Is it easy to get into medicine with these qualifications?

ziggy786

Hi, I was wondering whether or not I would be able to get into a medical school with these qualifications:

•

A Level Chemistry

•

A Level Mathematics with Stats

•

BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Applied Science (Medical Science)

If i got distinctions in the BTEC and C's in the A Levels, is this enough to study Medicine at any universities or would I need to do other A Levels as well.

I've been in college for 2 years and doing an extra year. I also have AS in Human Biology and Business at C and B.

I would really appreciate a professional opinion.

Thank You

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Reply 1

BioIz

To get into medical school you need perfect grades and perfect extra curriculars and a fair deal of work experience and even then there are no guarantees. I know someone who was rejected from everywhere she applied to despite having amazing grades and having done numerous work experience placements in some really cool settings. I apologise if it sounds harsh but you definitely need to get your grades up if you're going to stand a chance!

Reply 2

HerrDudelmann

Again, I know it sounds harsh, but you need top grades. You're looking at As or A*s in the A Levels, a top A in the AS Human Biology (and probably an A in the other one too), and a distinction in the BTEC. Even then there're no guarantees: you need to have shown a long term commitment to caring, have done some work experience if possible too, etc...
It's the most competitive course in the country, so Bs and Cs won't cut it.

Reply 3

dragonkeeper999

Unfortunately it seems very unlikely with those results. Most medicine applicants will have straight As at AS (ok, a few will have the odd B), and be predicted As/ A*s at A2. Even then, no-one really feels guaranteed to get in and it is very unusual to get all 4 offers. Also, many medical schools strongly prefer you to take 3A2s over 2 years, not over three. And you need loads of work experience etc.
If you are really passionate about medicine, why not try exploring related careers (look on the NHS website, they have quite a few good suggestions).

Reply 4

eggfriedrice

"is it easy" hmm no. Definitely not. And good grades plus extra curricula doesn't guarantee a place either.

I know someone who got 3 A*, could speak three languages (fluently), AMAZING at badminton (so did extra activities), and did work experience in a hospital, plus she was amazingly nice and confident and got rejected for medicine. Seriously mind blows me when people of an obvious less calibre get offers.

But yeah, you have no chance with C's, even with B's your chances are low.

Reply 5

officelinebacker

Original post by ziggy786

Hi, I was wondering whether or not I would be able to get into a medical school with these qualifications:

•

A Level Chemistry

•

A Level Mathematics with Stats

•

BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Applied Science (Medical Science)

It's not easy to get into medical school no matter what your grades are, but in your case I would say it is virtually impossible.

1) You essentially need straight A grades at GCSE and A level, with at least 3 full A levels.
2) Doing a third year at college will suggest to medical schools that you couldn't cope with the course in two years, which would suggest that you wouldn't stand a chance of coping with the workload that you will have at medical school.

Reply 6

la95

Original post by ziggy786

Hi, I was wondering whether or not I would be able to get into a medical school with these qualifications:

•

A Level Chemistry

•

A Level Mathematics with Stats

•

BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Applied Science (Medical Science)

As everyone else has pointed out, you are likely to need at least AAA (AFAIK a few places accept AAB as well) at A Level in order to be in with a chance of an offer, not to mention plenty of voluntary work, a good UKCAT/BMAT score, work experience, and a good personal statement. If you're really determined to study medicine, you could consider doing a different degree first, obtaining a 2:1 or a 1st and then applying for graduate entry medicine. For more information, take a look at this page: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/Graduate_Entry_Medicine_-_a_guide

Reply 7

Ronove

Original post by eggfriedrice

It's entirely possible that the person you're talking about:

- applied to the wrong universities (ie they required better GCSEs or UKCAT or BMAT than she got)

- didn't have enough work experience/caring experience (you say she did work experience in a hospital, was that all she did? Virtually every applicant with any chance will have more than that, and longer-term voluntary work too)

- wrote a terrible personal statement where she didn't reflect on anything

- flopped at interview or came across as arrogant/devoid of insight into herself or the career during it

etc.

