Which Med School for 2020 entry?

Hello All -

Need you advice on which med schools I should apply to. I have done the open days rounds and I really liked Leeds, Kings, and Nottingham. However, fully aware how tough it will be to get an offer. So with the following academic scores which four med schools should I be looking at for UCAS? In terms of non-academic I think I have that covered.

GCSE's:

Physics = 9
Chemistry = 8
Biology = 8
History = 8
Maths = 7
English Lang. = 7
English Lit.= 7
Religious Studies = 7
French = 5
BTEC Health & Social Care = D* (assume equivalent to grade 8)

A-Level's (predicted):

Chemistry = A
Biology = A
Religious Studies = A

UCAT (Aug'19):

VR = 560
DM = 670
QR = 570
AR = 750
Total = 2550
Average = 638

BMAT (Aug’19 - predicted):

Section 1 = 4.0
Section 2 = 4.0
Section 3 = 4B

Many thanks!!!

Reply 1

wavines.s

Original post by iwannabefree

your UCAT score is quite low (compared to average score of around 650) however, your GCSE's should be able to make up for this. I would suggest maybe removing Nottingham, as it is highly competitive and it is more than likely that many applicants will have an average UCAT score of around 750-800 with very high GCSE grades. However if you achieve your predicted BMAT scores, Leeds could be a good option.
Best of luck!

Reply 2

iwannabefree

Original post by wavines.s

thanks! Which other schools should I look at?

Reply 3

libbyt12

I think you would make interview at Liverpool, they're quite even on academic and UKCAT scoring and they invite a lot to interview

Reply 4

wavines.s

Original post by iwannabefree

thanks! Which other schools should I look at?

I would suggest looking at the following as they do not consider UCAT as strongly as other aspects:
-Plymouth
-Queens Belfast (NOT London)
-Keele
-Cardiff (Be careful with this one as they consider GCSE's VERY heavily and many applicants will have GCSE's of higher grades than yours)
-UEA
-Hull-York (be careful with this one also)
I hope this helps, I know they aren't necessarily the medical schools you wanted originally but I think its best to be realistic.
Best of luck in your future endeavours! :smile:

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 5

GANFYD

Original post by iwannabefree

I make your score at Leeds thus far 28/35 with 5 still available for BMAT. last year you needed 37 for an interview, the year before 36, so it does not look like a good choice for you
With 4 A* equivalent GCSEs (not sure they will count your BTEC) has needed around 700 UCAT for an interview in recent years.
What is your score for Nottingham? Cut off for PS to be assessed for 2018 entry was 45, but they have lost the PS stage this year, so will need to cut out more applicants with academics and UCAT, so score may go up.

You can look at Plymouth, possibly SGUL (cut offs both above and below your score in recent years), Liverpool, UEA, possibly HYMS if you have a B1, Aston, K&M, ARU, Edge Hill and QUB.
I am really not a BMAT expert, but most of them require A*AA A levels

Reply 6

iwannabefree

Original post by GANFYD

Thanks!

Where can I find the Leeds scoring guidelines / calculator?

For Nottingham I am scoring 43 (out of max 56), is this good enough?

Reply 7

GANFYD

Original post by iwannabefree

Thanks!

Where can I find the Leeds scoring guidelines / calculator?

For Nottingham I am scoring 43 (out of max 56), is this good enough?

Leeds
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 37 was required to progress to interview.

Nottingham cut off was 45 last year for PS to be assessed so may go up this year as this stage has been dropped so they will need to cut out a few more applicants at the academics and UCAT stage