The Student Room Group

Rejected again. What now?

Hi everyone

I didn't make it in the 2012 cycle and so I decided to take a gap year and try my chances again. It's only one year, after all... However, I've been rejected after one post-interview, yet again.
I'm pretty sure I messed up my chances yet again by making some dumb ass university choices that didn't play to the strengths of my application. Eg. I would have got an interview at SGUL but I didn't apply there. I can't really tell if it was my poor choices, maybe if I'd applied to the universities that I think I would have had a better chance at and got rejected, I'd still be saying the same thing.

I've had plenty of people tell me that I would make a great doctor and plenty of friends and family who have put their faith in me. So not only does it feel like I've really let myself down, but everyone else as well. On the other hand I've had my dad tell me last year that maybe I'm just not good enough to become a doctor, that I'm not cut out for it and that's why I was rejected. I wanted to prove him wrong this year, but that hasn't worked. I've had some people say that everything happens for a reason. That this second rejection is just a test, and I will get to be where I want to be in the end. Doctors don't always get everything right but they persevere, so maybe I should too. Trouble is, I don't know anything, anymore right now. And the saying goes both ways, it feels that no matter how hard I try, I will never become a doctor so maybe I should just stop wasting time and settle for something else. I feel that I'll make the most out of whatever career I end up in.

Anyway, here are my options...


~ Study medicine abroad - possible finance issues

~ Study a medical science degree
-> apply during first year
-> apply for graduate entry - very competitive
-> transfer - very competitive
-> do something completely different

~ Another gap year and re-apply - parents are unlikely to agree with this


I'd really appreciate anyone's opinions and/or advice. Oh and if anyone has any advice on how to tell my parents that I've been rejected again, I'll gladly welcome it.

Thanks and sorry for the non-sensical whining/ranting.

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1
First of all I'm sorry to hear that you got rejected. As for your future, I think it boils down to how badly you want to do medicine. I think it speaks volumes about your character that you took a gap year and reapplied, you obviously want to do it really badly. Of course you have to consider the probability of you getting an offer if you took another gap year, but if you are strong-willed and really motivated and passionate about doing medicine, you will get on the course. You really need to ask yourself the question; other people's opinions can help you but only to a certain point. Then its entirely down to you.
Reply 2
Sorry to hear, but what are your stats like and where did you apply each cycle and were rejections pre or post interview? I'll see if I can where you may have gone wrong.
Ask for feedback, if it was a near miss then maybe try once more or do an a medicine transfer like st georges, Newcastle biomed :smile: and apply during first year as you have AAA.
Reply 3
What were your grades like?
Reply 4
First of all, I'm sorry to hear about your rejection. My brother-in-law (who's a registrar) once told me that in his medical team of nine people (which includes a consultant, him, SHO's, junior doctors, etc) there's only one doctor younger then him! So taking a while to get into medical school is not as big a deal as most people seem to think. Concerning your parents, have you told them that you didn't apply to your strengths?

Also, could you post a rough outline on what your work experience and what you did over your gap year?

Anyway, I would personally suggest taking another gap year, and this time only applying to those medical schools that you stand a good chance at. However, if not then GEM is the way to go! However, keep in mind that there are only four/five Uni's that allow transfers, so choose your Uni's wisely.
Reply 5
Original post by Litterbug
First of all I'm sorry to hear that you got rejected. As for your future, I think it boils down to how badly you want to do medicine. I think it speaks volumes about your character that you took a gap year and reapplied, you obviously want to do it really badly. Of course you have to consider the probability of you getting an offer if you took another gap year, but if you are strong-willed and really motivated and passionate about doing medicine, you will get on the course. You really need to ask yourself the question; other people's opinions can help you but only to a certain point. Then its entirely down to you.


Original post by AishaTara
Sorry to hear, but what are your stats like and where did you apply each cycle and were rejections pre or post interview? I'll see if I can where you may have gone wrong.
Ask for feedback, if it was a near miss then maybe try once more or do an a medicine transfer like st georges, Newcastle biomed :smile: and apply during first year as you have AAA.


Original post by Wa 007
What were your grades like?