It is unlikely that the people who did get offers were of significantly 'less calibre' than your friend in any way that is relevant to admissions.

Reply 8

HCubed

In a word - no. There is only one course that accepts AAB, all the rest require A*AA or AAA. Also A2's need to be taken over 2 years unless you have compelling extenuating circumstances (eg serious illness). Graduate medicine is even more competitive.

Reply 9

NilFBosh

Not going off topics here but I'm still in AS level. My question is, is it necessary to do a double degree in medicine. I know some uni's which offer only MBBS for 4 years and double degree for 7 years. What's the diff between them and what are the benefits?

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Reply 10

Ronove

Original post by NilFBosh

The 4-year accelerated MBBS courses are Graduate Entry. That means you have to have done a degree already to apply. I'm not sure what you're talking about with 'double degree' and seven years - I think you may have misunderstood the Graduate Entry process. If someone has done a three-year degree and then does the four-year GEM (Grad Entry Medicine) course, then that's seven years in total. It's not something you apply to do at the offset though.

Reply 11

NilFBosh

Original post by Ronove

Ok, cause there was a double degree - bachelor of science, bachelor of surgery which takes place for
7 years. I wanna do medicine but 7 years is seriously too long

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Reply 12

Ronove

Original post by NilFBosh

Ok, cause there was a double degree - bachelor of science, bachelor of surgery which takes place for
7 years. I wanna do medicine but 7 years is seriously too long

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I can't find any information about any double degree in the UK. The standard 4/5/6 year medical degree is called some variation of 'Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery' - it doesn't mean it's a double/dual degree. Where was this course and what was the point of it?

Reply 13

eggfriedrice

Original post by Ronove

GCSEs were no problem.
Not sure if she took those tests but she's evidently a smart girl, so I'm pretty sure she had done her research and planned accordingly.

Hospital work experience PLUS care home. I don't know many people who would voluntarily wipe someone's ass.

Once again for the personal statement, she's a smart girl, pretty sure she's capable of writing a decent PS. plus I've read her letter asking to change course from pharmacy to medicine (she got into pharmacy) and it was without a doubt a good standard of writing.

The interview is the only questionable area. I know her as a nice confident person who doesn't seem arrogant at all, but from her feedback apparently there was something they didn't quite like about her, not sure what though.

However despite that, she's clearly an amazing candidate and got 4 rejections so I just feel terribly bad for her. Like her hard work hasn't paid off for what she wanted to do. And then I hear people getting medicine offers for BBB which I think is an utter joke.

Reply 14

NilFBosh

Original post by Ronove

University of Sydney. Took these two photos. Check the website for more info.

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ImageUploadedByStudent Room1367594133.390173.jpg120.6KB

ImageUploadedByStudent Room1367594153.198681.jpg116.1KB

Reply 15

nespix

Original post by ziggy786

Hi, I was wondering whether or not I would be able to get into a medical school with these qualifications:

•

A Level Chemistry

•

A Level Mathematics with Stats

•

BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Applied Science (Medical Science)

I know loads of people are saying you need top grades - which is true, but some universities also offer access courses for people who don't necessarily have the top grades but want to study medicine and are within a certain distance of the uni. Alternatively you could find out more about doing a foundation year? Good luck :smile:

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Reply 16

Brachioradialis

Original post by nespix

Alternatively you could find out more about doing a foundation year? Good luck :smile:

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Generally not permissible if you've already got a science A-level (OP has chemistry).

Best bet is access course, and failing that, a relevant degree --> graduate entry.

Reply 17

Ronove

Original post by eggfriedrice

GCSEs were no problem.

That depends entirely on what they were and where exactly she applied, and you haven't provided information about either. It's not about them being a 'problem' or not. She could have got 7 A*s and applied to a uni that gives interview invites based on the top 8 grades, which would easily lead to her losing out to the many applicants with 8.

