Medicine 2016 entry - low UKCAT score

Have you contacted Uni's you are interested in to ask how they will treat your GCSEs? Because as baseline stats, your GCSEs are not likely to be good enough for Oxford or Nottingham (in combination with your UKCAT), but if they can tell you what allowances they may make for your schools performance level, it will be easier to give advice.

Dear All, I did my UKCAT yesterday and was quite disappointed when i received a score of 690 (SJT band 1), as I felt that i should and was capable of getting much higher. My other stats so far have been good. I received 10 A* at GCSE and 4 high As at A level ( so getting predicted 4 A*), and prior to doing UKCAT i had my hopes on UCL Cardiff Birmingham and Nottingham (was thinking of oxford too in the place of UCL perhaps). I know that Nottingham look a fair bit at the UKCAT, which is a shame because i really liked it and i Know that Birmingham does too now I quite like Leeds aswell and I am aware that it uses the BMAT. Can anyone who has knowledge on this area i.e. if you recently applied for medicine or are in the process of going to for 2016 entry, could you give me advice on whether you think that my UKCAT score is so low for Nottingham that it would be better for me to apply to Leeds instead and risk having two BMAT universities if i apply with UCL (or oxford). Also how would my chances at getting an interview with Birmingham fare now that they use ukcat.

Thanks all x

Dear All, I did my UKCAT yesterday and was quite disappointed when i received a score of 690 (SJT band 1), as I felt that i should and was capable of getting much higher. My other stats so far have been good. I received 10 A* at GCSE and 4 high As at A level ( so getting predicted 4 A*), and prior to doing UKCAT i had my hopes on UCL Cardiff Birmingham and Nottingham (was thinking of oxford too in the place of UCL perhaps). I know that Nottingham look a fair bit at the UKCAT, which is a shame because i really liked it and i Know that Birmingham does too now I quite like Leeds aswell and I am aware that it uses the BMAT. Can anyone who has knowledge on this area i.e. if you recently applied for medicine or are in the process of going to for 2016 entry, could you give me advice on whether you think that my UKCAT score is so low for Nottingham that it would be better for me to apply to Leeds instead and risk having two BMAT universities if i apply with UCL (or oxford). Also how would my chances at getting an interview with Birmingham fare now that they use ukcat.

Thanks all x

My stats:
VR: 560, QR: 790, AR: 570, DA: 610, SJT: Band 1, Average: 632.5
GCSE: 6A* 4A 1B - The B was english language. This was at an underachieving school with only 45% of pupils getting 5+ A*-C including English and Maths
AS: Biology A, Chemistry A, Maths A, History A
Predictions: Biology A*, Chemistry A, Maths A
I've done lots of work experience/volunteering. Three week-long placements in hospitals, a week in a GP and volunteering when I could in a nursing home since this time last year. However, I only have one extra curricular, which is gospel choir, but I do a lot in it (competitions and stuff).I was thinking of applying to Oxford, UCL and Nottingham? Haven't decided on my fourth yet.. Anyone have any recommendations for a fourth or some better choices?Thanks!

Hi student room I know this may becoming a bit repetitive but I am desperately lost at the moment.

I just sat my UKCAT and scored 697.5 band 1 so its okay but my GCSE's are a massive let down 4 A*'s 3 A's 2 B's 1 C but I was at a bad school and have gone on to get 4 A's at AS (maths and science) and then achieved 3 A*'s at A2 (maths, biology and chemistry). So something I did 3 years ago is still dragging me down but I really want to apply to medicine but I am quite lost at the moment! Any advice would be greatly appreciated so I can get out of this bad situation.

I highly doubt you'd stand a chance at Oxford. Ok, your schools wasn't great, but bear in mind the national average 5A*-C is only 60% - there would be many students applying from such backgrounds. Yet no one got in with that GCSE A* proportion last year. http://www.medsci.ox.ac.uk/study/medicine/pre-clinical/statistics

Hi student room I know this may becoming a bit repetitive but I am desperately lost at the moment.

I just sat my UKCAT and scored 697.5 band 1 so its okay but my GCSE's are a massive let down 4 A*'s 3 A's 2 B's 1 C but I was at a bad school and have gone on to get 4 A's at AS (maths and science) and then achieved 3 A*'s at A2 (maths, biology and chemistry). So something I did 3 years ago is still dragging me down but I really want to apply to medicine but I am quite lost at the moment! Any advice would be greatly appreciated so I can get out of this bad situation.

Where have you looked at? I advise drawing up a spreadsheet of every Med School with their criteria and then rating/scoring yourself against them and if you feel are competitive, then check websites/old threads on here to see if your stats look good compared to what got an interview in previous years.
Your UKCAT is pretty good (would have been 9th centile last year and 2012-2013 was weird). You meet Plymouth's criteria for the last 3 years (they use UKCAT cut off) and with 3A*s, you may even persuade Exeter to make you an offer as they have some form of sliding scale where more A*s equals lower UKCAT.
I think your Leicester score will be 61.5 and last year's cut off was 59.5.
Aberdeen scores predicted/achieved A2s and UKCAT and carries your pre interview score forward to represent 50% of the post interview score when deciding who they will give offers to.
Barts use UCAS tariff and UKCAT 50:50, more details as to what is competitive here:
http://www.smd.qmul.ac.uk/Documents/admissions-2015-cycle.pdf
Your UKCAT may be borderline for the UKCAT big boys, but as mentioned above, some of them may give you a bit of leeway with your achieved A2s (Kings, for example).
You need to check whether achieved A2s override GCSEs for the typically GCSE heavy Unis, eg Birmingham-so give them a ring and ask if it is not on their website.
The same really applies to those who combine GCSE/AS and UKCAT.
What is your PS like? You would meet Manchester and Sheffield's UKCAT cut off, I suspect, and then it is down to PS.
You have really good stats and not terrible GCSEs, so don't be put off, get researching, emailing and calling and you should easily be able to find 4 places to apply where you have a pretty high chance of an interview, and then it is all a level playing field (except at Aberdeen, where you would have a bit of a head start!)
Good luck!