Original post by Vian
First of all, I'm sorry to hear about your rejection. My brother-in-law (who's a registrar) once told me that in his medical team of nine people (which includes a consultant, him, SHO's, junior doctors, etc) there's only one doctor younger then him! So taking a while to get into medical school is not as big a deal as most people seem to think. Concerning your parents, have you told them that you didn't apply to your strengths?

Also, could you post a rough outline on what your work experience and what you did over your gap year?

Anyway, I would personally suggest taking another gap year, and this time only applying to those medical schools that you stand a good chance at. However, if not then GEM is the way to go! However, keep in mind that there are only four/five Uni's that allow transfers, so choose your Uni's wisely.


Thank you all for your replies, I really appreciate it!

AishaTara+Wa:

My stats -
GCSEs: 4A *7A 1C
A Levels: AAA
UKCAT: 2011) 682.5 avg 2012) 675 avg

1st application
Bristol: 'scored less well on PS in terms of additional personal achievements and range of interests'
KCL: general reason that Medicine is highly competitive and my grades and personal statement weren't as good
Manchester: post-interview rejection
Southampton: general feedback about high level of competition, didn't specify what it was about the PS

2nd application
BSMS: awaiting feedback
Liverpool: 'deemed less competitive, in terms of demonstrating non-academic entry requirements'
QUB: post-interview rejection
Sheffield: awaiting feedback

I've had my PS looked at by a couple of junior doctors both the first and second time around, as well as having it reviewed on TSR but I guess it still sucks.

Vian: I've told my mum that I felt like I didn't apply to the most suitable universities a couple of months ago but not my dad. She said it was no use worrying over something I can't change and they both just said they trusted me to make the best decision. It really is tempting to take another gap year but I guess I'm just tired and scared of more rejection and everyone else thinking that I've wasted another year. Having said that I really should just focus on what I want, it's entirely down to me, as Litterbug said. My dad will be especially hard to convince since he says he's only still working his 'crappy' job so that he can help support me through university and would like to see me graduate and be somewhere stable in life before he passes on.

Work experience:
A few days shadowing a 2nd year medical student at Cambridge
Week shadowing an orthopedic surgeon in a hospital
Week shadowing various paediatric healthcare professionals in a children's health centre
Mentoring lower school children with learning disabilities over 2 years in school
(Volunteering)

Gap year:
Joined a hockey club - something else to add to my ECs & strengthen team work skills
Training for a half-marathon to raise money for significant causes & keep fit
Volunteered in a hospital and for a hospice
Started work as a carer in a nursing home and clinical support worker in a hospital - unfortunately I couldn't mention this in my PS as I only managed to secure the jobs a couple of months after the deadline
Was hoping to do some volunteering abroad
(edited 10 years ago)
I'm so sorry to hear that has happened. Have you ever considered heading to the US instead? Because if you end up getting a biological science/anything relatively related to Medicine as an undergraduate degree, I reckon you'll have a chance of getting into a med school in the US, as med is only offered at graduate school.
Hope everything works out for you!
Original post by jennzers
I'm so sorry to hear that has happened. Have you ever considered heading to the US instead? Because if you end up getting a biological science/anything relatively related to Medicine as an undergraduate degree, I reckon you'll have a chance of getting into a med school in the US, as med is only offered at graduate school.
Hope everything works out for you!


Sorry but I'm going to have to say this isn't even worth considering, for a start it's more competitive than in the UK and secondly they're much more stringent when it comes to overseas applicants so you really need to have US citizenship, if you don't you'll also find sky high tuition fees.
Reply 8
Aw, im sorry you got declined again. That really sucks :/ good on you for perceiving though!

You could consider applying to this company that does medical stuff abroad. I'm going for 5 months to china to do social care but they do medical ones to other countries as well.
It does cost a lot but I think it's worth it. Google Projects Abroad.

Posted from TSR Mobile
Reply 9
Hey there, I'm really sorry for the bad news, but please don't give up if you know medicine is what you want to do! =D
Don't think that you wouldn't make a good doctor, especially when many people tell you otherwise. I personally think the typical parents might not be great at telling this as many think that getting into med school seem to be quite determined by grades.
Why wouldn't you make a good doctor? I think the only reasons are if you purely go into medicine for the money, job security, prestige and all that jazz. If you think you've got the qualities of a good doctor, that's enough to not give up and try your best to get into medicine!

