B100 Pre-Medical Option at Thames Valley University (TVU)

This course is definitely a pile of *** and a bloody joke, but with different reason to yours.

To get into the TVU course, you need at least CCD at A levels. Imperial set up the course with TVU to boost TVUs reputation and help students with disadvantaged background the chance to apply for medicine.

To be fair, its not just about grades. If you have circumstances which affected your A level results, you will understand me.

No offence to anyone, but unless you've had deaths in family every month, disadvantaged background or not, it's a walk in the park to get an A for A-level - all you need is Letts revision guides, which cost no more than 100 for 2 years. You don't need a school.

Teaching in my school was so crap that I skivved lessons.

Sorry I just don't buy the nonsense of being disadvantaged means you will be getting DDD by default. My dad was underprivileged and he managed to get the top grades. Many people I have met have too.

Okay well done for getting As at a level. you so deserve it. But getting As at a level without the right background (because most of students on the course were immigrants/2nd generation kids) are clearly disadvantaged compared to those who were from private schools and with families with experience of higher education.

But please keep this thread on topic (only about the course please). You can set up a new thread discussion about that issue (getting As at a level even if you went into a crap school) separately thanks.

Thats just completely subjective. Everyone could say oh i went to a crap school/college but still managed to get As. See what i mean?

Okay well done for getting As at a level. you so deserve it. But getting As at a level without the right background (because most of students on the course were immigrants/2nd generation kids) are clearly disadvantaged compared to those who were from private schools and with families with experience of higher education.

Sorry if my posts sounded patronising. But I really fail to see how someone cannot at least get BBB at A-level if you just read through the revision guide. The questions every year repeat themselves for all the sciencey a-levels.

Subjective? Maybe - when the teacher asks you to do exercises A, B and C or copy out pages 11-14 and then walks off for coffee and tea?!
Maybe the students just read up on the stuff? Schools are no more than social organisations.

The point is, medicine isn't exactly easy or difficult, but it requires a degree of self-learning; I can't see how someone who can't get answers to A-level questions by just reading up on books can somehow succeed and be good doctors.

I can say this because I don't sit on an Ivory tower typing this, my family was in the lowest social class two generations, now we're at the top. The point is you work hard and you get what you want. I think all this access scheme and positive discrimination are all wrong. I apologise if I sound stuck up, but all this stuff gets on my nerves!

But why? I am a Chinese immigrant, I still don't see the relevance... and I wasn't particularly advantaged or disadvantaged by this...

If you get at least BBB after reading revision guides then sorry you cant get into medicine. Its as simple as that. This course allows you to still get into medicine without AAAA at Imperial.

Ill give you an example and im not making this up. Imagine a close familiy memeber dies months before preparing your exams...that would surely have an effect in your exam performance somehow. Its called extenuating circumstances by the way. Even examining boards recognise that, not just medical schools. It takes maturity and experiencing these situations for it to be fully understood. Have some empathy.

Im telling you, students who did this course had much worse school experience than yours. Sorry but i just dont buy that.

Its not like being a good doctor is purely based on academia alone. Cmon. Years ago you only need to get Bs and Cs to get into medical school. Last year some london med schools increased their grade entry requirements due to increasing applicant number, not necessarily that the course is v.v.v.v. impossible to do without AAAa.

Self learning is just one aspect of it.

You can bring this issue up to GMC and med schools if you want. Some access courses are designed to attract those with life experience and transferrable skills - they are equally as valuable as those with As at a levels if not more.

Sure, point taken.



Yes I do have empathy, but this is out of proportions. Do you mean every single person on the course had extenuating circumstances?

Point taken. I am sure there are. I was lucky in that regard. But I don't see why you need a school to get 3 A's for A-levels. You don't. Why can't people just get the past papers from the past 10 years and study it. A school in that regard is redundant.

Yes, but back in the days getting Bs and Cs were more than getting the same grades nowadays. Yes you are right about the applicant numbers pushing up requirements.

Yes, they are important, but they are formalised too much and so much that it really is taking the piss. Every course prospectus I read says how many transferable mickey mouse skills they offer!

But why? I am a Chinese immigrant, I still don't see the relevance... and I wasn't particularly advantaged or disadvantaged by this...

Explains a lot of your posts I'm not ribbing you, it's true.

Can someone link me? I'm interested.

yeah, you mean my thinking, right? Now I begin to think the whole philosophy is different too... what are you studying in cam?

http://www.newmediamedicine.com/forum/imperial-college-school-medicine/24344-thames-valley-pre-med-option-bio-sciences-5.html
seriously, people in newmediamedicine can't speak or type English properly:

'fink'

'dis'

'da grades'

'n u kno wat'


I know it's a forum, but I would be afraid if these are future doctors.

http://www.newmediamedicine.com/forum/imperial-college-school-medicine/24344-thames-valley-pre-med-option-bio-sciences-5.html
seriously, people in newmediamedicine can't speak or type English properly:

'fink'

'dis'

'da grades'

'n u kno wat'


I know it's a forum, but I would be afraid if these are future doctors.

http://courses.tvu.ac.uk/CourseDetails.aspx?CourseInstanceID=26888&SearchType=adv&KeyWord=&rptindex=1&isSorted=0&img=img&sortname=null&count=0&PageSize=20&Sub=Select&StudyLeavel=Select&Mode=Select&Campaign=Select&Quali=Select&Location=Select&Duration=Sele

http://www.tvu.ac.uk/files/The_University/academic_departments/FHHS/Science_programmes.pdf (Page 46)

I seriously advise anyone to think twice before even applying for this course through clearing.

Also have a read on the discussion regarding this course on New Media Forum: http://www.newmediamedicine.com/forum/imperial-college-school-medicine/24344-thames-valley-pre-med-option-bio-sciences-5.html

To be fair, it's the internet. Friend of mine got 3 offers to do medicine and he speaks to me like this on MSN all the time. Admittedly, it is annoying - but I can see him as my doctor some day.

I can say this because I don't sit on an Ivory tower typing this, my family was in the lowest social class two generations, now we're at the top. The point is you work hard and you get what you want. I think all this access scheme and positive discrimination are all wrong. I apologise if I sound stuck up, but all this stuff gets on my nerves!