Closed - The "Which Medical School Should I Apply To?" Uberthread [Part 1 of 3]

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Also not great on graduate applicants, I'm afraid. You could try posting here:
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4678924

Not a problem! Thanks for replying and linking the GEM thread 😁

Reply 8001

GANFYD

Original post by Edgyname

my score is 45/56
My A is in biology
My B is in Gujarati (I did this when I was 9, but got an A* in French)
my SJT was band 2

Nottingham has a 2 stage selection process for interview. You can access the process on the link below. You need a strong 50/50 combination of UKCAT and GCSE achievement to get through the initial assessment, but a stronger performance in one aspect can compensate for a lower performance in the other. Last year it was considered that a score of around 44/45 was competitive for the first sift. The final assessment is then based on your Personal Statement. As your PS score is added to your academic score, then a lower score in the initial assessment means you will need a higher PS score than other candidates to achieve an invite to interview.
https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/medicine/study/medicine/faq/a100-selection.aspx

In their first sift Liverpool mark 9 x GCSE’s with 2 points for A*/A and 1 point for B grades. You need to achieve a score of 15 to be considered further. This process is advantageous to applicants with mostly A grade GCSE rather than A*, because they are treated the same in scoring terms.

https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/media/livacuk/schoolofmedicine/documents/Guidelines,for,applicants,direct,from,school,college,offering,GCSEs,Alevels,2019,entry.pdf

Candidates are then ranked by UKCAT, in the last few years needing a score around 4^th or 5^th decile to be considered further. The last three cut off scores have been 615 (last year), 640 and 625.

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/a100_medicine_28#incoming-1172414

Liverpool have stopped using the PS as their final stage of selection this year, so it is possible the UKCAT score will go up as they may attract applicants with higher UKCAT scores who are not put off by the subjectivity of PS assessment.

Leeds

Although BMAT is used by Leeds, it is not weighted as heavily as most other BMAT Universities.

GCSE’s receive a mark out of 27 for the top 9 subjects; 3 points for A*, 2 points for A, 1 point for B. Secondly predicted A level grades are marked with 8 points for AAA, 4 points for AAB, 2 points for ABB. Finally, BMAT attracts a maximum of 5 points, based on scores of applicants (top 20% receive 5 points etc). This gives a maximum of 40 points and last year a score of 36 was required to progress to the second sift stage.

In the second stage the PS is scored out of 16, and added to the first stage sift score. The overall highest scores are then invited for interview.

This information comes from a Freedom of Information request, which can be accessed here:

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/a100_medicine_statistics_34#incoming-1187258

Imperial College London A*AA

For 2018 entry, ICL required minimum scores in BMAT of 4.1 in Section 1; 4.2 in Section 2; 2.5 and grade C in section 3.

Following that, they state that an assessment of Personal Statement type attributes and your reference are assessed to decide who to interview.

BMAT appears to be the most heavily weighted factor for interview. From 2016 data on the internet, it appears that 90% of applicants in BMAT Band 1 were interviewed, 70% in Band 2, 60% in Band 3, and 7.5% in Band 4.

University College London A*AA

UCL uses BMAT as part of their assessment prior to interview. They do not publish cut off scores.

Mean scores for applicants for 2018 entry were: 4.4, 4.5, 3.1 A

Mean scores for offer holders for 2018 entry were: 5.1, 5.3, 3.5 A

So first off, you need to be sure of achieving, not just being predicted, A*AA for some of those.

I would have thought you also score highly at Leicester, QUB, UEA, Cardiff (provided you have A*s or 9s and not 8s).
You make the historic cut offs for Plymouth, SGUL and St Andrews.
Aston and ARU may be options, but there is no past evidence to say what their cut offs may be.
Also Keele and Sunderland if you have evidence for their R&R form (they use this which is similar to your PS).
So plenty of UKCAT unis to choose from. It is up to you whether you sit the BMAT, but bear in mind any application to BMAT unis is risky as you do not know your result before you apply.