Not sure if she took those tests but she's evidently a smart girl, so I'm pretty sure she had done her research and planned accordingly.

They're not necessarily about being smart, they're often about preparation, particularly in the case of the UKCAT which many school teachers believe 'cannot be revised for'. Many applicants make the error of believing it really is purely a test of natural aptitude and come away with a bad result. Upon receiving said bad (or average) result, they then don't fully research which universities use which cut-off scores with it, and guarantee themselves a rejection without interview.

Hospital work experience PLUS care home. I don't know many people who would voluntarily wipe someone's ass.

Many, many applicants. Some hospital or GP shadowing and then some longer term care home voluntary work is utterly standard. What were the time spans? How did she reflect on her experiences in her personal statement?

Once again for the personal statement, she's a smart girl, pretty sure she's capable of writing a decent PS. plus I've read her letter asking to change course from pharmacy to medicine (she got into pharmacy) and it was without a doubt a good standard of writing.

Writing a 'good' personal statement is not just about writing eloquently. If you don't put the right things in (as exemplified above), you're at a disadvantage. Especially if the universities you apply to use it heavily.

The interview is the only questionable area. I know her as a nice confident person who doesn't seem arrogant at all, but from her feedback apparently there was something they didn't quite like about her, not sure what though.

However despite that, she's clearly an amazing candidate and got 4 rejections so I just feel terribly bad for her. Like her hard work hasn't paid off for what she wanted to do. And then I hear people getting medicine offers for BBB which I think is an utter joke.

It's a shame when anyone fails to get in for something they want to do. If they didn't like her at interview, she didn't perform well enough at interview. You can't suggest she was rejected wrongfully with emphasis on others getting in wrongfully instead, when there was a clear point of weakness in her application.

According to statistics frequently cited here, something like 60% of applicants get rejected from all four choices. She would most likely have had a good chance if she'd tried reapplying and working on her weak points, many people do. There's a difference between feeling bad for her and thinking she deserved a place (which she probably did just as much as the next person, but it's a numbers thing), and thinking other people who do get selected are less deserving.

I'm not sure where you've heard about people getting in with BBB. There are a handful of places that have special schemes for disadvantaged applicants who they deem to only realistically be capable of attaining BBB (or AAB, or whatever) under their circumstances, but who they think are just as academically capable as other applicants not under those circumstances who are getting AAA. If it were your friend getting BBB without those circumstances, she would not have an excuse.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 18

Pride

Original post by eggfriedrice

Those are rumours, people don't just get a lucky ticket into medicine and get offered a BBB offer. There'd be extenuating circumstances, or it might be a medicine foundation year (medicine year 0 if you like).

If anyone wants to study medicine in a British medical school, they have to work hard, get good grades and jump over the many hurdles to get a place. There's no easy way in.

And about your friend, it's understandable that you might think it's crazy that she didn't get a place. But that's how tough medicine is, it's not just about grades, everybody seriously considering medicine will have top grades, and will be at the top of their classes. In fact, depending on the medical school, it's less about academics than some other courses. There's lots of things, and then, you also need some luck! Plenty of perfectly good applicants get rejected, there's just not enough places to go around.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 19

Ronove

Original post by NilFBosh

University of Sydney. Took these two photos. Check the website for more info.

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Much if not all of Australia's universities offer only Graduate Entry Medicine. Therefore you have to have a Bachelor's degree to study Medicine.

Therefore evidently Sydney offers the chance to apply for the whole shebang from the start (in the brief check I did, I think I saw that you can choose to do a BA/BSc in Music or Economics amongst other things, while still applying to do Medicine after from the start). I'm not entirely sure what the point of it is to be honest, when you could just do a different degree and then apply for Medicine upon completion. Maybe it's harder to do Medicine after non-science subjects in Australia and application to these courses allows you to fight your case for wanting to do a BA/BSc in whatever, while gaining the security of already knowing you're going to get into Medicine after if you do get an offer. That's just a wild, wild guess though.