Biomed or Gap Year?

So, unfortunately I have recieved all four rejections :frown:

I applied to UCL for Biomedical sciences too though, and they've said everyone must attend a visit day before they give out offers... so I'm going to that... Assuming I DO get a place on that course, I still don't know whether I should take a gap year and reapply for medicine or do the biomedical course and reapply after the three years.

Cardiff have said they'll put me on the waiting list for Medicine if I don't have any other offers, so that would probably mean I need to decline the Biomed offer, If I get it. But again, It's unlikely that I'll get into Cardiff that way.

So I thought I would post on here to see what people think... Should I take a Gap year or do Biomed? What are the good and bad things about each? What would you do if you were me?

I reckon if I do a Gap year it'll be absolutely AMAZING, if I choose the right things to do, but then there's no guarantee I'll get in anywhere next year either (although this year, all of my unis did seem to like me, i just didn't quite make the cut... I was pooled for Cambridge, UCL encouraged me to reapply next year, Cardiff have put me on the waiting list) But then again, if I reapply after Biomed, there's still no guarantee I'll get in after that either... which path do you think would give me a better chance of getting into medicine?!

Also, if I were to reapply after Biomed, I could either do the normal 5 year med course or do a 4 year grad med course... BUT I've heard that grad med is even harder to get in to and it's a very difficult course because you cram a year's worth of work in to the first term. Is this true? Do a lot of people apply for normal medicine rather than graduate med?

And, if I were to take a gap year, what kind of thing could I do? Well, clearly I'm going to research on the internet, but can anyone direct me to any good sites? I guess I'd do volunteer work, hospital placements, maybe some work abroad... Stuff like that. But yeah, any advice on that?

Aargh decisions like these are SUCH a pain, and that's putting it lightly :frown:

Reply 1

Saffie

gap year.

why on earth waste time, money, and energy doing biomed when you could have a year having fun with no commitments, possibly earn some money and then in 5yrs be a doctor.

Reply 2

Miss Monkey

I'd take a gap year. If you don't get in next year, you could then decide to go down the Biomedical Science route. I personally don't think I'd be happy studying another degree knowing I was going to have to apply for medicine all over again at the end, and face even tougher competition. I didn't take a gap year, but I sometimes wish I had.

Reply 3

Raindroppe

I personally don't think I'd be happy studying another degree knowing I was going to have to apply for medicine all over again at the end, and face even tougher competition.

So is the competition after you've taken a degree actually tougher than competition as a school-leaver or after a gap year?!

I didn't take a gap year, but I sometimes wish I had.

Can I just ask, any reason why? XD

Reply 4

Kashya

Gap year. Definately.

Reply 5

Miss Monkey

Raindroppe

So is the competition after you've taken a degree actually tougher than competition as a school-leaver or after a gap year?!

Can I just ask, any reason why? XD

Yes I think the competition to get on a graduate entry course is much higher than a standard course. At GKT there are a lot of people with degrees on the standard course, as it's so competitive to get on the graduate course. But it seems a bit pointless to me to do another degree (with lots of work and expense) and then the standard medical programme anyway if you could get onto the standard medical programme with your A2 grades/subjects.

Why a gap year? Well lots of people here took gap years and some of them sound AMAZING. However it seems those who had the most exciting gap years had parents who could fund them so they didn't have to worry about working, and my Mum couldn't have afforded to do that then. Plus I applied for medicine not thinking I'd get in (my school warned me I probably wouldn't) so when I did I wasn't going to chuck the offers back :wink:

Reply 6

2klthor

I was in the same situation as you, got rejected, and now currently at Leeds. Doing a degree i'm interested in, but would much rather be doing medicine.

I really didn't get the grades (for 6 year med) although i did get a good UKCAT score. I decided the grad option was possibly better for me, to do a 5 year after my current degree.

Although i'm now thinking maybe doing AS chemistry before i apply at the start of my third year.. Thoughts?