I'm currently a final-year undergraduate student with an offer to do medicine this September. My experience is very limited and by no means I'm trying to come across I know it all here, but just want to help and hopefully I can be of help!

Here's my view on each option you've suggested:

Spoiler


I didn't apply for medicine when I was applying as a school-leaver (though I nearly did, but didn't want to rush due to lack of work experience). And having gone through a degree(almost!) and applied in my final year, I must say I'm so glad I did my degree first - it allowed me to develop so many skills and gave me the opportunities and time to really gather work experience and gain a better insight into the whole medical profession. =]
I think it's a really good route to go for as you'd be much more mature, wiser when you apply as well!

As for your choices, yes where you apply to is very important but please don't think they'll play a massive factor! For example with me, having never applied, I just applied to where I wanted to go, trying to tailor my application to the medical schools. The medical school I orientated my application towards the most ended up rejection me first ("comparably low work experience") and pre-interview, while I happen to gain interviews at all other 3, and received an offer from the medical school my application was orientated towards the least!

I think the personal statement is really important - try and spend as mucha s you can on it! I personally think it my personal statement that secured me my interviews and I'm so thankful that I didn't just wishy-wash it.
E.g. I also applied to King's, had below-par work experience and UKCAT below their threshold, but still got called for interview!
What did you try to do cover in your ps? =] The best advice I've got given is to show how you've developed the various skills and gained insights into medicine from your work experience and other commitments. It's better to elaborate and explain carefully on one, non-outstanding thing, than list/briefly talk about 10 outstanding things.

I hope this helps. All the best with wishever option you choose~ you'll get there if you don't give up I'm sure!! =D
(edited 10 years ago)
Reply 10
Original post by Renn


Work experience:
A few days shadowing a 2nd year medical student at Cambridge
Week shadowing an orthopedic surgeon in a hospital
Week shadowing various paediatric healthcare professionals in a children's health centre
Mentoring lower school children with learning disabilities over 2 years in school
(Volunteering)

Gap year:
Joined a hockey club - something else to add to my ECs & strengthen team work skills
Training for a half-marathon to raise money for significant causes & keep fit
Volunteered in a hospital and for a hospice
Started work as a carer in a nursing home and clinical support worker in a hospital - unfortunately I couldn't mention this in my PS as I only managed to secure the jobs a couple of months after the deadline
Was hoping to do some volunteering abroad


Your grades and EC's seem to be really good! I'm sure you already know all of this. but if you're going for GEM then make sure you carry out more work experience over your three or so years and carry on doing paid/voluntary work.

As Nimbus said, it's better to thoroughly go over a handful of experiences by talking about the skills gained from them and how they relate to medicine, rather than simply listing all the work exp/EC's you've been through.Also, try and get above 700+ UKCAT score next time around by preparing adequately for it.

In any case, good luck with your future degree/s! I'm sure you'll get there one way or another!
Reply 11
Original post by jennzers
I'm so sorry to hear that has happened. Have you ever considered heading to the US instead? Because if you end up getting a biological science/anything relatively related to Medicine as an undergraduate degree, I reckon you'll have a chance of getting into a med school in the US, as med is only offered at graduate school.
Hope everything works out for you!


In addition the the tuition fees, US medical schools don't recognize non-North American undergraduate degrees due to the different structure of the course. All Bachelor's in North America are 4 years long whereas in England they are 3. I don't even think a Scottish 4 year degree would count. So the US is out of the option.
Reply 12
Original post by Renn
Hi everyone

I didn't make it in the 2012 cycle and so I decided to take a gap year and try my chances again. It's only one year, after all... However, I've been rejected after one post-interview, yet again.
I'm pretty sure I messed up my chances yet again by making some dumb ass university choices that didn't play to the strengths of my application. Eg. I would have got an interview at SGUL but I didn't apply there. I can't really tell if it was my poor choices, maybe if I'd applied to the universities that I think I would have had a better chance at and got rejected, I'd still be saying the same thing.

