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Fifth choice on UCAS application for a Medicine applicant

Hi

I will be applying to study medicine and I am currently on a gap year after leaving college. I know that we are only allowed four choices on the UCAS application but I am unsure if I should leave the fifth choice blank or apply for another course that will eventually lead me to study medicine in the future. Any advice please?

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Most people seem to go for something like Biomed or Pharmacy.
Reply 2
biomedical science seems like the smart move for if you get rejected this year.
Reply 3
Original post by returnmigrant
Most people seem to go for something like Biomed or Pharmacy.


Original post by Occams Chainsaw
biomedical science seems like the smart move for if you get rejected this year.


I was thinking of Biomedical Science as well, but I don't know if I should apply at a local university or at one of the universities I will be applying for Medicine.
Also Pharmacy is a whole new aspect of healthcare so I have no idea why medicine applicant choose that.
Reply 4
Original post by mrhedgehog
I was thinking of Biomedical Science as well, but I don't know if I should apply at a local university or at one of the universities I will be applying for Medicine.
Also Pharmacy is a whole new aspect of healthcare so I have no idea why medicine applicant choose that.


I'd go for one of the ones you are applying to study medicine to, to be honest (lots of 'to's in that sentence) Do you really want to be living in your hometown for another 3 years?
Reply 5
Original post by Occams Chainsaw
I'd go for one of the ones you are applying to study medicine to, to be honest (lots of 'to's in that sentence) Do you really want to be living in your hometown for another 3 years?


No I wouldn't like to be staying here for longer, but if I look at the financial side of things I will have to pay accommodation fees for a course that I don't even want to do.
You dont have to put any other choice down at all if you dont want to.
You can just leave it blank.

And if you have no intention of doing another subject under any circumstances, its silly adding 'something' if you'd never actually go and do it.
Is it possible to apply to smth totally unrelated, such as Law/English/Film, these sorts of things? I'd actually go. Keeping my options open or w/e.
I left it blank. I figured that I hadn't really looked into anything other than medicine and I'd rather take a gap year and fully investigate biochem or reapply with more of a backup plan. The only person I know well who was rejected ended up turning down his 5th choice.
Reply 9
Original post by mrhedgehog
I was thinking of Biomedical Science as well, but I don't know if I should apply at a local university or at one of the universities I will be applying for Medicine.
Also Pharmacy is a whole new aspect of healthcare so I have no idea why medicine applicant choose that.

It can be dangerous to apply for a university you're already applying to for medicine, for another course.
A friend of mine that applied for medicine 2 cycles ago applied for Medicine and Pharmacy, both at the same university. His first response from a university was from this university- a rejection for Pharmacy. Their argument for rejecting him was on the basis that he was applying for medicine; why would they consider him for pharmacy when they were considering him for medicine?
So, straight up, his insurance choice was gone. Further, he didn't receive an offer for Medicine from that university, nor from any others. Think twice about applying to two courses at the same university.

Think about it like this:
Universities can't see what other courses you have applied for, nor at which other universities. However, if you have applied for two different courses at one university, they can definitely see that.

Hope this helps.
Reply 10
I was wondering what uni's have the option of swapping to medicine after the first year? Newcastle and Leeds do, who else?


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Reply 11
Original post by maryamnc
I was wondering what uni's have the option of swapping to medicine after the first year? Newcastle and Leeds do, who else?


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Yes me too, I think Exeter does as well, the best way to find out is to check every university that does both courses.
Original post by mrhedgehog
Yes me too, I think Exeter does as well, the best way to find out is to check every university that does both courses.


Not every uni that does biomed allows transfer to its medicine course. Leeds's transfer option, interestingly, is from a course called 'clinical sciences' at Bradford University.
But if your personal statement talks endlessly about your burning desire to study medicine, they can be fairly sure you're applying for medicine elsewhere... A lot of pharmacy and biomedical sciences departments are used to getting applications from prospective medics, and frequently give out offers to them.

I'm applying for medicine and biomedical sciences at Newcastle, due to the fact that the biomed course offers a transfer to medicine for the top x% of students. This means I'll have a backup that could lead on to medicine that way or through GEM in case I don't get AAA at A2. Since Newcastle's biomed course actually offers a transfer to medicine, doesn't that show that they welcome applications from people who are also applying for medicine? I seriously doubt applying to 2 courses at the same uni like this where one is often used as a backup for the other will affect my application, but the way I see it, if anything they might see that I really want to go to Newcastle and view that as a positive

Original post by chapmouse
It can be dangerous to apply for a university you're already applying to for medicine, for another course.
A friend of mine that applied for medicine 2 cycles ago applied for Medicine and Pharmacy, both at the same university. His first response from a university was from this university- a rejection for Pharmacy. Their argument for rejecting him was on the basis that he was applying for medicine; why would they consider him for pharmacy when they were considering him for medicine?
So, straight up, his insurance choice was gone. Further, he didn't receive an offer for Medicine from that university, nor from any others. Think twice about applying to two courses at the same university.

