Turning down a place at medical school to try again next year

http://university.which.co.uk/advice/ucas-application/can-universities-see-where-else-i-apply-to-and-could-this-affect-my-chances

Original post by EllyJelly

I despair.

https://www.ucas.com/ucas/undergraduate/apply-and-track/filling-your-ucas-undergraduate-application

5. Course choices

You can choose up to five courses (all now or some later). There’s no preference order and your universities/colleges won’t see where else you’ve applied until after you reply to any offers you get.

Reply 62

Doones

http://university.which.co.uk/advice/ucas-application/can-universities-see-where-else-i-apply-to-and-could-this-affect-my-chances

Original post by EllyJelly

That's not correct - they see all your choices after you have firmed/insured your offers. i,.e. WHICH? is off course right that it doesn't affect your chances.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 63

wolfmoon88

http://university.which.co.uk/advice/ucas-application/can-universities-see-where-else-i-apply-to-and-could-this-affect-my-chances

Original post by jneill

That's not correct - they see all your choices after you have firmed/insured your offers.

Really? Wowww didn't know that :eek2:

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 64

nexttime

22

Original post by EllyJelly

Perhaps you should read your own source - Goodbloke is right...

Reply 65

auburnstar

17

Original post by NeverLucky

I think "applicant" is a bit too far. I prefer the phrase "alternative candidate".

lmao

for Cambridge you mean? (jk) :P [only because you reapplied]

Reply 66

Original post by Good bloke

I despair.

https://www.ucas.com/ucas/undergraduate/apply-and-track/filling-your-ucas-undergraduate-application

5. Course choices

You can choose up to five courses (all now or some later). There’s no preference order and your universities/colleges won’t see where else you’ve applied until after you reply to any offers you get.

Yes, until AFTER you make your firms. I don't even know why this has ended up as an argument. If OP rejects their only offer, they won't HAVE any firms or insurance. And when you get rejected from a university, they don't keep following your application after that point, it would be an admin nightmare. We're pretty much saying the same thing.

My whole point was - if the ONLY offer OP gets is the one they do NOT want to go to, then next year they can apply to the 3 places they got rejected from and a DIFFERENT 4th choice. Their decision to reject the previous year's offer will NOT affect their reapplying to those other 3 universities, and they can put down an alternative 4th choice that they actually want to attend. That's all.

But that being said, getting into medicine anywhere is a great achievement. So OP would have to be very, very sure before turning it down.

Reply 67

Original post by EllyJelly

Yes, until AFTER you make your firms.

That is exactly what I said, and what you denied was true.

Reply 68

Doones

Original post by nexttime

Well...

I only bring this up as the poster said UCL specifically, and only really for interest: when you apply for clinical years at UCL you apply through a non-UCAS system where unis can see your choices, and you have to rank your choices 1-7. UCL openly said they would reject you if you didn't put them as first choice no matter how qualified you were. I thought that was pretty childish, but it was actually their official policy stated at their open day!

Regardless - such a 'grudge' wouldn't be applicable to the OP anyway.

Interesting - and I guess they can do whatever they want if it's outside UCAS.

Reply 69

nexttime

22

Original post by paddyx

This is slightly misunderstanding what I said. I am very keen on my other choices and not so keen about only one of the schools that I put down on my UCAS form. What to do if I get offered a place at the latter? I accept that any offer is very unlikely but I am just trying to think through the possibilities in advance.

OP - your main correctable problem here is that if you are against a particular uni to such an extent, you probably have misconceptions about said uni. They're all pretty similar, at the end of the day.

Your refusal to tell us what you've heard makes it very difficult to help you.

Original post by jneill

Interesting - and I guess they can do whatever they want if it's outside UCAS.

Their only limitation was demand for the course really, and they tended to beat Imperial etc to be the most popular choice (??because of said policy? Who knows), so yeah they could get away with it.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 70

Original post by Good bloke

That is exactly what I said, and what you denied was true.

But that's completely irrelevant to the question in hand. If OP hasn't got any other offers than the 1 place they've rejected, then none of the other universities will ever know where else they applied. It would have been a different story if they'd been offered places elsewhere, but that's not the issue here.

Reply 71

Original post by EllyJelly

If OP hasn't got any other offers than the 1 place they've rejected, then none of the other universities will ever know where else he applied.

