Can you fail medical school?

I am really interested in studying medicine and becoming a doctor. However, the thought of spending at least 5 years at medical school and failing the finals terrifies me.

I am a capable student and I am willing to work very hard. Can anyone shed some light on the possibility/probability of failing?

Reply 1

Minerva

17

Original post by Stegosaurus99

I am really interested in studying medicine and becoming a doctor. However, the thought of spending at least 5 years at medical school and failing the finals terrifies me.

I am a capable student and I am willing to work very hard. Can anyone shed some light on the possibility/probability of failing?

People do end up dropping out of medicine because they fail at some point along the way, but the likelihood of anyone getting as far as the final year and failing then without any warning is pretty remote.

Many medical students also 'intercalate' - ie, add in an extra year to take the first two years of study and convert it to a BSc or equivalent, so if you did find yourself unable to complete your medical studies at the very last stages, you could still have that to fall back on.

I'd say the important bit is to consider why you want to do medicine - I mean, really why. It's not just about being academically capable, and willing to work hard (good attributes though they are, and equally important for undergraduate study in anything else). Looking beyond the undergraduate exams and assessments, the postgrad training everyone has to do if they want a career in medicine is riddled with exams with sometimes horribly low pass rates. So, as I say, give some thought as to what is motivating you to consider medicine rather than something else.

Reply 2

Democracy

20

Original post by Stegosaurus99

I am really interested in studying medicine and becoming a doctor. However, the thought of spending at least 5 years at medical school and failing the finals terrifies me.

I am a capable student and I am willing to work very hard. Can anyone shed some light on the possibility/probability of failing?

Of course you can - but it is rather rare to fail and get kicked out. Most people fail, take a few weeks off to regroup then pass the resit with no problems.

I think about 95%+ of students on each medical course will complete the degree successfully and qualify. Of the 5% who don't, some will fail and some will drop out for other reasons. The number of people who get told to leave is really quite low when you think about it.

In short, once you get in you're on the path to finishing and becoming a doctor (so long as you do the work). So don't let that worry you.

Reply 3

dapthegreat

Original post by Stegosaurus99

I am really interested in studying medicine and becoming a doctor. However, the thought of spending at least 5 years at medical school and failing the finals terrifies me.

I am a capable student and I am willing to work very hard. Can anyone shed some light on the possibility/probability of failing?

This terrifies every medical student - NB failing finals is pretty rare.

Can you fail medical school?

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