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Rejecting offer this year, reapply to better universities?

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Squishy you're lucky that you have an offer! Think of those who don't have any offers(like me!
I would advise you to seriously consider it before you make any impulsive decisions... there is no such thing as better/top medical schools after all, they are medical schools! You're applying for medical schools, not for the universities!
After all, no one is gonna care about what medical school you go to once you graduate, you're a junior doctor and how skilled you're depends on what you've gained in the 5yrs.
If you really really really hate that school, then reapply, but be mentally prepared to get no offers at all(I know this might sound harsh) as the competition for medical school is increasing every year. Just look at the bloody average ukcat score!
Original post by Junioh
Squishy you're lucky that you have an offer! Think of those who don't have any offers(like me!
I would advise you to seriously consider it before you make any impulsive decisions... there is no such thing as better/top medical schools after all, they are medical schools! You're applying for medical schools, not for the universities!
After all, no one is gonna care about what medical school you go to once you graduate, you're a junior doctor and how skilled you're depends on what you've gained in the 5yrs.
If you really really really hate that school, then reapply, but be mentally prepared to get no offers at all(I know this might sound harsh) as the competition for medical school is increasing every year. Just look at the bloody average ukcat score!


Plus, don't forget the UKCAT changes this year so DA won't count and you'll really have to smash the other 3 sections.
Original post by ForestCat
Plus, don't forget the UKCAT changes this year so DA won't count and you'll really have to smash the other 3 sections.


true :/
also if you're thinking of UCL, Imperial, oxbridge, then you have to do the bmat, which apparently is quite hard... You've done the bmat squishy so you know it better than me...
Original post by Squishy®
Just don't like it, I don't like the area I don't like the people I've met there and the ones I've spoke to on the Internet. I don't like how close they are and how they force socialisation on u(university).


Stop being so precious FFS.
I find this thread completely baffling.

If you are seriously considering declining offers for medicine because you think that the universities you chose to apply to might not be the best fit for you socially, then you are taking a huge risk. Huge. You have no guarantee of being given any offers at all next year.

I'm not actually sure such a risk taker is necessarily suited to medicine.
Original post by MsTabitha
I find this thread completely baffling.

If you are seriously considering declining offers for medicine because you think that the universities you chose to apply to might not be the best fit for you socially, then you are taking a huge risk. Huge. You have no guarantee of being given any offers at all next year.

I'm not actually sure such a risk taker is necessarily suited to medicine.


On a balance of probability, it may not be as huge a risk as you think. If the OP has managed to succeed in getting an offer for Medicine this year, then the chances are that he/she will also stand a good chance next year. Moreover, 2nd time around, OP will have their grades under their belt so the universities he/she applies to will know that they have the right entry requirements and can get an unconditional offer. Also, during the Gap Year the OP may do things to enrich their second application for Medicine.

Regarding OP's current offer for Medicine: it is also a risk for him/her to attend a University in which they would be unhappy, and risk failing altogether. Saying that, I think it may have been a mistake applying to this University in the first place if it was not suited to the OP, but it's not like the OP is the first person or last person to make that error of judgement. In this case, it may even free up a place at the university he/she has a current offer at, so that it can go to someone else who wants it more.

It is a risk, but then again, there are very few things in life that are without risk.
(edited 8 years ago)
Reply 86
Original post by Squishy®
Only because such advice is given on the assumption that by better universities I referred to their rank.
As I've explained 100 times already a better university is one with a better area and a course structure better suited to me.


I was in your exact position this time last year, only it was my gap year. I went ahead with what you're doing because I really wanted a particular university that I was interviewed for but got rejected after interview. Everything about it was great, the course, the facilities and everything you could think of, but they said I talked too fast at interview.

At the end of the day its 1 year of being insanely depressed in my case vs 5 years of being eternally happy, and I've since been re interviewed by that university, and if I get in the sacrifice will have all been worth it.