Think about it like this:
Universities can't see what other courses you have applied for, nor at which other universities. However, if you have applied for two different courses at one university, they can definitely see that.

Hope this helps.
Reply 14
Original post by MrSupernova
But if your personal statement talks endlessly about your burning desire to study medicine, they can be fairly sure you're applying for medicine elsewhere... A lot of pharmacy and biomedical sciences departments are used to getting applications from prospective medics, and frequently give out offers to them.

I'm applying for medicine and biomedical sciences at Newcastle, due to the fact that the biomed course offers a transfer to medicine for the top x% of students. This means I'll have a backup that could lead on to medicine that way or through GEM in case I don't get AAA at A2. Since Newcastle's biomed course actually offers a transfer to medicine, doesn't that show that they welcome applications from people who are also applying for medicine? I seriously doubt applying to 2 courses at the same uni like this where one is often used as a backup for the other will affect my application, but the way I see it, if anything they might see that I really want to go to Newcastle and view that as a positive


it doesnt makes any difference whether you apply for 2 uni's, I am doing Newcastle as well for both but only concern is entry requirements are AAA-AAB, what if they offer me AAA. If I got AAA I'd go for my medicine offer (and if I didn't have one I'd reapply) so my insurance is the same as my firm? How does that work haha


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Original post by maryamnc
it doesnt makes any difference whether you apply for 2 uni's, I am doing Newcastle as well for both but only concern is entry requirements are AAA-AAB, what if they offer me AAA. If I got AAA I'd go for my medicine offer (and if I didn't have one I'd reapply) so my insurance is the same as my firm? How does that work haha


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I'm just hoping the biomed course would be more likely to take us on even if we missed the offer by a grade or 2 haha, since they don't have a strictly-controlled number of places like they do for medicine
Original post by MrSupernova
But if your personal statement talks endlessly about your burning desire to study medicine, they can be fairly sure you're applying for medicine elsewhere... A lot of pharmacy and biomedical sciences departments are used to getting applications from prospective medics, and frequently give out offers to them.

I'm applying for medicine and biomedical sciences at Newcastle, due to the fact that the biomed course offers a transfer to medicine for the top x% of students. This means I'll have a backup that could lead on to medicine that way or through GEM in case I don't get AAA at A2. Since Newcastle's biomed course actually offers a transfer to medicine, doesn't that show that they welcome applications from people who are also applying for medicine? I seriously doubt applying to 2 courses at the same uni like this where one is often used as a backup for the other will affect my application, but the way I see it, if anything they might see that I really want to go to Newcastle and view that as a positive


Of course that's the case. To be honest, you'll seldom find someone on a biomedical science course who chose that course as their first choice.
The thing is, if you fail to meet the criteria for medicine, it should follow that you also do not meet the criteria to join a course that is a route into medicine. It seems risky to use 2/5 of your choices on a place that will either twice accept you, or twice reject you.
If you want a course that offers you a good chance of GEM, look at Warwick. They don't offer undergraduate medicine, but they do offer an overwhelming priority to their graduate-entry course for their biomed students. So I would recommend that.
Original post by chapmouse
Of course that's the case. To be honest, you'll seldom find someone on a biomedical science course who chose that course as their first choice.
The thing is, if you fail to meet the criteria for medicine, it should follow that you also do not meet the criteria to join a course that is a route into medicine. It seems risky to use 2/5 of your choices on a place that will either twice accept you, or twice reject you.
If you want a course that offers you a good chance of GEM, look at Warwick. They don't offer undergraduate medicine, but they do offer an overwhelming priority to their graduate-entry course for their biomed students. So I would recommend that.


I think it's the interview that people usually mess up on, especially somewhere like Newcastle where there are ~2.5 people interviewed for every offer given out. So if you look good on paper, like someone I know who was rejected after interview for medicine at Newcastle but accepted for biomed there in the same cycle, you should be fine for the other course. I can't see the medical school looking down on you for applying for a backup course at the same uni (they all specifically say it won't disadvantage you), so it's only really possibly risking 1/5 choices imo. That's an interesting point about Warwick and GEM though; I'll definitely look into it.
Reply 18
Original post by chapmouse
Of course that's the case. To be honest, you'll seldom find someone on a biomedical science course who chose that course as their first choice.
The thing is, if you fail to meet the criteria for medicine, it should follow that you also do not meet the criteria to join a course that is a route into medicine. It seems risky to use 2/5 of your choices on a place that will either twice accept you, or twice reject you.
If you want a course that offers you a good chance of GEM, look at Warwick. They don't offer undergraduate medicine, but they do offer an overwhelming priority to their graduate-entry course for their biomed students. So I would recommend that.


I like the prospect of Warwick, I think I will apply for the Biomedicine course at Warwick as my 5th choice and then hope to be transferred onto the graduate-entry course. :smile:
Reply 19
Original post by mrhedgehog
I like the prospect of Warwick, I think I will apply for the Biomedicine course at Warwick as my 5th choice and then hope to be transferred onto the graduate-entry course. :smile:


What are the requirements for Warwick biomed?

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