potential medicine applicant who may have left things to too late

Hi! I’m a year 12 student hoping to apply for medicine in autumn. Through out this year various extenuating circumstances have restricted me greatly in my commitment to preparing myself for my application to medicin3 like serious health problems and problems at home. I’ve missed out on applying to any medicine schemes and opportunities conducted by universities as well as getting work experience. Does anyone know any opportunities for medicine that are still open for application and if it’s possible for me to bounce back and still prepare myself to submit a competitive application in october?

Reply 1

TSR Hippocrates

Hey there, thanks for posting a question in the Medicine forum. :biggrin:

The Medicine forum gets a high volume of questions being posted, and some of these are already answered by the resources and Megathreads that members of the community and volunteers have created. This is an automatic post which is designed to highlight these resources. Below is a list of threads and articles that could answer your question (you should be looking in the original post of the megathreads). If one of the below threads is a more relevant place to ask your question, please post a reply in that thread to ask your question. If your query is answered by one of the Megathreads or articles linked below, and you would like us to close this thread for you, please reply to this thread with just the words "thank you". A member of our team will then get it locked.

Megathreads
(Please read the first post, before then posting any further questions you have within that thread.)
The "Which Medical School Should I Apply To?" Uberthread
The Ultimate 'Am I Good Enough For Medicine?' Angst Thread
Medicine A-Level subjects queries
Work Experience and Voluntary Work

2023 Applicants:
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2023 Entry
Graduate Entry Medicine 2023 Entry
Medicine 2023 entry for resit / retake / gap year applicants
A100 Medicine for International Students 2023 Entry
Medicine Interview discussion 2023 Entry
2023 entry A100 / A101 Medicine fastest and slowest offer senders
Index of Individual Medical School Applicants' threads 2023 Entry

2024 Applicants :
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2024 Entry
Graduate Entry Medicine 2024 Entry
GAMSAT 2024 / 2025 entry discussions megathread
UCAT 2024 Entry Discussions Megathread

Other application years:
Graduate Entry Medicine 2025 Entry
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2025 Entry

Useful Articles:
GCSE Requirements for Medicine
Everything you need to know about the BMAT
Work Experience as a Graduate or Mature student
Medicine Personal Statement Advice
Medicine Personal Statement Advice (Graduate Entry)
Interview Frequently Asked Questions
MMI Medicine Interview Tips
What to do after an unsuccessful first application

If your query is answered by one of the Megathreads or articles linked above, and you would like us to close this thread for you, please reply to this thread with just the words "thank you". A member of our team will then get it locked.

Reply 2

GGIN

Original post by shanice m

I am very sorry to read that you have had some difficult challenges this year. I hope things are better for you moving forward.

When you apply in October make sure you apply strategically and read the admissions policies from your med schools and see how they want to be notified of extenuating circumstances and what processes they do for that. Always do it in writing.

Looking forward, there is still time for you to put forward an application in October. Lots of unis dont look at the Personal Statement until it gets to interview (if then). Their application policy will tell you. This means that whatever you are trying to do experience wise doesnt HAVE to be done by the October deadline.

The most important thing is how you reflect on what you do, how you articulate that and how it helps give you a clear understanding of why medicine and whether and why medicine is right for you.

This means that full on medicine prep courses or similar arent really necessary (or that helpful). Unless its an access course run by your local uni? In which case these can have advantages but probably too late for those. Not many people have the oppirtunity to do them so dont worry.

Its not really a tick box exercise. Birmingham medical school website has a really useful section on work experience, a reflective diary and a range of online and personally directed "work experience" type activities you can do, like BSMS online, observe GP etc.

If you have any public facing work experience that is very helpful, be it McDs, working in a garden centre anything really that gives you interaction with the public on a face to face basis.

Volunteering in a care home or other caring environment is also really helpful to aid reflection.

If you can get it, of course work experience, or volunteering which gives you exposure to doctors, and their work practices or multi-disciplinary environements is ideal. But this can be very hard to get so worth pushing on that now and it might take months to get lucky unless you have contacts somewhere. If so, dont be afraid to ask.

Lastly, you will need to do your entrance exams this summer. This will require booking now and a good few weeks prep. Unfortunately, if your personal circumstances are such that you cannot sit the UCAT or BMAT this year, then sadly you wont be able to apply this year. Have a read of their website, esp UCAT. There are some exclusions but very rare.

Once you have your UCAT score post on the "which uni" megathread to find out where best, to be strategic.

If you do find that this year is not your year, then focus on exam grades as that will be the biggest factor for your application next year. Lots of people take gap years, or more than one year to get a place in medicine, or have a career change later life. You wont age out dont worry.

Good luck with your application, and i hope things get smoother for you.