I would accept the offer on UCAS and start planning your gap year ASAP. You can withdraw from the course up until the first week of uni, and so when the results come through in August you should have your gap year already planned, just because you accept an offer it doesn't mean that you can't withdraw between now and September.

So go with what YOU want, and whatever you pick just like me you'll feel like you've made the wrong decision, but at the end of the day as Hippocrates says, 'life is short, opportunity fleeting, the experiment perilous, judgement flawed' so if you want imperial, ucl or kings, go and make it happen.
Reply 87
Original post by MsTabitha
I find this thread completely baffling.

If you are seriously considering declining offers for medicine because you think that the universities you chose to apply to might not be the best fit for you socially, then you are taking a huge risk. Huge. You have no guarantee of being given any offers at all next year.

I'm not actually sure such a risk taker is necessarily suited to medicine.


Good job your opinion on me being suited for medicine is irrelevant then isn't it?
Btw medicine always involves risk anyway
Original post by Juxtapose


It is a risk, but then again, there are very few things in life that are without risk.


Yes, but there's a difference between necessary and unnecessary risks.

What if he messes up his A levels? At the moment he has offers and there is a slight chance that the medical schools he's got into might be lenient and let him in anyway. There's no chance of him getting an interview or offer next year without the right grades, if he withdraws now.

OP cannot guarantee that he will do well in the UKCAT or BMAT next year. Even if he did well this year - he might get a bad crop of questions. Or have the sniffles on the day. Or anything else. Do you see where I'm going?

Furthermore, he cannot guarantee that he will do well in interviews - what if the "prestigious" medical schools he wants to go to have interview panels made up of utter ***** who wipe the floor with him?

There are unnecessary risks every step of the way and OP needs the internet equivalent of a clip round the ear to bring him back down to earth.

This isn't even going into why his reasons for disliking his current choices are nonsense:

Just don't like it, I don't like the area I don't like the people I've met there and the ones I've spoke to on the Internet. I don't like how close they are and how they force socialisation on u(university).


Definitely one of the most immature things posted on here in a good while...
Original post by Democracy
Yes, but there's a difference between necessary and unnecessary risks.


Only time will tell if the risk was necessary or unnecessary. I think it's too early to call that judgement now - a lot of your suggestions are speculative. Speculation is fine, but I also think that the fact the OP has posted their concerns about their current offer already and considering a gap year to apply elsewhere, then that doesn't bode too well for how successful they will be if they accept the current offer for the university they're uncomfortable with.

I'm not even sure which University OP is referring to. I have a few ideas where it maybe though (not exactly a huge pool of choices for Medicine courses, compared to other disciplines).

As a previous poster has said - OP can make a decision on results day in August, but have a backup plan for a gap year, just in case.

At the end of the day, OP is the one who has to live with the consequences, so as long as he/she can take responsibility for their own decisions, then why does it matter to you?
Original post by Juxtapose

At the end of the day, OP is the one who has to live with the consequences, so as long as he/she can take responsibility for their own decisions, then why does it matter to you?


It doesn't - I got into medical school and I took my offer so I'm a pretty content guy. But this forum is here to offer advice and guidance so...
Original post by Juxtapose
On a balance of probability, it may not be as huge a risk as you think. If the OP has managed to succeed in getting an offer for Medicine this year, then the chances are that he/she will also stand a good chance next year.
Perhaps, but the current offers aren't from the universities he wants so it's not quite apples with apples. And any number of other factors (illness, bereavement, an off day when sitting UKCAT or being interviewed etc) could potentially affect the chances of being given an offer again next year.

Original post by Squishy®
Good job your opinion on me being suited for medicine is irrelevant then isn't it?
Btw medicine always involves risk anyway

Good job you're posting on here asking for advice you seemingly don't actually want to hear. I wish you luck for your future.
Reply 92
Original post by Democracy
Yes, but there's a difference between necessary and unnecessary risks.

