Cambridge Medicine Students and Applicants

I got a letter saying I'm in the Summer Pool, but also got told by the college that they couldn't take me because the university was over its quota for medics, as I missed my IB offer thanks to severe moderation of coursework. Does anyone know if the Summer Pool would still run if they were over quota, or if any medics have got in through it in the past?

c'mon guys, someone give their opinion?

GCSE results in sig. Bio, Chem, Eng HL... Math, French, Econ SL.

My IB school for next year have said that i shouldn't bother applying to Cambridge without the HL Maths (which i doubt i am capable of.)

What does tsr think? Is there any justification for that statement?

I don't want to sound unhelpful but I think you can answer your questions through common sense.
If no colleges have places then the summer pool won't run. However it seems unlikely every college is full as there will probably be an unequal distribution of people missing their offers so I would suggest it will still happen.
Whether or not you'll get an offer who can say, but past occurrences are unlikely to have any bearing on your situation. And in answer to your question, it is almost certain that at some point a medic will have been taken from the summer pool, who, when and to which college though... Are you able to get your coursework remoderated if you believe you were unfairly marked down?

Hey, I'll hopefully be applying for medicine at Queens' or King's for medicine but I was wondering if having an E in critical thinking with a U 38/100 in one module would severely hinder my application and could leed to rejection before interview.. Especially at kings as the applicants to offer ratio was around 11:1..

I achieved 6a* 5a gcse and average 95% in my top three AS subjects with the 4th at 91%.. would it also be worthwhile to stuy 4A levels sciences and maths, all of which I enjoy and retake critical thinking? I'll be predicted 4a* in a2 I hope..

& to back myself up:



(http://www.cam.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/courses/medicine/requirements.html)

so Ashaa yes you can still apply

Thats great thanks.
How bad would my GCSE affect me?
& if you dont mind me asking...what did you get for 1) GCSE's 2) A-levels?

To the med students at Cambridge i have a few questions and I'd be extremely grateful for any crumbs of info. I have been informed that you do full body dissections, is this correct? And do you find it any more useful than normal dissections or prosections? Also what is assessment like? Is it just a mix of OSCEs and normal exams at the end of the year? Or is it continuous or termly? On the intercalated degree or BA course or Part II whatever you want to call it, are your options that wide? Because I've only seen stuff like Natural Sciences. Is something like say, Astrophysics possible? Also I'm a little confused about the course structure. Is it systems based or subject based? Because again, just from looking at the website it doesn't seem to be systems based from my limited knowledge. And how much clinical contact is there in the first two years? Finally, is the workload really that bad and do you regret going to Cambridge even a little?

If you've looked at the website much of this should be evident to you, however:
I think it was, prosections are used to demonstrate specific points but I believe full body dissection gives you a fuller understanding of anatomy and how everything relates to everything else.
Undergraduate assessment is done entirely with end of year exams, no OSCEs. My understanding is that clinical students are assessed with OSCEs through the year.
How wide your options are is debatable, the vast vast majority of students will do a Biological Part II or History and Philosphy of Science or Anthropology. To some extent all of these directly relate to the medicine course. Theoretically you can do any Part II you like but you would have to be able to persuade the university and respective faculties that you would be capable of meeting the standard, something unlikely in your example of astrophysics. Certainly I have a friend a few years above me who did Japanese in his third year.
As you say the course doesn't seem to be systems based, so perhaps its subject based then? Hint: Second year subjects are Pathology, Pharmacology, Neuroscience and Human Reproduction. Worked it out yet?
Clinical contact in your undergraduate years is minimal. Over three years you complete four modules of "Preparing for Patients" this amounts to approximately 11 'days' of patient contact. Some subjects have non patient based clinical sessions (eg. clinically relevant anatomy sessions at Addenbrookes). However there is nothing to stop you organising further clinical work experience for yourself in the holidays, and you will find this quite easy to do once you have the title "medical student".
Finally yes the workload is big, but being a medic is one of the most social subjects at Cambridge and college life can be a good relief from work. To use a tired cliche, we work hard and play hard. I can honestly say, even in my darkest hours of exam term, I have never regretted going to Cambridge.

The website isn't particularly detailed but looking at the prospectus I suppose some of it could be worked out. I've also received conflciting information which is why i just wanted to clarify. Thanks a lot anyway, it's all very helpful.