Hello, I was just wondering you think Leicester's cut off will be high or lower than last year? My score from the document is 58.5 and the cut off last year is 59.5, so would be gutted if it wasn't slightly lower. Thanks

Firstly, your GCSEs are excellent, as are the rest of your academics. Oxford is certainly a good option to go with (provided your personal statement is scientific enough). You mentioned your AS levels are quite high - what is the average UMS as Cambridge, too, could be an option. You're also fine for UCL - to keep it short, you can pick and choose with the BMAT universities
Your UKCAT score is fine; you sit between the 7th and 9th deciles when it comes to the decile scores between 2012-2014 (link. Birmingham is a good pick with strong academics; since this is the first year they're using the UKCAT there's no data as to what score you need to get an interview. However, as far as I'm aware, Birmingham are still putting more weight on academia than they are UKCAT (please confirm but I read somewhere it's 70:30 academicsKCAT).
Don't be disappointed - from the sounds of it you were probably aiming for 700s+; your score is still good and can carry you a long way. Besides, what's done is done and your academics are still pretty solid
Note: Can't advise much on Notts as I didn't apply there.
Good luck!

Where have you looked at? I advise drawing up a spreadsheet of every Med School with their criteria and then rating/scoring yourself against them and if you feel are competitive, then check websites/old threads on here to see if your stats look good compared to what got an interview in previous years.
Your UKCAT is pretty good (would have been 9th centile last year and 2012-2013 was weird). You meet Plymouth's criteria for the last 3 years (they use UKCAT cut off) and with 3A*s, you may even persuade Exeter to make you an offer as they have some form of sliding scale where more A*s equals lower UKCAT.
I think your Leicester score will be 61.5 and last year's cut off was 59.5.
Aberdeen scores predicted/achieved A2s and UKCAT and carries your pre interview score forward to represent 50% of the post interview score when deciding who they will give offers to.
Barts use UCAS tariff and UKCAT 50:50, more details as to what is competitive here:
http://www.smd.qmul.ac.uk/Documents/admissions-2015-cycle.pdf
Your UKCAT may be borderline for the UKCAT big boys, but as mentioned above, some of them may give you a bit of leeway with your achieved A2s (Kings, for example).
You need to check whether achieved A2s override GCSEs for the typically GCSE heavy Unis, eg Birmingham-so give them a ring and ask if it is not on their website.
The same really applies to those who combine GCSE/AS and UKCAT.
What is your PS like? You would meet Manchester and Sheffield's UKCAT cut off, I suspect, and then it is down to PS.
You have really good stats and not terrible GCSEs, so don't be put off, get researching, emailing and calling and you should easily be able to find 4 places to apply where you have a pretty high chance of an interview, and then it is all a level playing field (except at Aberdeen, where you would have a bit of a head start!)
Good luck!

Thank you for such a comprehensive and helpful reply! I was looking at Leicester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Bristol but maybe would apply to Leeds again as I got to interview this year.

Have you scored your stats for Nottingham? Cut off last year was 44 without the SJT, so would be 46/47 with it.
Bristol seems a waste of a good UKCAT as I think they will be flooded with applicants being the only Uni not using an admissions test.
I suspect Newcastle may be hard to call for a cut off this year, due to the way it has fluctuated in the last 2 years. When averages went crazy 2 years ago it went up to 745, then last year nobody with a usually good UKCAT (700-750ish) applied as were afraid they would miss the cut off, so it dropped to about 575. 2012 and 2013 it was about 690. This year it could either shoot up as everyone looks at last years low cut off and thinks they are in with a chance; stay lowish as people with the usually good UKCATs feel it is too hard to call due to the fluctuating cut offs, or (and this is what I suspect will happen) return to it's usual baseline. I think it may be a bit risky for you, but if you are sure your others are fairly safe, and you like it a lot, it may be worth a punt.

Alright, thanks I'll just change my choices


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I also just checked Cardiff and they say they look at your achieved A2 so with my stats don't I get full points?

Hey! I read your comments above and I just wanted to say that if you really want to apply to Oxford, go for it! However, the others above are right in some respects- your GCSE A* % is only 54.5% which is very low for Oxford. Obviously, your low-attaining school will be taken into consideration but it's still a risk. But at the end of the day, it's up to you xD
Where else are you considering, other than Oxford?

I would but I didn't really have my heart set on it or anything so it's not a big deal! I'd much rather not take the risk, thanks though & I think I'm gonna end up applying to UCL, Imperial, UEA and Sheffield. Wbu? You applying?


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