Leicester - the application scoring document can be accessed from this link https://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/medicine/applying/scoring Cut off was 53.5 last year, ideally look for a score of 55+

Queen’s Belfast

Queen’s select for interview based on GCSE and UKCAT performance.

GCSE scoring on 9 subjects, with 4 points for A* (8/9) and 3 points for A (or 7 grade), no points awarded for lower grades. UKCAT attracts between 0-6 points, according to banding eg: 600 = 3 points; 650 = 4 points. See detail here:

https://www.qub.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/pdf/howwechooseourstudents/Filetoupload,752882,en.pdf

An overall score of 30 was required for 2018 entry, and 34 the previous year.

Norwich (UEA) - rank applicants for interview based on academic achievement and UKCAT – SJT is not scored. According to the response to a Freedom of Information request the scoring for 2017 entry was as follows:

Academics: 7 x A/A* achieved = 1 point; 8 x A/A* achieved = 2 points; 9 x A/A* achieved = 3 points Additionally each A* or grade 8/9 within the top 9 GCSE’s = 1 extra point. This means a maximum of 12 points available.

They then score A levels out of 12, but it is possible the maximum score for predicted grades is 9.

UKCAT: each subtest score is awarded points in bands as follows. Note: there were only 3 sub tests in UKCAT for the year in question, so a maximum of 12 points available.

900-751= 4 points; 750-651= 3 points; 650-551= 2 points; 550-451= 1 point

The scores were then weighted in the ratio of 67% academic, 33% UKCAT.

A cut-off score of 22 was quoted and an average of 26 points.

Cardiff invite to interview based on GCSE performance. They score 9 x GCSE’s with 3 points for A* or Grade 9, and 2 points for A or Grade 8/7. They say on their website that over the past 5 years the cut off score for interview has ranged between 22-26 out of a maximum 27. See “Other Requirements” on this page:

https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/2018/medicine-mbbch

On TSR earlier this year, it was stated that the 2018 entry cut off was 26 (and I think it has been this for the last 3 years, though may drop as they are quite harsh, only counting 9s as an A*)

Plymouth - last year 600, indicating 583 on their website for 2019 entry

St Georges - between 630-650 last 3 years

St Andrews - have had minimum cut off below 620 in recent years

Anglia Ruskin

Only a recently opened Medical School partnering with Dundee, so no historic information that I could find on cut-off scores.

I read a news article which indicated that they are getting 100 publicly funded courses for the first time this year.

They will rank by UKCAT with extra points for contextual data eg: living in the East of England, with further points for Essex. Cut off last year was 620, though they were not up and running properly through UCAS then, so may change

Aston

Only a recently opened Medical School, so no historic information that I could find on cut-off scores during a quick search.

From TSR: According to their open day, they are now ranking UKCAT scores, but they will not be using a cut-off. UKCAT will now be used in conjunction with academics (GCSE, A-levels) to select candidates. Your personal statement will not be used in determining who to invite for interviews. Personal statements (I think) are only used in choosing between similar applicants post-interview.

There are 100 undergraduate Home/EU places available, and 40% of these will give preference to Access to Medicine candidates using contextual data. They will use UKCAT for ranking with contextual data for local students.

Keele A*AA

Keele rank applicants for interview based on completion of a Roles and Responsibilities form which is described on this page:

https://www.keele.ac.uk/medicine/mbchb5years/entryrouteshowtoapply/

They do not consider applicants with SJT Band 4, nor applicants falling within the lowest 2 deciles of UKCAT (this is normally a score somewhat under 600)

The application process suits applicants with good work experience examples to draw on when completing the Roles and Responsibilities Form.

Reply 8002

GANFYD

Original post by meddad

Myself and @GANFYD on here are just parents who's kids applied 4 years ago, and we just try to help out with the knowledge we've gained over that period. I'm retired and take the day shift, whereas GANFYD is an insomniac GP who takes the night shift when she can.

Or sometimes we just disappear entirely for days on end when we decide to get our lives back for a while :smile:

And I did a refresher update last year! 2 down, 1 to go!!