I've had plenty of people tell me that I would make a great doctor and plenty of friends and family who have put their faith in me. So not only does it feel like I've really let myself down, but everyone else as well. On the other hand I've had my dad tell me last year that maybe I'm just not good enough to become a doctor, that I'm not cut out for it and that's why I was rejected. I wanted to prove him wrong this year, but that hasn't worked. I've had some people say that everything happens for a reason. That this second rejection is just a test, and I will get to be where I want to be in the end. Doctors don't always get everything right but they persevere, so maybe I should too. Trouble is, I don't know anything, anymore right now. And the saying goes both ways, it feels that no matter how hard I try, I will never become a doctor so maybe I should just stop wasting time and settle for something else. I feel that I'll make the most out of whatever career I end up in.

Anyway, here are my options...


~ Study medicine abroad - possible finance issues

~ Study a medical science degree
-> apply during first year
-> apply for graduate entry - very competitive
-> transfer - very competitive
-> do something completely different

~ Another gap year and re-apply - parents are unlikely to agree with this


I'd really appreciate anyone's opinions and/or advice. Oh and if anyone has any advice on how to tell my parents that I've been rejected again, I'll gladly welcome it.

Thanks and sorry for the non-sensical whining/ranting.


I'm very sorry for what happened but in the end it's all meant to be. Everything happens for a reason as you said. You could apply to similar courses through Extra and then take a master in Canada as the foreign students are very welcomed in there. You could have applied for an undergraduate program in Canada but I think the applications are over since two weeks. Or you could apply to foreign universities who still don't cost much and are very good such as Hacettepe University or Ankara University Medical School in Turkey. You also have Marmara University and Istanbul University. All of them offer internationally recognized degrees and have a very good ranking in the league table and a solid reputation (though I'm not sure if they are well regarded in the UK). Plus the tuition fee are not sky high if compared to Canada, the US or even the UK and the living expenses are cheaper than the UK and you'll get to learn about a new culture and live in a beautiful city :tongue:. I think there are some medical universities who teach in English in Poland though I'm not sure. Just a question, have you always, since you where a child, wanted to do medicine? As for the parents issue, I'll advice you to know the next step and then tell them as you'll be focused on what to do next and not ''what should I do'' + the parent pressure. At the end, if your heart tells you to pursue the dream to become a doctor do it. Listen to your heart and you'll end up where you want to be. Hope I've helped and if you have questions about Turkey I'll gladly answer them!
(edited 10 years ago)
Reply 13
Original post by Renn
Thank you all for your replies, I really appreciate it!

AishaTara+Wa:

My stats -
GCSEs: 4A *7A 1C
A Levels: AAA
UKCAT: 2011) 682.5 avg 2012) 675 avg

1st application
Bristol: 'scored less well on PS in terms of additional personal achievements and range of interests'
KCL: general reason that Medicine is highly competitive and my grades and personal statement weren't as good
Manchester: post-interview rejection
Southampton: general feedback about high level of competition, didn't specify what it was about the PS

2nd application
BSMS: awaiting feedback
Liverpool: 'deemed less competitive, in terms of demonstrating non-academic entry requirements'
QUB: post-interview rejection
Sheffield: awaiting feedback

I've had my PS looked at by a couple of junior doctors both the first and second time around, as well as having it reviewed on TSR but I guess it still sucks.

Vian: I've told my mum that I felt like I didn't apply to the most suitable universities a couple of months ago but not my dad. She said it was no use worrying over something I can't change and they both just said they trusted me to make the best decision. It really is tempting to take another gap year but I guess I'm just tired and scared of more rejection and everyone else thinking that I've wasted another year. Having said that I really should just focus on what I want, it's entirely down to me, as Litterbug said. My dad will be especially hard to convince since he says he's only still working his 'crappy' job so that he can help support me through university and would like to see me graduate and be somewhere stable in life before he passes on.

