A level advice - all sciences

Hi all,

i have chosen my a levels and they are;

Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Maths, Further Maths. As u can c, not very balanced with 5 sciences.

Will it affect my chances of getting into medical school, espically the top ones if i only hav sciences for a level. :confused:

Reply 1

Sarky

18

alexandersonuk

Hi all,

i have chosen my a levels and they are;

Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Maths, Further Maths. As u can c, not very balanced with 5 sciences.

Will it affect my chances of getting into medical school, espically the top ones if i only hav sciences for a level. :confused:

Hi,

I don't know what you mean about "the top ones" because everyone has their own opinions. All medical schools are regulated by the GMC and have to meet a certain standard and the best medical school is the one that has the facilities and education that you want most.

Some schools do prefer students do apply with an arts/humanties subject as it shows they have a greater breadth in skills, however this is only some medical schools and my advice would be to do your research and see which schools don't express a preference.

Good Luck!

Reply 2

whitecloud

i know ucl prejudice for people with an arts/humanities subject. some medical schools may be concerned about ppl doing both maths and further maths as i was asked why i didn't go on to do a maths-related subject at uni in all my medical interviews. but as long as you can prove that u are a well balanced person with plenty of interests outside of science and a sincere enthusiasm for medicine, then it shouldn't damage ur chances at getting into medical school.

Reply 3

alexandersonuk

OP

thanx whitecloud,

i think studying medicine at oxford wud be v kool, but like every says its really hard to get in. These cambridge people came to my school and the admissions tutor said that my options are ok, does anyone know if oxford is the same?

Reply 4

hornblower

6

alexandersonuk

Hi all,

i have chosen my a levels and they are;

Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Maths, Further Maths. As u can c, not very balanced with 5 sciences.

Will it affect my chances of getting into medical school, espically the top ones if i only hav sciences for a level. :confused:

Don't worry. Yours is a killer combination!

Reply 5

the phatcow

for most Unis what you don't do is secondary to what you do, i.e as long as you do the subjects they require (which you do!)then there isn't a problem

Reply 6

Fluffy

15

Also the 'right' A-Levles really don't mean that much if you don't supplement then with relevant work experience...

Reply 7

whitecloud

those subjects should be fine for oxford. don't be put off applying because it's difficult, since they're looking particularly at how people think and what they understand about medicine and being a doctor more than what they know and what subjects they're doing.

if u're keen on getting in, then ur subjects might help u in the bmat. i know that i couldn't do any of the physics questions, having not done it for a-level. oxford are very keen on bmat results in choosing people for interview, but i have heard stories of them rejecting people without interview despite getting high bmat scores. so they're not the be all and end all, and everything else about ur application does matter. so focus more on work experience as fluffly says.

just make sure that the subjects u choose, are ones that u enjoy. u're much better off tailoring ur a-level subjects around urself than for oxford.

Reply 8

Hoofbeat

14

whitecloud

i know ucl prejudice for people with an arts/humanities subject. some medical schools may be concerned about ppl doing both maths and further maths as i was asked why i didn't go on to do a maths-related subject at uni in all my medical interviews. but as long as you can prove that u are a well balanced person with plenty of interests outside of science and a sincere enthusiasm for medicine, then it shouldn't damage ur chances at getting into medical school.

My mate got into UCL for this oct with A2's in Bio, Chem and Maths (altho admitdly she did take German AS). I don't think many of the Uni's really care about your other subjects (make sure you can justify your chocie if it's a strange one) as they'd much rather see you have bucket loads of experience. But don't just spend a week in a hospital as everyone's done that. My mate worked in hospital, old people's home, dentists (i think!), with brownies, GP's and was part of the school's charity committee, which showed her allround commitment to helping people

Reply 9

samd

10

alexandersonuk

Hi all,

i have chosen my a levels and they are;

Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Maths, Further Maths. As u can c, not very balanced with 5 sciences.

Will it affect my chances of getting into medical school, espically the top ones if i only hav sciences for a level. :confused:

I have applied to do exactly the same next year.

You aiming for all A*s this year?

If so we could be the same person.

Reply 10

Bitewing

9

I got asked in my interview why I'd chosen to take all the sciences instead of a range of subjects. I waffled on about how diverse they were, and doing subjects that I enjoyed and found interesting etc. and I got an offer, so I doubt it matters too much!