No. All of his choices will learn where he applied after he accepts/declines.

Reply 72

Original post by Good bloke

No. All of his choices will learn where he applied after he accepts/declines.

But once a university has rejected you, they're not going to care what else you do or where else you applied. It's not relevant information to them anymore. Even if they could see this information - which I'm pretty sure they can't, as it says right there from UCAS that they can only see your choices if you've firmed/insured - why would they even look when they've already turned you down? If universities went back over all the applications they'd rejected (sometimes in the 1000s for courses like Medicine), it would take them way too much time.

There's nothing to stop you reapplying to a university that rejected you the year before. Many do it. No matter where else you applied. The only issue is if you reapply to a university where you previously rejected their offer. I was told time and again by my sixth form teachers/head that they blacklisted you for this. That's the only information source I've got on that I'm afraid.

Reply 73

hxrl3yB00

9

I have a similar situation. I've applied to 4 med schools... interview at one (Leeds), rejected by 1 (Cardiff) and still waiting for the other 2. My problem is, one of the other 2 I'm waiting on (BSMS) put me on an interview reserve list... due to personal reasons/commitments BSMS were to be my firm had they made me an offer... but because I'm on a reserve list I can't choose a firm/insurance once all my other decisions have come through unless I withdraw but I can't withdraw because of my personal reasons. I explained everything to them in a message on their platform and waiting for a response. A condition they made was that if I didn't get any other offers, I'd get first choice from then in clearing... that would mean IF I got an offer from e.g. Leeds, I would potentially have to decline it.
It's a really crap situation to be in.

Reply 74

Original post by EllyJelly

But once a university has rejected you, they're not going to care what else you do or where else you applied. It's not relevant information to them anymore. Even if they could see this information - which I'm pretty sure they can't, as it says right there from UCAS that they can only see your choices if you've firmed/insured -.

Once you have accepted/declined your offers all your choices can see. I wonder why you continue to contradict what is (a) common knowledge (though not that common it appears) and (b) told you by your own source and (c) told you by UCAS.

Whether they are interested or not is immaterial; I merely seek to correct the misapprehensions you may leave with readers of this thread.

Reply 75

Original post by hxrl3yB00

A condition they made was that if I didn't get any other offers, I'd get first choice from then in clearing...

Not getting any other offers is not the same thing as getting another offer and declining it and, as you have seen in the interchange above, the universities will know that you have received an offer you declined.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 76

Doones

Original post by EllyJelly

The only issue is if you reapply to a university where you previously rejected their offer. I was told time and again by my sixth form teachers/head that they blacklisted you for this. That's the only information source I've got on that I'm afraid.

It seems UCL might*, but others definitely do not. Cambridge and Oxford, for example, actively encourage re-applicants, "even" for medicine.

*Edit to update: UCL does indeed discourage re-applicants for Medicine but only if they have been interviewed. If they haven't been interviewed they can re-apply.
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/medicalschool/undergraduate/mbbs-admissions/faqs/FAQ.pdf

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 77

OP - I think basically despite some debates between us on this thread over UCAS etc, a common thing that lots of people are saying is that you really need to think carefully about rejecting that offer if it's the only one you get. I *might* be wrong, as my only source of information is my own sixth form teachers (and that was 4 years ago!), but I was always told that if you rejected a university's offer, they wouldn't give you another one. Who knows, that's just what we got told. It would have no effect on your application if you reapplied to places where you've been rejected. Lots of people do this.

First off, you're not even at that stage yet, you may well get an offer somewhere you really like. But let's just take the worst case scenario and say you only get an offer at this 4th choice. You will still be doing Medicine, presumably something you're passionate about, and you'll still be on the road to being a doctor. You'll have achieved a place on your first application cycle, which in itself is a big achievement. Maybe try going to another Open Day or joining a chat group specifically for that uni/course. There's got to be some good points to this university, even if it wasn't your first choice. I think someone else asked a bit earlier - what is it about this course that you don't like? And would you rather turn down your only offer and go through the whole application cycle again, than take this place? It's a very personal decision, but definitely one that requires a lot of thought, as I'm sure you know. Best of luck, whatever you decide, and let's hope it doesn't even come to this :smile:

Reply 78