Work experience:
A few days shadowing a 2nd year medical student at Cambridge
Week shadowing an orthopedic surgeon in a hospital
Week shadowing various paediatric healthcare professionals in a children's health centre
Mentoring lower school children with learning disabilities over 2 years in school
(Volunteering)

Gap year:
Joined a hockey club - something else to add to my ECs & strengthen team work skills
Training for a half-marathon to raise money for significant causes & keep fit
Volunteered in a hospital and for a hospice
Started work as a carer in a nursing home and clinical support worker in a hospital - unfortunately I couldn't mention this in my PS as I only managed to secure the jobs a couple of months after the deadline
Was hoping to do some volunteering abroad


King's said your grades aren't good?? Wow, really shocked. I thought AAA was their requirement? What did you have in your fourth AS?
Original post by Renn
Hi everyone

I didn't make it in the 2012 cycle and so I decided to take a gap year and try my chances again. It's only one year, after all... However, I've been rejected after one post-interview, yet again.
I'm pretty sure I messed up my chances yet again by making some dumb ass university choices that didn't play to the strengths of my application. Eg. I would have got an interview at SGUL but I didn't apply there. I can't really tell if it was my poor choices, maybe if I'd applied to the universities that I think I would have had a better chance at and got rejected, I'd still be saying the same thing.

I've had plenty of people tell me that I would make a great doctor and plenty of friends and family who have put their faith in me. So not only does it feel like I've really let myself down, but everyone else as well. On the other hand I've had my dad tell me last year that maybe I'm just not good enough to become a doctor, that I'm not cut out for it and that's why I was rejected. I wanted to prove him wrong this year, but that hasn't worked. I've had some people say that everything happens for a reason. That this second rejection is just a test, and I will get to be where I want to be in the end. Doctors don't always get everything right but they persevere, so maybe I should too. Trouble is, I don't know anything, anymore right now. And the saying goes both ways, it feels that no matter how hard I try, I will never become a doctor so maybe I should just stop wasting time and settle for something else. I feel that I'll make the most out of whatever career I end up in.

Anyway, here are my options...


~ Study medicine abroad - possible finance issues

~ Study a medical science degree
-> apply during first year
-> apply for graduate entry - very competitive
-> transfer - very competitive
-> do something completely different

~ Another gap year and re-apply - parents are unlikely to agree with this


I'd really appreciate anyone's opinions and/or advice. Oh and if anyone has any advice on how to tell my parents that I've been rejected again, I'll gladly welcome it.

Thanks and sorry for the non-sensical whining/ranting.


Sorry to hear that. I managed to get in after a gap year this entry. What did you do in your gap year? I've worked as a HCA and its helped more than I can say.
Original post by Renn
I'd really appreciate anyone's opinions and/or advice. Oh and if anyone has any advice on how to tell my parents that I've been rejected again, I'll gladly welcome it.

Sorry to hear that you weren't successful again.

Of your three options, I agree with others that #1 is a hard route into medicine in the UK, for reasons other than just the financial ones. Option #2 would depend on whether you feel able to excel at your undergrad studies - as you say, these routes will be very competitive. Option #3 seems easiest of the three, but only by comparison.

The good news is that your profile is competitive - you wouldn't have got interview invites if it wasn't. However, you have to find ways to improve it even more if you are going to try one more time.

Grades: Nothing you can do about these now, but the fact that you have achieved grades is a better state to be in than having predicted grades.

PS: Your w/e and volunteering is very good - good enough for a couple of uni's to want to interview you. But are you presenting yourself as well as you could. For example, are you cramming things in which could/should be dropped to give you more space/characters to reflect on a few quality experiences? But it's hard for me to know what advice to give, without seeing it. Have you, for example, looked at med school websites, identified the qualities each one is asking for, and confirmed that your PS responded to everything they wanted? Tedious, but it worked for me. Also, get a few more people to review it - don't act on all their comments, but if you hear the same thing for two reviewers, you maybe should make changes. I did 40+ drafts of my PS! Lastly, have you used TSR's Medical PS Helper service?

UKCAT: Anything you can do to up your score will help next year, in that you'd have more options and potentially a higher ranking when they decide who to interview. I think that IQ tests and brainteasers are helpful in getting one's brain up to speed.

Interviews: If there is anything that you can do to improve your chances at the interview stage, your need to work on it. You need to be a confident communicator, so a gap year job that gives you a lot of customer contact might help. There are books, Youtubes and commercial courses all aimed at improving performance during medical interviews, although I can't say I tried them.

That's all I can suggest right now. If you do your UKCAT early, and use it to guide your choices, I think you can make it.

