No entrance exam or interview - just UCAS - good or bad??

I've noted that Southampton (for GEP at least) don't require any entrance exams and dont interview - so this must mean all they have is the UCAS stuff. Is this really the best approach to get an understanding of the applicants???

Reply 1

they think so

I keep learning more about med school admissions but I still don't know much.
What I think is that med schools have problems providing graduates with the 'right stuff' to the NHS.
There are bound to be doctors still at work who had to do Latin and Classics to get into med school and that was a time when what mattered was a sort of core knowledge base that like a Masonic handshake allowed professional people to talk to each other in code whilst being heard and not understood by everybody else. The idea was that if you could learn all this stuff - what appears on the UCAS form - to a certain level by a particular age and at a single attempt you must be very clever. The problem with that was that it entirely depended on having exactly the right - very expensive - help with your exams.
The things that have come in recently - BMAT and UKCAT etc.- are attempts to identify people who are sharp witted but may or may not have had the benefit of a good education.
In essence your UCAS form will reflect the quality of your school or college and your UKCAT result will say more about you yourself.
I think 23 med schools have used UKCAT this year. I think those that didn't were probably hoping to pick up applications from candidates who had opted out of the UKCAT.
Being a doctor is so challenging that schools will probably have to give up seeking places on a league table of getting pupils into med school because med schools will begin to ignore everything that schools do in selecting students.
Putting that another way, getting into med school in future will probably depend more on what pre-school or primary you went to than what secondary or sith form you were at because the tests are 'content free' and developing skills will take the place of acquiring knowledge.
You see tests such as UKCAT and BMAT sections 1 actually test how fast a learner you are, they don't need 7 years of secondary classes to test that.

Reply 3

Renal

17

It's good provided you're an applicant who looks good on paper and is expressed well on paper in the reference and PS.

It's bad if you're able to express yourself well in person. It's bad cos lots of idiots get the idea that it's somehow it's easier.

At the end of the day, my view is, it's better to apply to wherever you want to go, where you want to spend four or five years and let the application process sort itself out from there.

Reply 4

Who's_buying?

It really isn't.
Considering how easy it is to put in false info on your UCAS form, and that grades don't equate to your competance as a doctor, I'd say it's a very unsafe method. I'm sure most people don't lie, but you never know....
Interviews are very useful to assess the applicant in terms of communication skills, motivation etc....and not using them seems a pretty bad idea to me.

Reply 5

Renal

17

Who's_buying?

It really isn't.
Considering how easy it is to put in false info on your UCAS form, and that grades don't equate to your competance as a doctor, I'd say it's a very unsafe method. I'm sure most people don't lie, but you never know....

People lie in their interviews.

They're *****.

And I'll hurt* anyone I find doing it.

*Hurt may not be physical, political is good too.

Reply 6

darzona

3

darrenjn5

I've noted that Southampton (for GEP at least) don't require any entrance exams and dont interview - so this must mean all they have is the UCAS stuff. Is this really the best approach to get an understanding of the applicants???

They do require UKCAT like most other places.
In general I have no idea whether it is a good approach or not - it does seem to have some obvious faults - but evidently they think its good! In my acknowledgement from soton they did mention possibility of being invited to an 'informal open day' type thing, so I don't know if that indicates that they might be heading towards something along the lines of interview... just a thought.

Reply 7

K41

darzona

They do require UKCAT like most other places.
In general I have no idea whether it is a good approach or not - it does seem to have some obvious faults - but evidently they think its good! In my acknowledgement from soton they did mention possibility of being invited to an 'informal open day' type thing, so I don't know if that indicates that they might be heading towards something along the lines of interview... just a thought.

I thought the GEP doesn't require UKCAT, but the 5 year does. The OP is talking about the GEP.

Reply 8

Sarky

18

I had an interview at Southampton, but most people don't. And yes interviews can show things, but people can be taught to do well in interviews making them useless in some cases anyway. And you think people won't lie in person ohhh they do. I've watched them come out of the interview room and tell me some of the things they've said.

I'm glad i had an interview, i always do much better when i'm able to talk to people, but i can see why they don't bother. I wish they did, but all the people on my course (6yr @ Southampton) were interviewed and it didn't make that much difference....

And UKCAT is required for BM5/6...not sure about BM4 (graduate entry)