[confused dot com]

I applied to a university I really didn't want to go to (Birmingham), then proceeded to get my heart set on Oxford, which could have gone completely wrong given how competitive it is

I also started my personal statement waaay too late, which meant it wasn't as good as I wanted and I had to juggle writing it with starting my A2s. Not fun!

[delllboy]

not getting in is my biggest regret i guess. must get the elusive 700 ukcat score that i missed last time and a bit more work experience i guess.

[AishaTara]

(Original post by NightBear)
-Applying to Cambridge without, well, extraordinary UMS (or anything else that was extraordinary to back my application up)
-Applying to Leicester with a low UKCAT score
-Cocking up the one interview I got
-Applying to Liverpool (even though I hated the place with a passion) because I couldn't find any other university to apply to that wouldn't reject me straight out; lesson learned: lower UKCAT narrows down your options so much it's unbelievable

But liverpool don't use the UKCAT...?

[PrettyLittleLiars]

Made sure that I really actually wanted to study medicine. Realised I didn't want to and withdrew my application although I had a place at Nottingham and Southampton and applied to read Pharmacy instead. Got a place at Aston and now firmed it. Am well happy just hope I get the grades now!

[Iepnauy]

Don't have a biggest regret, but I do have some areas that I wished I didn't do.

- Had my UKCAT booked 6 days after I came back from holiday, spent more time catching up with friends than revising. It stopped me applying to Newcastle which I really wanted to do =/
- Left everything else sooo late. I didn't do nearly enough revising for my BMAT, I did past papers sure, but I didn't actually take time to learn the sciency stuff which let me down big time. I started doing my PS in the last week of September so my PS wasn't nearly as good as I wanted it to be.
- Applied to Gonville and Caius at Cambridge :P. I didn't have anywhere near superb UMS/GCSEs and I was riding my luck with my BMAT. Didn't work out. Perhaps if I applied to a less competitive college I would've had a chance. Maybe.

I wouldn't say I regret anything though. And I know I'll be happy at Imperial (if I get the grades) so it kinda all worked out in the end.

[Richyp22]

(Original post by confused dot com)
I applied to a university I really didn't want to go to (Birmingham), then proceeded to get my heart set on Oxford, which could have gone completely wrong given how competitive it is

I also started my personal statement waaay too late, which meant it wasn't as good as I wanted and I had to juggle writing it with starting my A2s. Not fun!

When did u start your personal statement? Cause im planning to start at the end of six weeks holiday cause i wont have done much work experience till then. But im worried thatll be too little time, Also i need an amazing personal statement since i want to go to leeds so its kinda hard

[confused dot com]

(Original post by Richyp22)
When did u start your personal statement? Cause im planning to start at the end of six weeks holiday cause i wont have done much work experience till then. But im worried thatll be too little time, Also i need an amazing personal statement since i want to go to leeds so its kinda hard

I started in the first couple weeks of September, so couldn't leave as much time aside for it as I wanted. It's fine to leave it towards the end of the holiday, but at the very least begin to list all the things you've done and perhaps write a paragraph about each so you're not starting from scratch at the end of the holidays Good luck though, which other unis do you plan on applying to?

[AishaTara]

(Original post by PrettyLittleLiars)
Made sure that I really actually wanted to study medicine. Realised I didn't want to and withdrew my application although I had a place at Nottingham and Southampton and applied to read Pharmacy instead. Got a place at Aston and now firmed it. Am well happy just hope I get the grades now!

hey wow well done with two offers, and they didn't catch you out or anything about not wanting to do medicine. What made you change your mind?
( only asking because I want to ensure ive considered everything rather than starting the course if I get an offer and then realising its not for me)
thanks in advance

[TheSownRose]

(Original post by Hippokrates)
I hope this years applicants hear about their cock up and they get really low applicant figures for it.

What happened?

[Richyp22]

(Original post by confused dot com)
I started in the first couple weeks of September, so couldn't leave as much time aside for it as I wanted. It's fine to leave it towards the end of the holiday, but at the very least begin to list all the things you've done and perhaps write a paragraph about each so you're not starting from scratch at the end of the holidays Good luck though, which other unis do you plan on applying to?

