What to do if you have four Medicine Rejections

TSR Wiki > University > Choosing a Subject > University Courses > Medicine > What to do if you have four Medicine Rejections

So you have 4 rejections? Don't worry, you're not alone! (and it doesn't mean you wouldn't make a good doctor)

Do You Still Want to do Medicine?

The first thing you need to decide is if you still want to do medicine at all. If not, then you need to think about what you'd like to do instead. If you're not sure – think about why. Maybe arrange some extra work experience to find out if it's something you're still interested in. If yes, then read on!

Obtain Feedback from the Universities and Improve Your Application

Make sure you get some feedback from the universities. Where you rejected before or after interview? If you were rejected without interview, then the important thing to start with is to look at how you are on paper – did you apply to universities where you met all the academic requirements? (This is a common reason for rejection and is an easy place to start when choosing where to apply.) If your rejections were after interview, then consider working on your interview technique.

Other things to look at are your UKCAT/BMAT scores and your personal statement. If you didn't before, consider getting the PS Help team to have a look through your personal statement before applying again. UKCAT is harder to improve your score on but there are lots of questions you can practise here.

Don't forget to work hard on getting the grades!

Your Options

There are a couple of options for you:

• Gap year and reapply – this is a popular option and there are a lot of people who get into medical school as a reapplicant. One of the advantages to this is that you have your A level exam results already as you're applying where a lot of the applicants only have predicted grades. For ideas of what to do during a gap year, have a look at this article.

• Do a different degree and apply as a graduate – while this is a good option for some, it does have its disadvantages. You'd need to get at least a 2:i in order to apply as a graduate and that isn't as easy as some people make out, especially if it's not in a subject you're interested in or passionate about. Financially it's difficult as well – while you can get loans easily for a first degree, you wouldn't be eligible for the medicine degree afterwards and by the time you graduate from the first degree, fees may have risen a long way. Grad-entry courses are also very competitive.

• More and more biomedicine/biomedical science courses now have the option of transferring to first year medicine after the first year of the course. However, this is usually very competitive and you need to make sure you'd be happy continuing with the course if you are unsuccessful in transferring.

If you don't get the grades in August

What to do if you don't get into medical school - This article gives some good information about your options.