Post-graduate study after MBBS or iBSC?

Hey TSR Peoples!

I have a question about being able to go into postgraduate degrees but I can't find much info on the internet and so was hoping people on here might be able to help me (which I would be very grateful for!).
My question is basically- as I have a really strong interest in research at the moment, though that could always change!- if I obtained an MBBS degree, how would universities look upon that degree should I apply to their post-graduate programs (i.e., how would it compare to normal 1 or 2:1 BSc's)?
Also, should I decide through my medical course that I don't want to be a doctor but go fully into research, and I already obtained an iBsc then- same question really- how does that compare to the standard Bsc degrees offered by other graduates?

Thanks a lot for any help!

Reply 1

Talkin and Orcyn

10

Original post by Banana-Valid

Hey TSR Peoples!

I have a question about being able to go into postgraduate degrees but I can't find much info on the internet and so was hoping people on here might be able to help me (which I would be very grateful for!).
My question is basically- as I have a really strong interest in research at the moment, though that could always change!- if I obtained an MBBS degree, how would universities look upon that degree should I apply to their post-graduate programs (i.e., how would it compare to normal 1 or 2:1 BSc's)?
Also, should I decide through my medical course that I don't want to be a doctor but go fully into research, and I already obtained an iBsc then- same question really- how does that compare to the standard Bsc degrees offered by other graduates?

Thanks a lot for any help!

Well, I'm no expert on the topic but I think it really depends on whether you plan to practise medicine after you graduate.

If you're asking how a university would look upon your medical degree if you wanted to enter into a wholly new domain of study, I really don't know. It sounds like you already know that the MBBS as a vocational degree doesn't receive honours classification - although you can get a Merit or Distinction - but due to the nature of it's integration with the profession you roll into uniquely medical post-graduate qualifications that enable you to take part in research and qualify for other posts.

I know that in the FYP selection process there's no difference between a 1st iBSc and a normal 1st BSc, so perhaps it will compare well, but of course the fact that you've got a MBBS is going to be a consideration so I don't really think its a factor that's easy to isolate.

Oh, and of course, if you do choose to go into academia as a practising doctor then an intercalated degree helps to enable you to perform research as a clinician.

Also, I'm told it's not uncommon for doctors to take a year out and do a full time masters after the FYP.

I'm sorry if this isn't too much help but I thought I'd take a crack at it as you've got no replies yet. Hopefully if this prompts a reply or a specification someone, or myself, can answer your question better.

Reply 2

purplefrog

18

Original post by Banana-Valid

Hey TSR Peoples!

I have a question about being able to go into postgraduate degrees but I can't find much info on the internet and so was hoping people on here might be able to help me (which I would be very grateful for!).
My question is basically- as I have a really strong interest in research at the moment, though that could always change!- if I obtained an MBBS degree, how would universities look upon that degree should I apply to their post-graduate programs (i.e., how would it compare to normal 1 or 2:1 BSc's)?
Also, should I decide through my medical course that I don't want to be a doctor but go fully into research, and I already obtained an iBsc then- same question really- how does that compare to the standard Bsc degrees offered by other graduates?

Thanks a lot for any help!

It's late so my answers are a bit choppy.

If you have a medical degree and apply to universities to do a programme related to medicine (biomedical or otherwise e.g., global health or medical ethics), you would be welcomed just as much as any other applicant. It will be at the discretion of the department should you apply for a completely unrelated subject (chemistry or history or econ etc) as to how they weigh you up against other applicants who have a background in the subject.

an iBSc is the same as a BSc. The route you took to get it is different but on paper, you will have a BSc. If you intercalate and get a BSc, you can choose to use that as an exit point from medicine and nobody will be any wiser. You will be just like any other BSc grad.

I hope that helps? If you have any more specific questions or want more of an elaboration, just quote me.

Reply 3

Tech

12

Original post by Banana-Valid

Hey TSR Peoples!

I have a question about being able to go into postgraduate degrees but I can't find much info on the internet and so was hoping people on here might be able to help me (which I would be very grateful for!).
My question is basically- as I have a really strong interest in research at the moment, though that could always change!- if I obtained an MBBS degree, how would universities look upon that degree should I apply to their post-graduate programs (i.e., how would it compare to normal 1 or 2:1 BSc's)?
Also, should I decide through my medical course that I don't want to be a doctor but go fully into research, and I already obtained an iBsc then- same question really- how does that compare to the standard Bsc degrees offered by other graduates?

Thanks a lot for any help!

Where abouts are you at the minute - at medical school or yet to start?

Firstly it is possible to do both, be a doctor and a researcher. I'm based at the Royal Marsden at the minute and a few of the registrars there work part time in the hospital, and part time at the Institute of Cancer Research.

If you just want to do straight research, I guess in a unique circumstance like yours, post-graduate degrees would be considered on a case-by-case basis. Whilst the iBSc is (as pointed out by Blorcyn and Purplefrog) technically the same as a BSc, there will be some differences in what you've studied. For example in my degree, the actual medical physicists had covered quantum mechanics in a huge amount of detail, but we'd barely done it at all.

Some universities offer an MB PhD program, where immediately after doing your BSc you enter into a PhD, before returning to clinical medicine - that might be something which interests you.

Good luck!

Post-graduate study after MBBS or iBSC?

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