Decline offer

I have recieved an offer to study medicine at Exeter for 2016 entry. I was rejected by my other 3 choices

My problem is that i don't think i am going to enjoy university life at exeter as i really want a big night life. I really want to study medicine but i honestly don't believe exeter is the city for me. What should i do?

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Reply 1

ForestCat

Original post by LouisBennett

The night-life will be what you make of it. You'll still be going to a fairly big university with lots of students so they will be plenty of chances to socialise.

You got rejected by 3 choices this time. Whats to say the same thing wouldn't happen again if you reapplied. You would be pretty heartbroken if you turned down an offer for nothing.

No one is realistically going to tell you to turn down a medicine offer. You need to celebrate, its a great achievement to get an offer. There will still be plenty of chances to work hard play hard.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 2

kdizzle97

Congratulations on the offer! You are in a place lots of people wish they were. Have you seen much of Exeter? Maybe you should go on an applicant day or a weekend to see what its like when your not there for an interview! You could see if there are any societies that interest you on there website or talk to current students to see what they think.
It may not be London but there must be some decent places to go out :smile:

Otherwise, are you prepared to take a gap year and go through the process again? Do you know why you were rejected from your other choices? Hope you figure it out :biggrin:

Reply 3

LouisBennett

Original post by ForestCat

The night-life will be what you make of it. You'll still be going to a fairly big university with lots of students so they will be plenty of chances to socialise.

You got rejected by 3 choices this time. Whats to say the same thing wouldn't happen again if you reapplied. You would be pretty heartbroken if you turned down an offer from nothing.

No one is realistically going to tell you to turn down a medicine offer. You need to celebrate, its a great achievement to get an offer. There will still be plenty of chances to work hard play hard.

Thanks for your help! I just don't want to start the course and not enjoy the student experience and not be able to ever apply to medicine again. At least i would give someone else the chance :/

Reply 4

ForestCat

Original post by LouisBennett

Thanks for your help! I just don't want to start the course and not enjoy the student experience and not be able to ever apply to medicine again. At least i would give someone else the chance :/

I highly doubt that there is no night-life at all. With such a large medical school and medics liking to work hard, play hard, I am sure there will be plenty of time to let your hair down.

Take some time to think about it. But personally I wouldn't turn down an offer for something like this. You'll still have a good time.

Reply 5

MonteCristo

Turning down a medical school place because you're not sure about the nightlife?? Wherever there are students there will be a nightlife. I don't imagine for a minute that all Exeter students sit in their rooms studying all night.

By all means visit Exeter to see what you think of the setting but, if partying is really such a huge priority, then let someone else have the med school place.

Reply 6

JBLondon

I say this with all the love and respect in the world.

Belt up.

You've applied for a place at a medical school and been offered one. You've beaten very long odds and been offered a chance that many others would kill for. Unless you're seriously thinking Medicine isn't for you, why would you even consider turning it down?

As the others have said, night life is what you make it. One of my best friends went to Exeter and had the best time ever. I visited him a number of times, and believe me when I say the student night life is certainly not non-existent. Ultimately if you turn it down, you WILL regret it.

Reply 7

Ghotay

Having been out in Exeter several times myself, I agree with you that it doesn't quite have a 'big city' night-life. The club closed at 2am on a standard Saturday last time I was out in Exeter. But I have to say Exeter does have a lot of cool small unique venues and cocktail bars and stuff. And the student union there organises as many nights out, and as rip-roaring a freshers as any other uni

But that doesn't matter because this is a seriously stupid thing to even be thinking about. Medical students party as much as the next person for pre-clinical, but when it comes to clinical years believe me even the most hardened partygoer starts going out a LOT less. You're thinking about very trivial short-term issues. Medical school is a 5 year committment, and going out will really only end up being a small part of that.

And if you REALLY REALLY want to experience big-city nightlife you could always intercalate at a different uni for a year and get it out of your system

As a side note, why did you even apply to Exeter if you didn't want to go there? Seems like a wasted application to me

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 8

Ethereal World

Original post by LouisBennett

Hi OP. What were the three schools you were rejected from? And Where do you live in the country?

To be honest I think Exeter has a good mix of everything in terms of size, nightlife, sport and academics. Yes it's not London or Manchester in terms of the variety of nights out on offer but you will get used to the classic locations for nights out and it's just as fun- when you're drunk you tend to forget anyway.

