Year 12s: what will be the first way you research your future options? >>

Cardiff vs Plymouth medical school

any ideas on which I should firm, I know Cardiff has the better rep but the courses are comparable for both and Plymouth really is a beautiful city...

Reply 1

Angury

All medical schools are good, I think it's great that you've managed to get two offers.

I would suggest looking at the course structure of both and thinking about which suits you best.
Cardiff have recently changed their curriculum, so there is now a greater emphasis on clinical skills from the start, and you are also sent out into the community from the second term. There are fewer lectures and more group work, along with dissection.

Here is a post describing a typical day for a first year at Cardiff:

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2440090&page=72&p=46918908#post46918908

I would recommend having a look at the course in Plymouth as well. :smile:

Reply 2

cloud9medic

Thank you! in your opinion does it matter at all where a graduate completes their medical degree, and the chances of their job prospects? yes I am going to a Plymouth open day this weekend, which should be fun :smile:

thank you again for your help

Reply 3

Angury

Original post by cloud9medic

thank you again for your help

No, I don't think the medical school matters in terms of application. All medical schools are regulated by the GMC, so they should be of the same quality. Ultimately, you will become a doctor, and I believe your applications for F1 are blanked so your university won't be shown anyway.

What's more important is that you pick a medical school which you think you will enjoy - you'll be there for 5/6 years after all. And you are also very lucky that you have a choice about where to go - not everyone has that liberty.

I think Cardiff did an offer holders open day in April as well.

Reply 4

navarre

I'm with Plymouth. A typical week you'll have four lectures (never more than one a day), two sessions of PBL, a placement at a healthcare provider (anything from smoking clinic to chiropractor), a Jigsaw session discussing the placement, and two high quality learning sessions in either the life sciences rooms or clinical skills. I'm loving the course, but you have to do a lot of your own work to keep up.

I also love the assessment system here. We have four modules to pass each year (medical knowledge, personal and professional development, clinical competencies and Self Study Units), yet it's a very fair system and saves you from the worry of having to pass one set of high stakes exams at the end of the year.

Plymouth is a nice enough city, not as nice as Cardiff, but it's more southerly and it's easier to get to London (where I live, may be different for you). Great nightlife, if you're into that, and you get free bus travel paid for by the Uni, so getting around is easy enough.

Reply 5

carcinoma

Original post by navarre

Plymouth is a nice enough city, not as nice as Cardiff, but it's more southerly and it's easier to get to London (where I live, may be different for you). Great nightlife, if you're into that, and you get free bus travel paid for by the Uni, so getting around is easy enough.

Cardiff is much nearer to London than Plymouth. Only about 160 miles.

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Reply 6

carcinoma

Original post by cloud9medic

any ideas on which I should firm, I know Cardiff has the better rep but the courses are comparable for both and Plymouth really is a beautiful city...

Personally, I think Cardiff is a much nicer place than Plymouth.

They will both have a great uni night life, Cardiff will have a better nightlife when there are no students and is much nicer.

Reputation doesn't really mater.

You should also consider your cohort size it's now around 80 at Plymouth and 280 at Cardiff.

Both still relatively small-medium sized so you will still get to know a large number of the students in your year.

I think Plymouth has lost some of the appeal of Peninsula, where you had the opportunity to live all over the southwest including Plymouth, Exeter, Torbay and Cornwall. I feel that is a big loss.

Also consider the set up of the clinical years, at Plymouth you will mostly be based at Derriford Hospital so not large amount of traveling. I don't know about Cardiff, but I suspect you will be more spread around.

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