What if he messes up his A levels? At the moment he has offers and there is a slight chance that the medical schools he's got into might be lenient and let him in anyway. There's no chance of him getting an interview or offer next year without the right grades, if he withdraws now.

OP cannot guarantee that he will do well in the UKCAT or BMAT next year. Even if he did well this year - he might get a bad crop of questions. Or have the sniffles on the day. Or anything else. Do you see where I'm going?

Furthermore, he cannot guarantee that he will do well in interviews - what if the "prestigious" medical schools he wants to go to have interview panels made up of utter ***** who wipe the floor with him?

There are unnecessary risks every step of the way and OP needs the internet equivalent of a clip round the ear to bring him back down to earth.

This isn't even going into why his reasons for disliking his current choices are nonsense:



Definitely one of the most immature things posted on here in a good while...


You are going so extreme with the chances that I won't get into medicine, all what u said is so far fetched. If you are thinking like that then I could say what's the point in accepting it now because I might have a car crash on the way there and die so there isn't any point.
I never said I was going to withdraw from it now anyway so I don't know where u get that from.
I can do my ukcat before I get my alevel results also so I can decide afterwards.
I'm confident with ukcat and BMaT as I did well in them and I find it easy. Me doing Alevels has made me more capable of doing well in the BmAt also.
All these risks are necessary if it means I will be spending 5 years in a place that I enjoy and do well in rather than 5 years in a place that I hate, around people I don't like and not doing my exams to the best capability. If i were to be choosing whether to stay at a university that I dislik and not do well in or a university I enjoy and do well in then the most logical decision would be the second one right?
Original post by Democracy
It doesn't - I got into medical school and I took my offer so I'm a pretty content guy. But this forum is here to offer advice and guidance so...


...and let's forget making judgements and sharing opinions to boost our own egos (we're all guilty of it :tongue:).

I rather like this quote from Baz Lurhman's song 'Everybody's Free (to wear sunscreen)':

"Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth."
(edited 8 years ago)
Reply 94
Original post by MsTabitha
Perhaps, but the current offers aren't from the universities he wants so it's not quite apples with apples. And any number of other factors (illness, bereavement, an off day when sitting UKCAT or being interviewed etc) could potentially affect the chances of being given an offer again next year.


Good job you're posting on here asking for advice you seemingly don't actually want to hear. I wish you luck for your future.


Yeah advice I can benefit from, not comments from people trying to be smart and funny.
The fact u say I could be ill for ukcat is silly because I could be ill for my Alevels also so then that should put me off accepting an offer?
Reply 95
Original post by Junioh
Squishy you're lucky that you have an offer! Think of those who don't have any offers(like me!
I would advise you to seriously consider it before you make any impulsive decisions... there is no such thing as better/top medical schools after all, they are medical schools! You're applying for medical schools, not for the universities!
After all, no one is gonna care about what medical school you go to once you graduate, you're a junior doctor and how skilled you're depends on what you've gained in the 5yrs.
If you really really really hate that school, then reapply, but be mentally prepared to get no offers at all(I know this might sound harsh) as the competition for medical school is increasing every year. Just look at the bloody average ukcat score!


Original post by ForestCat
Plus, don't forget the UKCAT changes this year so DA won't count and you'll really have to smash the other 3 sections.

Thank god the one that let me down is DA lol.
The competition isn't what worries me about reapplying junioh, do U think it's worth staying at a university you are likely not to do well in for five years for the sake of not reapplying?
Original post by Squishy®
You are going so extreme with the chances that I won't get into medicine, all what u said is so far fetched. If you are thinking like that then I could say what's the point in accepting it now because I might have a car crash on the way there and die so there isn't any point.
I never said I was going to withdraw from it now anyway so I don't know where u get that from.
I can do my ukcat before I get my alevel results also so I can decide afterwards.
I'm confident with ukcat and BMaT as I did well in them and I find it easy. Me doing Alevels has made me more capable of doing well in the BmAt also.
All these risks are necessary if it means I will be spending 5 years in a place that I enjoy and do well in rather than 5 years in a place that I hate, around people I don't like and not doing my exams to the best capability. If i were to be choosing whether to stay at a university that I dislik and not do well in or a university I enjoy and do well in then the most logical decision would be the second one right?


