Graduate Entry Medicine 2017

Hey Guys,
First of all I discovered this thread recently and its quite impressive how everyone is helping each other (y). Secondly, I want to apply for 2017 medicine entry as well. I don't really mind if it's a graduate entry or a normal five year course. I am expecting a 2:1 in my genetics degree and plus I have to do my ukcat this summers. I would want to choose my university choices realistically, and not apply for any high requirement universities as my main aim is to just get in. I don't really have any preference for city or anything else. What do you guys suggest my university choices should be?
Thank you

If your not fussed about the University and 'just want to get in', then apply to all 4 spaces you have. Are you focussing on UKCAT only or GAMSAT as well??

After the WARWICK open day, I can tell you that they look at the top 25% achievers in UKCAT and then Academic degree classification, then work experience (70hrs, not much). So requirements aren't that difficult, but it just depends on what works for you.

I did the interviews for 2016 entry and start in September and I think that the interviews are about you as an individual. What they mean by principles is skills that they expect you to already have in order to make a good Doctor and they assess these throughout the interviews e.g. teamwork and communication skills. The two minutes are more a chance for you to collect yourself and think about points to mention when they ask you about these skills, but they're all still about getting to know you as a person. I wasn't asked anything that would have required revision or outside knowledge, I just had to demonstrate that I had these abilities through how I spoke to people and the skills I'd gained from my work experience.

I'm an English graduate so I would have loved it if they focussed on the personal statement because I'm very good at writing, but I still think that interviews are a better way to assess you as a person and as a Doctor because, for one, you can say a lot more than 4000 characters. Your personal statement is often about what you think they want to see and people are told to use a certain structure, form, language etc... by the end it's not really about you as a person, just some of the things you've done and a few of the things you've learnt (which at Warwick forms a large part of the interview anyway). Don't worry about being nervous, everyone is and I certainly was, but Warwick do a very good job at putting you at ease and I actually quite enjoyed the process in the end .

I am only focusing on UKCAT. I heard Hull York has low entry requirements comparatively. Do you have any other universities in mind other than Warwick?

Thanks

I am only focusing on UKCAT. I heard Hull York has low entry requirements comparatively. Do you have any other universities in mind other than Warwick?

Thanks

I am only focusing on UKCAT. I heard Hull York has low entry requirements comparatively. Do you have any other universities in mind other than Warwick?

Thanks

Thank you so much for this reply. You have really helped me feel better and see the positive side of the interviews. I think i mis-understood what the interviews entailed. Thanks :-)

...questions

Also... Don't write gamsat off as an option.... I got 2x offers from my gamsat and 2x rejections from my ukcat.


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I want to sit the GAMSAT in September. Going to practice today to see how I'll fare. Do you think it's enough time?

I finished a medical brigade in Ghana 10 days before the test and I ended up with 3/3 GAMSAT uni interviews. Starting now will be more than enough time.

Also... Don't write gamsat off as an option.... I got 2x offers from my gamsat and 2x rejections from my ukcat.


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Hey!

I am graduating in 2016 from my degree in Biomedical Science. I really want to make sure I get into med school and am desperate to do really well on the UKCAT. Is anyone thinking of taking any UKCAT preparation courses (Kaplan, Medic Portal, Blackstone)? I want to be sure I've done everything I can to make sure I get a good mark cause many grad med schools rely on ukcat scores so much. What are people's thoughts ?

I finished a medical brigade in Ghana 10 days before the test and I ended up with 3/3 GAMSAT uni interviews. Starting now will be more than enough time.

I have no idea because in 2013 my UKCAT score got me rejected, same in 2014. At the interviews this year I felt 8 minutes was plenty of time to cover how I met the quality each station was looking for. Plenty of time to reflect and cover a lot of ground. I definitely spoke about all the things that my PS addressed and a lot more on top. The stations are designed to give you opportunities to show your qualities.

You need to have proof of all of your experiences in addition to the academic/work reference that gets submitted through UCAS. These people could just confirm hours and activity but most of mine wrote a reference too. From this year onwards you need at least 2 experiences to make up the 70 hours so both of those need to provide a letter, I had about 6 different things so I had a letter from each. However, if you just scrape 70 hours over 2 experiences you won't be at all disadvantaged, you don't get more points for more hours.

The UKCAT is important as it is a straightforward way to make over 1000 rejections without having to trawl though PS, academic history etc but once you meet the threshold it seems like it's entirely dependant on interview performance. There's no emphasis on academics once you've met the minimum of a 2:i (or a 2:ii plus MSc/PhD) Warwick is possibly the most academically relaxed of all the UKCAT GEMs.

You don't need to pay for any expensive courses. Just get yourself a question bank, put some hard work into it over a few weeks (i managed it while working more than full time) and you will do fine on the UKCAT, 50% of it is being confident and calm on the day of the test.

I've bought the 600 UKCAT questions book and i can barely do any of them. I got an A in maths gcse in 2009 and I haven't done any maths or science since. I really doubt I can learn it myself without a course

The 600Q book is really outdated now and the QR in it is much harder than the real thing! They're releasing a new one in May (https://www.waterstones.com/book/get-into-medical-school-1000-ukcat-practice-questions-include-full-mock-exam/olivier-picard/laetitia-tighlit/9781905812189) which is updated for the 2016 test with twice the number of questions so I think it might be worth waiting for the updated version to be released and going through that.