Is Medicine out of the question?

Hi I just got my GCSE's and I'm little dissapointed with the lack of A*s even though I wasn't targeted them, and also my physics and Maths were on the poorer side, even though I've known to be like that for a while. Anyway I am really passionate for going to into medicine, but I'm happy to seek other career paths in other areas such as Law and politics, I'm just wondering for peoples opinions on what I should do and what A-levels to take, Cheers
History - A
Geography - A
English Literature - A
English Language - A
ICT - A
DT - A
French - A
Biology - A
Chemistry - A
Physics - B
Maths- B
RE - B

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Reply 1

Ecosse_14

Original post by itstimdavidson

Medicine is not at all out of the question, those are great GCSEs you've got there.. well done! :biggrin:

Some medical schools will require an A in Maths I think but they're in a minority so make sure to do your research before applying. As for A Levels, Biology and Chemistry are the 2 obvious ones and most universities will require these subjects. Maths seems like the logical 3rd choice, and then if you're doing a 4th AS, whatever one you enjoy most really! :smile:

Reply 2

Flugel

Original post by itstimdavidson

Similar to what Ecosse said, you've got a great set of GCSEs there and medicine is by no means out of the question!

What's good is that you've got good grades across a wide range of subjects- not only does this mean you've still got plenty of choice available to you for the future, but if you do decide to go down the medicine route, that you'll be able to demonstrate that you are a well rounded individual who can apply themselves to many things.

When it comes to applying for medicine, just make sure you check requirements carefully as some places want minimum numbers of A*s or A/A* in particular subjects, but you shouldn't find yourself too limited with what you have.

As for A levels, chemistry is almost certainly a must, plus at least one other science- in my opinion biology is the best to have, but physics would work, or maths (although some unis specify it must be a 'lab' science). As for a 3rd, and possibly 4th, A level pick things that you enjoy- remember that you do these for 2 years and that's a lot of time to spend doing something just for the sake of doing medicine! It can be nice to have a non-science subject to break up your time spent studying so you're not constantly doing the same kind of thing. It's worth considering workload, number of exams etc. as well when picking another A level.

Reply 3

Lunch_Box

Original post by itstimdavidson

I'm going to give you the honest answer. If you're going for a top 10 uni for med your GCSEs are near the bottom of the pile. Don't worry though, just do well (extremely well) in your AS.

Reply 4

lovablebean

Hi guys, just wondering whether I can do medicine with 7a* and 3A.
Thanks

Reply 5

daniy186

Hi I was wondering if I could still get into medicine with my grades, i'm really disappointed with them as i expected to get higher but im going to retake 5 of them again, but i was wondering if anyone could give me any advice in what to do
Maths a*
Biology a*
Chemistry a
Physics b
Eng Lit a
Eng Lang b
R.S. a
DT b
Photography b
French b
Geography a

Reply 6

Superboy

Original post by daniy186

DO NOT retake anything before you have confirmed with your prospective medical schools that they are willing to accept resits. Many medical schools reject applicants straight away if they have resat any units (unless they have extenuating circumstances).

I am aware of people who have achieved similar grades to yours, and they are now studying medicine. You need to ensure that you get excellent work experience and work harder on your A Levels in the future.

Reply 7

CRW1996

You can do medicine with much worse GCSE's than that... If you get good enough A levels they will let you in. GCSE's are rarely looked at unless you haven't quite got the A levels. Also they look at the quality of school, personal statment etc as well.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 8

ojj_12

Heyy, I got okay GCSE results but was hoping to do better :frown:

Would I still be able to apply somewhere like UCL (my dream university) with:
Biology - A*
Chemistry - A*
Physics - A*
Maths - A
Geography - A
English Literature - A
Spanish - A
English Language - B
RS - A
ICT - merit

Reply 9

Emmaliath

Original post by lovablebean

Hi guys, just wondering whether I can do medicine with 7a* and 3A.
Thanks

You can definitely do medicine with those results! They are great, much better than my own 2A* 5A and 3B and i am also trying to gain access to the medicine path. I would recommend that you look at some of the requirements for the unis that you are interested in (there is a handy spreadsheet available on this site somewhere) so that you can get an idea of what you need to do next.

A few universities don't even pay much attention to GCSE results and are more interested in your AS results and your predicted grades. Another thing to think about is how much work experience you do. It is a good idea to get as much experience in as possible before you apply to 'bulk' up your personal statement. I suggest 'Vitalise' and shadowing doctors for some of this.

I hope this has helped!!! :smile:

Reply 10

young volcano

You can still do it if you get good AS results, but you'll have to apply to universities that don't consider GCSE grades so heavily (e.g. Birmingham and Oxford are likely out of the question).

this might help:
http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/Applying_to_Medical_School_using_your_Strengths

Reply 11

CRW1996

Original post by ojj_12

Heyy, I got okay GCSE results but was hoping to do better :frown:

You could get into oxford/cambridge if you got 3A* in A levels... You have a great platform with those results but the real hard work is in the next 2 years (in regards to getting into a top uni)

Reply 12

shabzz

I also have a similar question I just got my results for gcse and unfortunately I havnt done as good as I hoped I have got 2 A's 8 B's and 1 C is there any chance I can get in to medicine despite these grades at gcse. I know it will be hard work at a level but I am willing to put my all in to getting the grades and can anyone advise my on any universities that would be accepting of these grades at gcse.

Reply 13

x E x

Would I be able to get into a medical school like Manchester with these results if I got good a levels, or would it be quite hard
Maths A*
Bio A*
Chem A*
Phys A*
Art A*
French A
Geog A
eng lit B
Eng Lang B

Reply 14

TheMatzart

Hi my GCSE's are as follows:
Maths - A
Biology - A
Physics - A
Chemistry - A
Music - A
English Language - A
English Literature - B
Geography - B
Business studies - B
Spanish - B

I'm going to remark Lit (5 UMS off A) and spanish (6 UMS off an A). Do you reckon i have a chance of getting into medical school??

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 15

DesireToInspire

Would it be worth re-doing my maths GCSE in year12? I missed out on a B by a few UMS marks :frown:

Reply 16

LjWol

Original post by ojj_12

Heyy, I got okay GCSE results but was hoping to do better :frown:

Heyy i not really sure what the requirements are...but well done anyway!! I saw one of your earlier posts about going to st.michaels sixth form- as i'm going there in September i was just wondering if you got a place?? :smile:

Reply 17

Futuredoctor2

Hello,
I got my GCSE results yesterday and I am very dissapointed because i got no A*, and i am now scared that medical schools will reject me.
I got:
Maths A
Biology A
Chemistry A
Geography A
Physics A
English Language A
French A
Music B
German B
English literature B
ICT A
I got an A in a short course subject but that is not counted for, I dont think.
SO overall I got 8A's and 3B's.
I have a feeling its not good enough, compared to those who got 8A* and are applying to medicine. :frown:

Reply 18

Emmaliath

Original post by shabzz

I think that you will find it incredibly hard to get into medicine, however if you do really well at AS (get AAA, for example) then you might still stand a chance. Why don't you have a look on this Wiki http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/wiki/Applying_to_Medical_School_using_your_Strengths to see if any universities have the an entry requirement that you can meet.