Look, I don't know you, and contrary to what the other guy said, none of this actually affects me (or anyone of the other medics on this forum). But we've been in your shoes before so we're offering our 2p worth. Presumably that's why you're posting here in the first place...

Yep there's no reason why you shouldn't score highly in the UKCAT again, do well in interviews and get offers. But if you don't (and the stats make this a reasonable likelihood - you are not infallible), you will kick yourself for the rest of your life.

You have no strong evidence to suggest that you won't like your future classmates and colleagues. As for "forcing socialising on you", this is a misplaced fear. No one will force you to socialise. You can sit in your bedroom for all five years. Or not - you're a grown up, you can do what you like.

But you should be aware of this - medical societies and unions are there to "force socialising", that's kind of the whole point of their existence. And if you think the London med schools haven't got an active social scene, revues, ridiculous fancy dress parties, etc, you are definitely barking up the wrong tree. But once again, no one will force you to socialise if you don't want to, so this is not a reason to give up an offer.

I accept that you may not like the area your prospective med school is in upon first glance, but I still think it is not worth giving up an offer over. Unless you've lived there before, you can't really know it that well. And medicine (wherever you go) is the ultimate career of being sent to **** places for placements and jobs, often with very little notice. Even the ICSM medics living it up in Kensington during first year will end up doing placements in dreary suburbia and boring small towns before long.

In short: reapply if you like, but make sure you're doing it for the right reasons, otherwise you will end up quite disappointed...
Original post by Squishy®
Thank god the one that let me down is DA lol.
The competition isn't what worries me about reapplying junioh, do U think it's worth staying at a university you are likely not to do well in for five years for the sake of not reapplying?


How do you know that you won't like the uni there?
I don't know what uni you're talking about but even if they are really really really bad, they're probably trying their best to change it.
Beside, squishy, why did you apply in the first place if you knew you hate that uni with a passion?? You only found out after you applied? That only shows you've not done your research probably.
If you were offerless today like me, I think you'd be grateful with the offer from this medical school.
I think you have already made your mind up and you're only seeking for approval from tsr.
At the end of the day, it's your life so it's totally up to you squishy.
Whatever happens, I wish you the best squishy!
The reality about uni when you're 18 is that you spend more of your social life in people's flats and cheap pubs. There's a large extent to which it doesn't matter which city you're in as it's more the friendships you make- you're not gonna be going to the amazing restaurants in London or whatever. But it's hard to understand what your fears and expectations are as you seem reluctant to be specific, perhaps because you're not sure what they are and are maybe just a little concerned about moving somewhere you don't know? Which everyone gets.

Societies at uni really do provide a little social network for people with all different interests, from nerdy to sporty. If you're worried about not liking medics cos of the heavy drinking and stupid pub golf or whatever, I understand that. You can be mates with them in the lecture hall then go hang out with someone else in the evening with closer interests to your own.

Another thing to consider is that the five years will fly by. Really. When I left school I was 23 before I knew it. And it's then that you can move somewhere you like more like London, and you'll have the wages and the life experience to properly enjoy it!

The only advice I would emphasise is do not make the decision until the latest possible moment in early May. Talk to your parents and teachers about this, who I imagine won't be too happy, but will probably talk a lot of sense.
Original post by Squishy®
How come you and others are implying I don't have good grades?
i have good enough grades to get three offers thankfully, i don't think they would give me them only based on personal statement and I did well in my entry tests so I'm confident on my stats.


I wasn't implying that at all, I haven't even seen yours if I'm honest. I'm just saying that it's risky. To be totally honest if you have the chance of getting three offers, why give that up and take a gap year where nothing is guaranteed?

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