite doing everything I could do I have yet to receive an offer from anywhere. I'm really sorry about the rant .

If anyone has any advice that would be really great; I am determined to get into Medicine but I don't want to have to take another gap year. I hear you can apply during your first year of Uni? Other than that I've got near to no idea about what my options are.

Once again, I'm really sorry about the rant, I know that there's a lot of people in exactly the same situation so I'm sorry if this sounds self centred. Thanks in advance XX

[.eXe]

(Original post by Dave11)
Four rejections, received one from Peninsula post interview today. Never felt like such a failure. Looking back, I was quite nervous during my Peninsula interview which may have been why I was rejected (they have yet to provide reasoning), but I got two rejections without interview as well.

My GCSE's were 8A*s and 5 A's, My UKCAT was 702.5, My BMAT was 6.2/5.8/1.5A (which is the reason Cambridge gave for rejecting me post interview) and I've got A*AB already (I was a year ahead at school) and I asked the universities if they would still consider me if I did a retake to bring my B up to an A (I was really ill for most of year 12 and missed a lot of school as a result, and when I informed all four universities I applied to. they were very positive about it). My references were flawless and I did about 20 drafts of my personal statement, improving it as much as I possibly could, and everyone from teachers and UCAS officers to Medlink staff, the Medify personal statement staff and healthcare professionals said it was brilliant.

...all of that sounds so pretentious, and for that I apologise. I'm just so angry with myself and sad that it's March and despite doing everything I could do I have yet to receive an offer from anywhere. I'm really sorry about the rant .

If anyone has any advice that would be really great; I am determined to get into Medicine but I don't want to have to take another gap year. I hear you can apply during your first year of Uni? Other than that I've got near to no idea about what my options are.

Once again, I'm really sorry about the rant, I know that there's a lot of people in exactly the same situation so I'm sorry if this sounds self centred. Thanks in advance XX

Wtf your academics and test scores are really impressive...I am very surprised that you got rejections...the pre-interview ones. I suspect it may have been something to do with your PS to be honest...your scores are pretty godlike as far as I can tell. Are you definitely not going to take a gap year? I am not sure if all schools allow you to apply in first year...i would recommend checking with them. most schools want you to be in the final year of the degree to apply. either way, good luck!

[TooSexyForMyStethoscope]

(Original post by .eXe)
Wtf your academics and test scores are really impressive...I am very surprised that you got rejections...the pre-interview ones. I suspect it may have been something to do with your PS to be honest...your scores are pretty godlike as far as I can tell. Are you definitely not going to take a gap year? I am not sure if all schools allow you to apply in first year...i would recommend checking with them. most schools want you to be in the final year of the degree to apply. either way, good luck!

Only some universities state that you need to be in the final year of a degree. A number of people do apply whilst in the first year of another degree course, it is frowned upon but apparently simple to get away with.

[Dave11]

(Original post by .eXe)
Wtf your academics and test scores are really impressive...I am very surprised that you got rejections...the pre-interview ones. I suspect it may have been something to do with your PS to be honest...your scores are pretty godlike as far as I can tell. Are you definitely not going to take a gap year? I am not sure if all schools allow you to apply in first year...i would recommend checking with them. most schools want you to be in the final year of the degree to apply. either way, good luck!

I'm already on a gap year; I was told by my school to get my overall A-Level grades; because I was ill and missed a lot of school, my teachers said they weren't able to give me predicted grades because they couldn't really assess my ability, but assured me that because I'm a year ahead that I'd be better off (lol). As you can probably understand, I really don't want to take another year out! Thank you though .

(Original post by TooSexyForMyStethoscope)
Only some universities state that you need to be in the final year of a degree. A number of people do apply whilst in the first year of another degree course, it is frowned upon but apparently simple to get away with.

I can see how it'd be frowned upon :/. Do you have any advice regarding it though? XX

[TooSexyForMyStethoscope]

(Original post by Dave11)
I'm already on a gap year; I was told by my school to get my overall A-Level grades; because I was ill and missed a lot of school, my teachers said they weren't able to give me predicted grades because they couldn't really assess my ability, but assured me that because I'm a year ahead that I'd be better off (lol). As you can probably understand, I really don't want to take another year out! Thank you though .