I have no suggestions for the parent dimension, otherwise... Good luck! :smile:
Reply 16
Original post by Nimbus
Hey there, I'm really sorry for the bad news, but please don't give up if you know medicine is what you want to do! =D
Don't think that you wouldn't make a good doctor, especially when many people tell you otherwise. I personally think the typical parents might not be great at telling this as many think that getting into med school seem to be quite determined by grades.
Why wouldn't you make a good doctor? I think the only reasons are if you purely go into medicine for the money, job security, prestige and all that jazz. If you think you've got the qualities of a good doctor, that's enough to not give up and try your best to get into medicine!


Thanks a lot for sharing your views and experience! Your words have been very helpful despite saying you have limited experience. Congrats on your offer by the way! :smile: I think that’s quite amazing and somewhat lucky that you received the offer and interview despite your application being the least orientated. I suppose it definitely goes to show what a strong personal statement you had.

In my statement, after the introduction, I covered experiences (med student shadowing, hospital shadowing) then EC stuff (Bronze DofE, hockey & hobbies) and volunteering (school mentoring & hospice), gap year plans then a concluding paragraph. I thought I had spent plenty of time on my personal statement and followed the same advice by elaborating on those few skills and experiences rather than listing several but I guess it just wasn't good enough. I think I’ll definitely get a lot more people to have a look at my PS and spend more time on it.

I agree that securing a degree would probably be the safest option and I know I’d enjoy studying a science course so I’m sort of leaning towards it. I current hold offers for clinical sciences at Bradford and biomedical science at Sussex right now. Whilst they both offer transfer routes, one of my friends suggested I try apply to a better university, well one that is well known for being ‘good for sciences’, (higher on biosciences league table, better grad prospects and research etc) such as UCL, Imperial, Sheffield or Leicester (also offers a transfer route) so that I’ll have slightly better prospects with the degree alone. Do you think this is something worth considering? I thought Bradford would give me the highest chance of transfer but I don't think the degree on it's own is great. By the way did you always plan to apply for medicine after your degree?



Original post by paperskin
I'm very sorry for what happened but in the end it's all meant to be. Everything happens for a reason as you said. You could apply to similar courses through Extra and then take a master in Canada as the foreign students are very welcomed in there. You could have applied for an undergraduate program in Canada but I think the applications are over since two weeks. Or you could apply to foreign universities who still don't cost much and are very good such as Hacettepe University or Ankara University Medical School in Turkey. You also have Marmara University and Istanbul University. All of them offer internationally recognized degrees and have a very good ranking in the league table and a solid reputation (though I'm not sure if they are well regarded in the UK). Plus the tuition fee are not sky high if compared to Canada, the US or even the UK and the living expenses are cheaper than the UK and you'll get to learn about a new culture and live in a beautiful city :tongue:. I think there are some medical universities who teach in English in Poland though I'm not sure. Just a question, have you always, since you where a child, wanted to do medicine? As for the parents issue, I'll advice you to know the next step and then tell them as you'll be focused on what to do next and not ''what should I do'' + the parent pressure. At the end, if your heart tells you to pursue the dream to become a doctor do it. Listen to your heart and you'll end up where you want to be. Hope I've helped and if you have questions about Turkey I'll gladly answer them!


Thanks for the information! To answer your question no, I’m not one of those people who have always known since they were young that they wanted to do medicine, unfortunately. I actually spent a good 5 years or so thinking I would become a charter accountant! I wish I was one of those kids though; these rejections have cast quite a lot of doubt in me, in whether or not medicine really is truly what I want and should do. A friend warned me not to feel as if I have to carry on just because I've already spent so much time and effort on pursuing this. Being a bit of fickle and passive person, I'm a bit lost. Like I said, I think I’d be content in whatever I end up doing and make the most of it… I’m actually considering a career profiling test thingy to help me since I seem to be crap at listening to my heart and guts. So far I’ve told my mum and it is a bit less pressure. I told her my ideas and she’s very skeptical of the chances of me getting in abroad and whether or not I’ll be able to receive loans for studying abroad so I’m going to have to do a lot of research and persuading should I go that direction. So yeah, I’ll probably PM you with some questions at some point!
(edited 10 years ago)
Reply 17
Original post by GCSE-help
King's said your grades aren't good?? Wow, really shocked. I thought AAA was their requirement? What did you have in your fourth AS?