Reply 7

Hedgeman49

Gap year, get some more experience under your belt, soup up your PS, and go get 'em. :smile:

Reply 8

Miss Monkey

2klthor

I might be wrong, but I have a feeling that to be considered for the King's 5 year you need AS Chemistry. As a graduate you'd be able to apply for the 4 year GPEP course, but lots of people who apply to that are put on the standard 5 year course here at King's (as there's lots more places).

One lady I know applied for the 4 year and didn't get in, but King's wanted her. They said she wasn't able to do the 5 year because she didn't have Chemistry, so she ended up doing the foundation year as well (so it will take 6years).

Studying AS Chemistry alongside your degree (and I assume it will seem quite easy compared to the degree work) would help you avoid such a situation!

Reply 9

2klthor

Miss Monkey

Thanks for that, i certainly dont intend on applying to Kings. Most probably if things stay as they are at the moment, Keele, HYMS, BSMS and possibly Peninsula.

How would I go about studying AS chemistry? Asking at my previous 6th Form?

Reply 10

Miss Monkey

2klthor

That's probably a good idea. I studied AS Biology myself, and attended some evening classes run by the LEA where I live. The sixth form might be able to give you some contact details.

Reply 11

b9muslove

Gap year then reapply

No brainer surely.

Thank you for all your replies! It looks like everyone here is quite pro-gap year XD I'm sort of leaning that way myself, but I still want to know all my options, and which would be most useful to me.

I don't think grades will be a problem for me; I'm predicted (and should hopefully get) 3 As. So I don't know whether I should take this into account with my decision or not? Like, is it more advisable, if I'm likely to get good grades, to take a gap year rather than do another course?

From reading your comments, I get the impression that doing the biomed course would give me no advantage at all over other people by the time I apply to medicine at the end... Would I be right in thinking this or did I just misinterpret? XD

So I've heard the advantages of a gap year: fun, character building, good for personal statement, etc....... are there actually any advantages of doing the biomed then?!? Lol...

Reply 14

Philosoraptor

Well the only advantage is sort of a disadvantage too. You'd pretty much have studied the pre-clinical course anyway so you'd probably do well centile wise. :p:

Reply 15

Renal

Raindroppe

So I've heard the advantages of a gap year: fun, character building, good for personal statement, etc....... are there actually any advantages of doing the biomed then?!? Lol...

Yes there are. If you've ****ed up your A-levels to the point where they cannot be made any better a degree might help.

Reply 16

Raindroppe

hmmmm..... Thanks for your help everyone, I'll need to have a good think about this! I'm currently leaning towards a gap year but we will see ^_^

I think I'll still go see what this biomed course is all about, to keep my options open for now... since there's only 100 places available, there's quite a chance they won't give me an offer, which would make my choice easy XD

But by the sounds of things, if I'm likely to get good grades this summer, most people would take a gap year?

What kind of things do people do on a gap year? Well, I know you do work exp and stuff but how do you go about looking for stuff and choosing what to do and whatnot?

[EDIT] Also, I just thought.... a 'mature student' is classed as someone 21+ right? Well, I was moved up a year at school, so I'm young for my year... hence if I took the biomed degree, I'd be 20 by the end of the course and won't turn 21 until october, which would be about a month into the term if I got into medicine. Would being younger than normal mature students affect my chances of getting in after a degree?
Because I know my age has affected me this year (I won't be 18 until this October, and I had to email all unis to see their policies on age... But I still think age was at least a small factor in rejecting me) and if it's going to affect me after a biomed course too... well I DON'T want to go through problems with my age again, so I'd more than likely take a gap year.

Reply 17

Sean3000

Just on the mature student thing, I think it depends on the institution and most places consider 26 to be mature. I will be 21 (I took two gap years) and I am certainly not considered a mature student at any of my choices. I actually rang admissions on this, and the polite lady at Bristol said that so many mature people apply, conditions of offers tend to be the same through out.

Do what YOU think is right regarding the gap year, you could always enter medicine at a later date after you biomed degree, whether that be 4 or 5 year. A final point, you need to find out where you went wrong this time and try to work on that.

The best of Luck to you