And be honest, neither of us have a life (according to my kids, at least!!)! :p:

Reply 8003

GANFYD

Original post by Cait_mitchell_

I have six A*’s, 3 A’s and 2 B’s at GCSE, 4 A’s at AS including maths which I have dropped and have predicted AAA/A* in biology, chemistry and psychology. I also got 2710 in the UkCat which averages at 677.5.
I am thinking of applying to Manchester and Liverpool for definite but unsure between Bristol, Southampton, Sheffield and St George’s for the last two options. I am looking to apply to unis in which I will have the highest chances of getting interviews for opposed to any specific ones/locations but want to avoid Scotland and preferably London. Just wondering if anyone had any advice as I am unsure if it would be too much of a risk to apply to the UkCat ranking unis with my score?

UKCAT ONLY

So, for the Uni's that use UKCAT as the primary ranking tool:

Sheffield - 672 last year

Manchester - interview top third of UKCAT nationally so 3rd decile (top 30%) fits that ok (667 last year). Usually best to wait for final UKCAT deciles to be published to see if that changes.

Bristol - using UKCAT only for first time this year. They say that if they had done that last year the cut off would have been 665. Of course the profile of applicants could be different this year, particularly as they have changed their criteria

Newcastle - according to their website it was 645 last year, but 667 the year before

Southampton - historically on their open days they mention 640, but I couldn't find anybody on TSR last year with an interview below 667

Glasgow - 663 last year

Plymouth - last year 600, indicating 583 on their website for 2019 entry

St Georges - between 630-650 last 3 years

St Andrews - have had minimum cut off below 620 in recent years

Exeter - 667 last year if you also had A*A*A* predictions at A level

Of course, plenty of others who use UKCAT in conjunction with GCSEs and/or PS.

GCSE and UKCAT COMBINED

Leicester - the application scoring document can be accessed from this link https://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/medicine/applying/scoring Cut off was 53.5 last year, ideally look for a score of 55+

Nottingham – access their scoring document here: https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/medicine/study/medicine/faq/a100-selection.aspx

Look for a score of 44/45 minimum to get through 1^st sift, then your PS is considered for 2^nd sift before interview

Norwich (UEA) - rank applicants for interview based on academic achievement and UKCAT – SJT is not scored. According to the response to a Freedom of Information request the scoring for 2017 entry was as follows:

Academics: 7 x A/A* achieved = 1 point; 8 x A/A* achieved = 2 points; 9 x A/A* achieved = 3 points Additionally each A* or grade 8/9 within the top 9 GCSE’s = 1 extra point. This means a maximum of 12 points available.

They then score A levels out of 12, but it is possible the maximum score for predicted grades is 9.

UKCAT: each subtest score is awarded points in bands as follows. Note: there were only 3 sub tests in UKCAT for the year in question, so a maximum of 12 points available.

900-751= 4 points; 750-651= 3 points; 650-551= 2 points; 550-451= 1 point

A cut-off score of 22 was quoted and an average of 26 points.

Hull/York - rank applicants for interview based on UKCAT (maximum 40 points), SJT (15), Top 8 GCSE results (30) and Contextual Data (15). UKCAT scores as low as 620 have received interviews, but this is obviously offset with high academic achievement and/or contextual data. Their selection procedure is described here:

https://www.hyms.ac.uk/medicine/applying-to-study-medicine/selection-procedure

It’s worth noting that 20% of the interview score is based on your SJT Band, which gives a slight advantage to those in higher bands.

Based on the slightly lower interim UKCAT scores this year compared to last, I would have thought you would be OK at UKCAT heavy unis, but you do need to check final deciles when they are released. I think Bristol is going to be very hard to call, as the cut off they quote last year was based on people who applied precisely because they didn't score UKCAT highly, so the total change of assessment criteria may change the applicant profiles considerably, and Bristol has historically been a very popular uni. But I still think that gives you plenty of options.
Good luck!