After your first couple of years you are really going to be training to be a doctor for real. Not that you aren't in your first or second year but like, your holidays will likely get shorter and you will have a fair amount of work if you want to do well in medical school. I imagine if your passion is to be a doctor that should supersede any nightlife or city considerations. It is still important though.

However, as others have said, entrance to medical school is no exact science and you will have to pay to fork out for entrance exams again, and you will probably have to do more work experience in a healthcare setting on your gap year to demonstrate your commitment.

Do you definitely definitely want to do medicine? If the answer is yes then definitely go. Your concerns might be because it's your fourth choice on the list and as such it feels like you're settling but in medicine there isn't really as much of a difference between universities in terms of job prospects and your future career. But getting a medical degree is essential (obviously) for being a doctor.

Exeter is a lovely city and I'm sure you will enjoy it once you're there but definitely go and visit again and see how you feel.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 9

nexttime

Don't be so stupid you prune.

Reply 10

Chief Wiggum

You should accept the offer.

Stuff like social life is actually quite difficult to predict, since it depends on stuff like who you meet etc. Exeter will have lots of students, I'm sure people will be going out, socialising etc!

(As an aside, with medicine as a career, lots of positions will be competitive, and you may not always get your ideal job/location. It's the nature of the profession, I guess.)

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 11

APPLICANT2016

Original post by LouisBennett

Are u for serious or taking the ****??

I very much hope u are not serious. Sort yourself out for god sake. You have an offer to study medicine - something lots of people would cherish. I would question your maturity and motivation if this is how you feel.

Reply 12

Nysm1501

Don't listen to anyone calling you immature. You go to university once in your life so why go somewhere you're not too fond of? You have a lot of time to be deciding what you want to do/where to go.

If you have your grades take some time out to work for a while, maybe try to get some work experience in medicine, take a gap year, whatever you want. Just apply again next year so you get your first choice uni! :smile:

Reply 13

Democracy

Original post by Nysm1501

Reply 14

goldenshades

Original post by LouisBennett

You're at uni to get a medical degree, not to party. The fact that you're seriously considering declining them makes me question if you even want to become a doctor

Reply 15

Democracy

Original post by goldenshades

You're at uni to get a medical degree, not to party. The fact that you're seriously considering declining them makes me question if you even want to become a doctor

To be fair, OP can, and should, be able to do both because #yolo. And he will be able to at Exeter just as much as anywhere else. Yeah the clubs won't be like central London, but medics will go crazy anywhere given half a chance. Anyway it's the people you go out with who make a good night, not the venue itself imho.

Reply 16

Nysm1501

People are so narrow minded...

Don't go to university for 4 years to somewhere you don't actually want to be. You've got so much time to decide with you want to do and where you want to go.

Who cares if you got in for medicine? I'd say the exact same if it was for a PhD - don't go to a university you don't want to go to. Simple.

Democracy - :laugh:

but I disagree

Reply 17

ForestCat

Original post by Nysm1501

but I disagree

Medicine is so competitive you really have to seize any opportunity you get. Its quite possible the OP could end up with no offers the second time they apply.

Reply 18

Nysm1501

Original post by ForestCat

Medicine is so competitive you really have to seize any opportunity you get. Its quite possible the OP could end up with no offers the second time they apply.

Possible but that is up to the OP - if you want something hard enough you'll get it. Even if he doesn't get any offers next year he can still try again. There's no rush to start uni.

Reply 19

Mathaddict

Okay so no one has mentioned Peninsula, leading me to believe the two schools have now separated? Is that right?

In any case, I visited my friend while he was at Exeter (and during his years in Plymouth too); it was not a boring night out at all! We went on a bar crawl with his fellow medics, and trust me, they REALLY knew how to party! I don't remember thinking "oh this is awful, Exeter has no nightlife!" either - plenty of options for bars about. Trust me, you're not going to struggle to have fun at all.

Anyway, even if you were to decline your offer and reapply next year (personally I think that would be mad and the risk is just not worth it if Medicine is what you really want to do), how are you going to deal with the question interviewers will inevitably ask you: "why did you take a gap year"? Are you going to lie, and say you were "not ready" before, and that you "wanted to build work experience"? Or are you going to say "I had an offer but declined it because of the uni location"? The first approach would lead me to question your ethical judgement, an obviously fundamental part of a doctor's job. On the other hand, the truth just makes you look ridiculous.