I can see how it'd be frowned upon :/. Do you have any advice regarding it though? XX

I honestly don't know a lot about it, other than the fact that a few people in my year managed to do it.

[Vox0]

(Original post by Dave11)
Four rejections, ...

Just had a wee read of this bro. I know how you feel trust me, gutted for you. Your academics seem up to scratch and UKCAT solid too.

As has been said, PS is usually the reason for rejection pre-interview. If it isn't stand out enough, succinct enough, strong enough then you are going to have a huge problem. Plenty of drafts was a good idea and passing it by as many relevant people was too so I'm sort of stumped on that one.

I'd need to actually have a read of your PS to see... but what about healthcare experience, personal experience and extracurricular involvement? Have these been talked about and reflected about enough in your PS? What about a real knowledge of what a medical career entails? I myself passed my PS on to several people but I realised that some of the help that I got was simply outdated. Furthermore, what some people told me to put in didn't really suit what I thought medical schools nowadays were looking for. What I mean is, did you apply smartly; taking into account your strengths and potential weaknesses and choosing universities which would look more favourably on your application?

You got rejections post interview aswell. So you need to gain confidence with talking to people. I've no doubt you can talk to anybody about anything but I know that everything can go out of your head when you get sat down infront of two people who are potentially going to decide your future.

The first year uni-transfer thing is very risky; I wouldn't recommend it. Very few people (like 1-3 out of 350+) at my uni got that chance and its not guaranteed. Also if you don't get it then you might end up on a degree you don't like and dropping out defo wouldn't be looked upon kindly but, on the other hand a degree would help your application. It's really tough actually because you'll be wondering what the hell else you can do to show them you want it.

TL;DR sounds to me like PS, interview skills, personal, life, work experience + don't try for 1 year uni->transfer.

[Shreyank]

(Original post by Vox0)
Just had a wee read of this bro. I know how you feel trust me, gutted for you. Your academics seem up to scratch and UKCAT solid too.

As has been said, PS is usually the reason for rejection pre-interview. If it isn't stand out enough, succinct enough, strong enough then you are going to have a huge problem. Plenty of drafts was a good idea and passing it by as many relevant people was too so I'm sort of stumped on that one.

I'd need to actually have a read of your PS to see... but what about healthcare experience, personal experience and extracurricular involvement? Have these been talked about and reflected about enough in your PS? What about a real knowledge of what a medical career entails? I myself passed my PS on to several people but I realised that some of the help that I got was simply outdated. Furthermore, what some people told me to put in didn't really suit what I thought medical schools nowadays were looking for. What I mean is, did you apply smartly; taking into account your strengths and potential weaknesses and choosing universities which would look more favourably on your application?

You got rejections post interview aswell. So you need to gain confidence with talking to people. I've no doubt you can talk to anybody about anything but I know that everything can go out of your head when you get sat down infront of two people who are potentially going to decide your future.

The first year uni-transfer thing is very risky; I wouldn't recommend it. Very few people (like 1-3 out of 350+) at my uni got that chance and its not guaranteed. Also if you don't get it then you might end up on a degree you don't like and dropping out defo wouldn't be looked upon kindly but, on the other hand a degree would help your application. It's really tough actually because you'll be wondering what the hell else you can do to show them you want it.

TL;DR sounds to me like PS, interview skills, personal, life, work experience + don't try for 1 year uni->transfer.

Hi i too have been rejected and i'm going to apply for Grad entry come 2012, you seem like you have experience in this area.Which is why i ask..

I have work experience at
Care home weekly
GP one week shadowing
Pizza Hut 1.5yrs

Extra circ
Maths tutor (part time)
Debating
Rock climbing,kayaking and some other outdoor things
Drama (perfuming outdoors)
Speech competition finalist [over a million participants]

and finally looking to get a 2.1 or above in Chemical engineering.

I know this is not a "am i good enough thread" but I am in need of much advice.

What can I do to improve my application before Oct'12?

Any tips for applying as a graduate? 4yr or 5yr or both?

Any advice you can give me will be much appreciated.

[harmony.]

As this is a rejections thread, I'm not sure we're all best equipped to give advice on how to get into med school...