Reply 8004

GANFYD

Original post by yolo310360

Thanks ever so much. You are extremely helpful. I don't particularly want to apply to Scotland as it is so far away.
Therefore, would you say it would be wise to sit the BMAT, and apply to Leeds.
Because of my GCSEs and A levels I get 35 points, and then I would only need about 1 or 2/5 from the BMAT to have a good chance at getting an interview.
I believe the cut off last year was 36?

Leeds may well be a good option, but I am not an expert on BMAT unis, I'm afraid!

Reply 8005

Cait_mitchell_

Original post by GANFYD

Thank you so much! That is all incredibly useful and will be a big help!

Reply 8006

Medic.213

682.5 and band 1
GCSEs - 9A* and 2A
AS - AAAB
A level predicted - A*AA ( Chem, bio and geography)

Are my stats good enough for Kings, Cardiff, Liverpool, Nottingham ?? Also considering Birmingham and Barts maybe. worried about UKCAT tho. I'd love to go to Edinburgh but my ukcat is too low I think :frown:

!!!!ALSO can anyone please answer this question:!!!!
If im predicted A*AA and apply to AAA universities will they offer me A*AA or AAA coz wondering if its better to apply with AAA predictions to all AAA universities. Really worried that if I have A*AA predictions and apply to like Cardiff which is AAA, they will offer me place on A*AA coz of my predicitons despite AAA is their standard offer on website etc.

Reply 8007

jameslondon141

Is it too risky to apply with a UKCAT score of 2770 and band 1 SJT?

Reply 8008

meddad

Original post by jameslondon141

Is it too risky to apply with a UKCAT score of 2770 and band 1 SJT?

Southampton are very secretive about their historic cut off scores, but from posts on TSR last year the cut off appeared to be around 7th decile (2670). In fact the highest UKCAT cut off was Sheffield at 2690.

The preliminary UKCAT scores for this year show 7th decile as 2680, and normally that figure drops by around 40 when the final figures are released - anyway best to check at that point.

So, on the basis that your score exceeds last year's 8th decile and scores look like dropping this year, then it doesn't appear that risky.

Reply 8009

meddad

Original post by Katie.12

If Uni's say that their standard offer is AAA then that's what they should offer you. Of course, some of those on your list require A*AA anyway, and there are one or two Uni's out there who say their standard offer is A*AA/AAA, and my guess is that they would likely make the higher offer if that's your prediction.

King's - for 2017 entry people were interviewed with UKCAT scores of 640-650, presumably backed up by great GCSEs for the rest of the scoring they use (which you have). That looks a good choice, particularly as UKCAT preliminary scores have dropped compared with last year.

Cardiff - cut off scores for last 2 years have been 26 out of 27, where they score 9 GCSEs and you get 3 points for A* and 2 points for A grades. Just checking, but your A* grades need to be A* or Grade 9 (they count grade 8 as equivalent to A). These nine "must include English Language (and/or Welsh First Language), the Sciences and Mathematics."

Liverpool - you will pass their academic and UKCAT sift quite easily

Nottingham - based on historic data you should comfortably pass their academic/UKCAT sift as long as your A* grades include english language, maths, biology, chemistry. If they don't then check their scoring system https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/medicine/study/medicine/faq/a100-selection.aspx
After the academic sift they then assess Personal statement to decide who they interview. The PS score is added to the academic sift score. You do have other Uni options you could choose which don't involve PS eg: Leicester, Sheffield, Manchester, Newcastle, Southampton and others

Birmingham - if your A* grades nclude Eng Lang, Eng Lit, Maths, Biology, Chemistry then your score looks fine. If they don't it becomes more borderline. Check your scores here:https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/med/medicine.aspx#CourseDetailsTab

Barts - rank applicants based on a 50/50 weighting of UKCAT and achieved and/or predicted grades UCAS tariff. A very high score in one aspect can compensate for a low score in the other.

http://www.smd.qmul.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/admissions-statistics-for-medicine--dentistry/

… and see this link to calculate your UCAS tariff https://www.ucas.com/ucas/tariff-calculator

Edinburgh - @GANFYD knows much more about Edinburgh than me and will probably comment, but you may well be right.

