Do I have a chance for cambridge medicine?

GCSE Grades: 11A*s,2As and a B
Maths - A*
Chemistry - A*
Further Maths - A
Biology - A*
Physics - A*
Geography - A*
History- A*
English Language - A*
English Literature - A*
Business Studies - A*
ICT - A*
Religious Studies - A*
French - B
Urdu - A

Work experience:
1 week in a psychiatry ward
1 day in emergency psychiatry department
By the time I apply 2 years of volunteering in old people's home
1 week shadowing psychologist lecturer at Oxford university

a levels taken
Biology Chemistry Maths Economics EPQ

Do i have a realistic chance?

If so what med schools am I restricted to?
btw I am in yr12

Reply 1

KyleH123

Original post by BULL14

yes, why not? just do well in your a levels

Reply 2

Gamboner

no sorry lol why did you even bother asking

Reply 3

BULL14

Will my gcses be good enough?

Reply 4

Helenia

Original post by BULL14

Will my gcses be good enough?

Yes, they're fine. Most Cambridge applicants have very good GCSEs, but the university doesn't use them as stringently as Oxford do. 11A*s is great!

Nobody can say you'll definitely get in, especially as you've only just started A-levels and haven't done the BMAT yet. But if you continue on the same trajectory it's certainly worth applying.

Reply 5

BULL14

Original post by Helenia

What else could I do to improve my chance?

Reply 6

Muppet Science

Have you considered some GP work experience? Your work experience at the moment seems very psych based - which is fine, but perhaps narrow. If you can get some GP exposure then I'd recommend it. My experience at Cambridge interviews (although I was rejected) was that they were keen to see aptitude and interest in the science behind medicine. Perhaps some experience in an academic field. You mentioned the shadowing of a lecturer - that would be useful to explore.

tl;dr - you're doing fine. Consider GP exposure and nail your exams :smile:

Reply 7

BULL14

Original post by Muppet Science

thank you for your advice
Wow congrats for getting up to the interview stage.
would you mind me asking your stats, because you must have done something right to get an interview!

Reply 8

Muppet Science

3rd year Cardiff;
GCSEs: 8A*s, 2As, B (extenuating circumstances - missed c.8 months and basically had to self-teach)
AS - AAAA (Bio, chem, Physics, History); average UMS c.89%
A2 - A*A*AA (Bio, Chem, Physics, EPQ)
UKCAT - 650 (ish)
BMAT - 5.0, 5.0, 4A (I think... - it was a while ago)
Results: Cardiff (offer), Cambridge (interview), Brighton (rejection), Southampton (rejection)

Original post by BULL14

1

thank you for your advice
Wow congrats for getting up to the interview stage.
would you mind me asking your stats, because you must have done something right to get an interview!

Reply 9

Helenia

Original post by BULL14

What else could I do to improve my chance?

For Cambridge, the most important thing is your academic profile - so work hard for your ASs, and do well in the BMAT. Work experience and volunteering are important for a medicine application in general, but won't make a huge difference for Cambridge specifically. Don't set all your hopes on one uni though, getting into medicine is the most important thing, rather than which university you're at.

Reply 10

Reality Check

Original post by Helenia

getting into medicine is the most important thing, rather than which university you're at.

^THIS.

Whilst it's good to aim for a top university, remember that Cambridge isn't the be-all and end-all, and for medicine it's competitive enough already!