Psychology, which was an A. I'm guessing it was my GCSEs maybe. They were really quite unspecific in their feedback...


Original post by Jacob :)
Sorry to hear that. I managed to get in after a gap year this entry. What did you do in your gap year? I've worked as a HCA and its helped more than I can say.


Gap year:
Joined a hockey club - something else to add to my ECs & strengthen team work skills
Training for a half-marathon to raise money for significant causes & keep fit
Volunteered in a hospital and for a hospice
Was hoping to volunteer abroad
Started work as a carer in a nursing home and clinical support worker (HCA) in a hospital - unfortunately I couldn't mention this in my PS as I only managed to secure the jobs a couple of months after the deadline. This was pretty annoying especially as I’d spent all summer applying for numerous posts, hoping to get one in time. In hindsight it’s my fault for underestimating the time it would take to start a job and I should have started looking a lot sooner.
I’m guessing you mentioned your HCA work in your PS and interview(s)? Do you think that’s what made the difference to last year?
Original post by Renn
Psychology, which was an A. I'm guessing it was my GCSEs maybe. They were really quite unspecific in their feedback...




Gap year:
Joined a hockey club - something else to add to my ECs & strengthen team work skills
Training for a half-marathon to raise money for significant causes & keep fit
Volunteered in a hospital and for a hospice
Was hoping to volunteer abroad
Started work as a carer in a nursing home and clinical support worker (HCA) in a hospital - unfortunately I couldn't mention this in my PS as I only managed to secure the jobs a couple of months after the deadline. This was pretty annoying especially as I’d spent all summer applying for numerous posts, hoping to get one in time. In hindsight it’s my fault for underestimating the time it would take to start a job and I should have started looking a lot sooner.
I’m guessing you mentioned your HCA work in your PS and interview(s)? Do you think that’s what made the difference to last year?


Yes it's made a huge difference both in the content of what I had to say and my confidence and professionalism for my interview.
Reply 19
Original post by Renn

Thanks for the information! To answer your question no, I’m not one of those people who have always known since they were young that they wanted to do medicine, unfortunately. I actually spent a good 5 years or so thinking I would become a charter accountant! I wish I was one of those kids though; these rejections have cast quite a lot of doubt in me, in whether or not medicine really is truly what I want and should do. A friend warned me not to feel as if I have to carry on just because I've already spent so much time and effort on pursuing this. Being a bit of fickle and passive person, I'm a bit lost. Like I said, I think I’d be content in whatever I end up doing and make the most of it… I’m actually considering a career profiling test thingy to help me since I seem to be crap at listening to my heart and guts. So far I’ve told my mum and it is a bit less pressure. I told her my ideas and she’s very skeptical of the chances of me getting in abroad and whether or not I’ll be able to receive loans for studying abroad so I’m going to have to do a lot of research and persuading should I go that direction. So yeah, I’ll probably PM you with some questions at some point!


Well as long as you love science, can manage high level of stress, have motivation that will last and can keep working long hours then I would say medicine is what you should do. All of us have a certain ability or talent that we can see flourish. It's up to you to choose to make that happen, not up to some universities. Universities change from country to country. Some students can be accepted in the best uni in the UK but could never make it in the French Grandes Ecoles (vice versa). If you want to be a doctor you can do it. Your friend is right, the time spent on something does not always make it valuable in a positive way. Before pursuing a medical degree you have to be sure that it is what you want to do. Be sure it's the life you want to lead. Even if you're crap at listening to your guts, you have to try! Is it your dream to do medicine? Is it your passion? The wind will offer you a dream at the end that will lead you to your way. Just listen. A career test will help you but only you can cast away your doubts. Personally I think that with your A-level grades you could get in a lot of universities abroad. You just have to search for the English one and lots of countries offer them. Somewhere in Europe would probably be best so Poland and Turkey are good choices. Turkey is not expensive at all from my own experience as the tuition fees are 200-600 TL in state universities. The private one tend to be between 12,000 to 40,000 TL. The public ones are the best anyway so you'll end up paying close to nothing in tuition fee. PM whenever you would like I'm here to help! Good luck!
(edited 10 years ago)

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