Medicine 2024 entry for resit / retake / gap year applicants

Thank you so much !! So far i have recieved an offer from Southampton but im still waiting on 2 other unis so i guess ill decide when they get back(hopefully get back soon ahahah)

Bro just withdraw from the other two and firm Southampton

I’m going to copy and paste something that I’ve said before about gap years and advise re that.

basically I’m on a gap yr currently and have been successful in getting a med offer alhamdulillah. I was speaking with my mum and we both agreed that even if I was unsuccessful in that regard, this gap year has still otherwise been very valuable and beneficial. I despise when people call gap years as a waste of time, or something that makes you behind. Behind what exactly? If you can’t achieve anything non med related in a gap year then that says a lot about you as a person.

A gap year gives you free rein to advance yourself in so many facets, now that you aren’t restrained by school. During this time I have earned thousands of pounds, gained a lot of work experience which will hopefully give me an edge over my med student peers in clinical placements, which cancels out any academic advantage they may have on me, which is mostly irrelevant anyway and from my understanding not as big of a deal as some people who are scared to take a gap year make it seem to be. I have been able to teach children the Quran and about Islam at a madrasah. I have strengthened my hifdh ul quran. I have made a solid start in the Arabic language itself, using the madina arabic textbooks. That does not sound like a waste to me.

i haven’t even mentioned the med application side of it. Having alhamdulillah achieved aaa, I also massively improved my ucat from 2670 to 3040, and this is because I knew what to expect and where I went wrong, and I had a stronger motivation. I had way more time to do interview prep, using predominantly r/ucat discord server. I secured 4 interviews and have been accepted to med skl.

if I were you, I’d hustle and get aaa at least, no excuses. Work hard, don’t complain, don’t moan that you aren’t good enough to get aaa. Secure a hca job via nhs jobs or indeed as soon as you finish a levels. If you want more advice on why hca is important I can copy and paste something i said to someone else. Spend 2 months on u at so you can get a high score and get 4 interviews. If it’s below 2850 do Bmat and apply to a bmat uni. Start interview prep maybe 3 hours a week, then 2 weeks leading up to each real interview do a mock a day. Do your hobbies simultaneous to work and int prep.

Edit: in my gap year I have also been able to focus on the gym. I have also restarted karate after a 7 year hiatus

So with work experience, it’s not so much how much you do, what’s a lot more important is how you can reflect on it in interview. The main benefit I’ve found from hca is how much of a realistic insight it gives you into medicine, as all the challenges in the nhs will now affect you too. And as a hca you really learn a lot about the multidisciplinary team, in fact you become a part of it. And it is also a great opportunity to build on your patient communication skills, and will gives you lots to talk about re empathy, compassion etc. and you will also be able to make friends with young jr drs whove just graduated p, so will know the interview process very well, as opposed to drs who are older. And these jr drs might even be able to do mock interviews with you, and let you shadow them. The unique opportunity to do actual mock interviews with the very Same person you’ve shadowed is a massive help, as they will be able to help you know how to link things you’ve seen them do to the questions. And also working as a hca is actually decent money for our age group, I earn 9.50 ph on weekdays, and Saturdays and nights I earn 11.50, and the real big one, Sundays I earn 17.50. So that is a big bonus of working as a hca. How ever I must admit it is a very tough job, and I am seriously considering quitting, but I think if you’re able to stay in the job at least till you finish all your interviews, it will be a massive benefit.

Well done with utilising your gap year so well! All the best for your medicine course, amazing getting that place !! also amazing work in a non medicine perspective

Hopefully it sways you in favour of taking a gap year yourself! That’s the only reason why I posted it

I've definitely began to consider it more. Online there are so many people suggesting it really is the way to go, but within Schoo, and my parents, they advise against it almost. I am torn. your message definitely made me more inclined to consider though.

Yeah from what I’ve seen on tsr most careers advisers at skl don’t actually have much knowledge about med skl admissions, my college was actually really good alhamdulillah. Regarding parents, my mum Alhamdulillah was very supportive of my gap year, but I know that is not the case with other parents. What do your parents think about a gap year?

my parents aren't keen, but it's more so because they're unsure how I will resettle into a constant learning environment like school/uni again afterwards. I think they'd be willing to support me if I expressed completely that is all I want to do, but at the moment it's probably not their first choice

When I started studying Medicine after a gap year, they went over the fundamental A-level knowledge as there were many students with different A-levels from various backgrounds and different levels of education. Some students had done different A-levels or degrees or had a larger gap of education having been working or something alike. This means that the aim at the start of the course will be to ensure that everyone understands the basic knowledge to understand the principles of Medicine before delving deeper.

You will quickly get a hang of the work flow and build your own routine, as it'll be something you've looked forward to for a long while. It gives you a chance to try out various different study techniques before finding which one suits you best. Additionally, it's not like you will be doing nothing during your gap year, it will be busy through keeping to application deadlines and maintaining your determination in gaining work experience as well as other activities - you could even try out a few online courses to keep in touch with academics along the way if you feel it is necessary. This is a thread that can give inspiration when in doubt about taking a gap year: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7209108

Planning your options as well as time management is important to fully utilise a gap year. It would be useful to explore why your parents are not so keen on you taking a gap year and ensure you share why exactly you think a gap year would be advantageous to your gap year and what you personally feel you would gain from potential activities you may do during that time. You could compare it to other options and extracts the pros of taking a gap year, such as building savings through finding a part time job. I think clarity is something that clouds judgement of what a gap year entails, you could build a timeline of what you will be doing during the gap year and show it to them, so they don't just think it's a whole year of you just left to do nothing.