Sheffield, Manchester and another maybe notts since i live there. But that depends on my ukat which i hope to get over 7 hundred and also what i get at AS in maths could i could end up with a b or c Which wont look good. But ill get A's in the rest

[confused dot com]

(Original post by Richyp22)
Sheffield, Manchester and another maybe notts since i live there. But that depends on my ukat which i hope to get over 7 hundred and also what i get at AS in maths could i could end up with a b or c Which wont look good. But ill get A's in the rest

I didn't apply to any of those so I can't comment on their admissions process Wrt UKCAT, practice is really key. I was terrible initially and managed to get only a few questions right, but with the UKCAT 600 qns book and a lot of the free resources on TSR's Medicine Wiki page, I got a lot better at the questions and ended up with a pretty good score.

[NightBear]

(Original post by Richyp22)
What gcses did u have btw?? Cause im applying with only 2A* and 8A and im geussing most will have more A* so abit worried i wont stand a chance with leeds

I didn't apply to Leeds myself but quite a lot of people I know did. Two girls I know applied got 10 A*s and 12 A*s, but that's no indication of what everyone else has Just make sure all other areas of your application are quite literally perfect, or at least near-perfect.

[NightBear]

(Original post by AishaTara)
But liverpool don't use the UKCAT...?

Yeah, that's the only reason I applied to Liverpool. I meant that I had to apply to Liverpool because UKCAT narrowed all my other options

[Sherbet]

(Original post by NightBear)
I didn't apply to Leeds myself but quite a lot of people I know did. Two girls I know applied got 10 A*s and 12 A*s, but that's no indication of what everyone else has Just make sure all other areas of your application are quite literally perfect, or at least near-perfect.

You don't need to be perfect, I'm not and I got a place. I think they just look for "all rounders".

(Original post by Richyp22)
When did u start your personal statement? Cause im planning to start at the end of six weeks holiday cause i wont have done much work experience till then. But im worried thatll be too little time, Also i need an amazing personal statement since i want to go to leeds so its kinda hard

Plenty of time if you get a move on, maybe do a rough plan before then, just make sure you get it checked by as many people as you can and keep redrafting. I slaved over mine and thought I'd left mine too late (applied 14th October ). If you have any questions about Leeds pm me.

[laurie:)]

not applying to oxford. i fell head over heels in love with it at the open day, i spoke to several current medical students there, and i went to various days that promised help with oxbridge applications. then at the last minute i chickened out, pulled out of the BMAT and picked leicester instead. im sure i wouldn't have gotten in anyway, but im annoyed at myself for not even attempting to run for a dream

[aljabiraa]

• not applying to cardiff, i got an offer for pharmacy there and just loved the place
• not being calmer in my ucl interview and to not only talk about surgery

that said, i'm still very glad i applied to cambridge because that would've been a HUGE regret if i hadnt

[rsp]

(Original post by gina3706)
regrets: not realising nottingham's resit policy (in my defence they lied on the open day didn't include it on the UCAS page or the entry requirements page),

Totally agree with Nottingham.
Wish i had worked harder for January A2 modules so there would not be so much pressure now.
Wished i had not applied to BMAT uni (Imperial) i was clearley not going to do well , was sitting it a day after a 30 hour journey from volunteerig in affrica. Should have put Kings instead.
Wish i did not put southampton down - only did because not interview but i was actually ok at my interviews.
But still really happy: came out with two offers and hopefully off to do medicine in october

[CocaineSquirrel]

My biggest regret would be not asking for feedback after I was rejected from Dundee (before interview). A surprising number of people who were rejected at the same time as me were then invited to an interview a few weeks later, having requested feedback. It turns out you were able to "appeal" if you though they didn't assess your application properly.

I know this case is very specific to one university but if you do feel that your application should be reconsidered by a university, send an email to them right away. You'll have nothing to lose and you could be pleasantly surprised.