(edited 5 years ago)

Reply 8010

MED_AW

Original post by GANFYD

And I did a refresher update last year! 2 down, 1 to go!!

And be honest, neither of us have a life (according to my kids, at least!!)! :p:

Aww that’s nice that yous take the time to help out, your advice is much appreciated!

Reply 8011

helphelppls

Hi, I got a rather average UKCAT score 2540 and Band 1 for SJT. Its 4th decile based on the interim results. Which medical schools should I apply to?

Reply 8012

NoIdeaWthImdoing

Hey guys I've been told to post my grades here so I will, i am approaching the UCAS deadline (October 15) and i would love to hear what you guys think about my grades and what medical schools I may have a chance in getting accepted. These are my grades up until now:
IGCSE: 8A*s (Math,Bio,Phys,Chem,Arabic,Compu ter Science,French,English second language) including 2 high achiever awards (best in Riyadh French and second highest IGCSE mark in Riyadh)
AS level: 5 As (Math, Psychology, Bio, Chem, Phys)
IELTS: Overall 7.5 with lowest band 6.5 in writing
UKCAT: 2620 band 2 in SJT(2018 score)
A2 score: still haven't done A2 but I expect a minimum of 3 As in Bio, Chem and Math

Any help would be very appreciated and thanks 😀 (also I'm from Saudi Arabia)

Reply 8013

Nj12344

my a level predicted grades are 3As and I want to do medicine. my gcses weren't the best but they weren't bad either. i got 2A*s 2As 4Bs 2Cs and a 5 in both Englishes and a 6 in maths. my ukcat score was 2390 so i averaged 595. can anyone help me please i'm really desperate.

Reply 8014

AzureCeleste

Realistically you will struggle getting in anywhere. Those with lower GCSE's tend to compensate with a higher UKCAT, and those with a low UKCAT have high GCSE's to compensate. Is your school a low performing school by any chance so that your GCSE's, in comparison to what people at your school get, are amazing?
Have you considered taking the BMAT and applying to BMAT unis?

Reply 8015

Nj12344

Original post by AzureCeleste

no not really my gcses where decent but there was a massive range of results. i have not really considered doing the bmat to be honest. i have no idea what to do because school wants applications in next week

Reply 8016

pliny27

meddad and GANFYD

First, thank you for an amazing public service! The amount of time and effort you give to this is incredible.

My stats are:
GCSEs: 5A* and 4As
A/S Levels: ABC
Predicted A levels: AAA
UKCAT: 2680 SJT Band 2

I've ruled out Manchester and Belfast as they're looking for a 4th AS and am mostly looking at medical schools that are UKCAT heavy. These are definitely:

Liverpool
St Georges

The other medical schools I'm looking at are, in rough order of preference:

Sheffield
Newcastle
Leicester - my score is 55.5
Glasgow
Hull York - it's not entirely UKCAT dependent but seems to have a high rate of offers.

I'm also considering Southampton but I think it's very competitive.

Which of these schools do you think would work best with my profile?

Thank you!

Reply 8017

helphelppls

Original post by helphelppls

Hi, I got a rather average UKCAT score 2540 and Band 1 for SJT. Its 4th decile based on the interim results. Which medical schools should I apply to?

Does anyone know which UKCAT schools I should apply to? Should I apply to the medical schools that look highly on the SJT?

Reply 8018

AzureCeleste

Original post by Nj12344

Cause if your school is one where people do get straight A*'s it could be a struggle to get in. It's up to you really, medicine is competitive and your stats at the moment aren't overly strong. It could be worth taking a year out and applying next year instead, already having the A-levels and hopefully a better UKCAT. You can always apply this year as well

Reply 8019

warrenb15

Verbal Reasoning:670
Decision Making 590
Quantitative Reasoning: 620
Abstract Reasoning 650
SJT: Band 1

I got 5 A*s and 6 A's at GCSE and my personal statement is looking pretty good. I'm quite disappointed with my score but want to know what unis I can apply to with this score.