I hope that helps and make sense!

thank you! I think I also fear losing the current pharmacy place which I have an offer for. I think that's another thing which scares me about a gap year. But Medicine is all I can see myself doing as a career- I've always wanted to be a dermatologist so the only way to get there is medicine. Thank you for all of your help, I will definitely read into gap years a little bit more. So if I was wishing to reapply for medicine in the next cohort, should I look to retaken my UCAT this year?

Yes you would have to retake your UCAT this summer. I would focus on getting those A-level grades then perhaps give yourself 1-2 weeks rest/break (after all A-levels are hard work!) then look to prepare for the UCAT using 6-8 weeks as a general guide. Highly recommend medify - their prices are fairly reasonable.

thank you! I think I also fear losing the current pharmacy place which I have an offer for. I think that's another thing which scares me about a gap year. But Medicine is all I can see myself doing as a career- I've always wanted to be a dermatologist so the only way to get there is medicine. Thank you for all of your help, I will definitely read into gap years a little bit more. So if I was wishing to reapply for medicine in the next cohort, should I look to retaken my UCAT this year?

yeah brilliant thank you, I used modify last year and honestly it worked really well I was proud of my score, again I'm just worried I won the able to replicate it again this year! thanks for all of your help.

If you're set on medicine then it feels like you know you won't enjoy Pharmacy. Have faith in yourself and trust in your abilities. This is exactly what drives you during a gap year. Adopt a positive mindset. You will get improve UCAT and you will improve your interview skills and you will grow and finally achieve your dream of getting into medical school. We'll be rooting for you all the way. You've got this!!

Thank you for your kind message!! It honestly brought me to tears, Thank you for being so kind. Honestly as a backup, I've also looking to medicine in Sofia, Bulgaria. The application only needs to be sent off after exam results day, so I can decide closer to the time, just keeping my options open. Thank you for your support, people like you deserve the world.

I’d advise against applying overseas. Take a gap year first imo

why are you against overseas medicine courses? a lot of people are against it and I do not understand why --> it's a GMC accredited course, same length etc, and I am more likely to get in there than in UK. the stakes are getting higher in the UK, regardless of the amount of work I put in this year, I doubt I will be on the level of the applicant that the UK medicine admissions system needs, on paper I was a suitable applicant, but there is no standardised way to improve my interview technique, so I am unsure how to fix that. I have many routes I can take, just am curious as to why so many people are against medicine overseas.

A certain someone who used to give advice here used to say you should go to medical school in the country you want to work in. Bulgarian and British hospital environments will be quite different and f1 is difficult enough without having to completely adjust to how uk hospitals work. Also even if it’s gmc accredited that can be a bit weird because some med schools lose accreditation and leads to all sorts of problems trying to get a job in England. During my time as a hca I met a dr who said he had a friend who has an overseas med degree but is working as a security guard because he’s having trouble registering with the gmc. Also you won’t get any student loans for overseas degrees and will have to pay it out of pocket which is impossible for lots of people. Also even though the degree may be taught in English, your patients won’t speak it, which is just going to make med skl much more difficult. Also overseas medical schools tend to have significantly lower pass rates than uk med schools, so in uk if you get into med skl it very likely means you will be a dr, however that is not necessarily the case overseas. The same dr I mentioned Said in his med school if you failed just a single exam or had attendance below 90% you’d be kicked out. Also applying overseas can be quite dodgy as you have to go through an agent, and it’s hard to find actual trustworthy ones

Thank you for your kind message!! It honestly brought me to tears, Thank you for being so kind. Honestly as a backup, I've also looking to medicine in Sofia, Bulgaria. The application only needs to be sent off after exam results day, so I can decide closer to the time, just keeping my options open. Thank you for your support, people like you deserve the world.

A certain someone who used to give advice here used to say you should go to medical school in the country you want to work in. Bulgarian and British hospital environments will be quite different and f1 is difficult enough without having to completely adjust to how uk hospitals work. Also even if it’s gmc accredited that can be a bit weird because some med schools lose accreditation and leads to all sorts of problems trying to get a job in England. During my time as a hca I met a dr who said he had a friend who has an overseas med degree but is working as a security guard because he’s having trouble registering with the gmc. Also you won’t get any student loans for overseas degrees and will have to pay it out of pocket which is impossible for lots of people. Also even though the degree may be taught in English, your patients won’t speak it, which is just going to make med skl much more difficult. Also overseas medical schools tend to have significantly lower pass rates than uk med schools, so in uk if you get into med skl it very likely means you will be a dr, however that is not necessarily the case overseas. The same dr I mentioned Said in his med school if you failed just a single exam or had attendance below 90% you’d be kicked out. Also applying overseas can be quite dodgy as you have to go through an agent, and it’s hard to find actual trustworthy ones