Hi all,
I have what feels like a v.difficult decision to make about medical school, and I'd appreciate any input/considerations that I may not have thought of.
My situation: I have an offer from Exeter's A100 course, which is great. I applied to some GEM courses too this year, with Swansea being my preferred choice as it's is local to my family/a good school/a 4yr course - but didn't get any offers for the GEM options.
I am a mature applicant, late 30s, currently living in Cardiff. My original plan was to buy a house/flat near to the university for my wife and I to live in while studying. But covid has made that essentially impossible to do before the course starts in September. My wife has some health issues that make working not possible for her, so any mortgage would be based on my salary while I still working.
If I go to Exeter this year, my wife and I will end up renting for the duration of the 5 years, which is something we really don't want to do. Our circumstances mean that going back to renting will have a big impact on us financially and may making funding the degree not possible.
So, I see us having two options:
1. Ask Exeter about deferring till next year and look to buy a place when the covid situation settles down.
2. Turn down Exeter's offer and apply again next year to the GEM courses, with Swansea being our ideal one.
Turning down Exeter's offer feels like a horrible thing to do given how hard it is to get any place on a med degree, but going to Swansea would be so much better for my wife and I from a financial POV, plus having family close to support my wife with her health issues.
BUT there is obviously no guarantee I would get onto the GEM courses, which are even more competitive, so turning down Exeter could be turning down my only chance of doing medicine.
I'm trying to decide what is best for my family and me. Ask Exeter to defer for a year and accept that going there will likely be difficult for us for 5 years. Or take a huge gamble and try to get into Swansea, which would make our lives significantly easier, but could never happen.
Sorry for the long ramble! Writing this out has actually been quite helpful to get my thoughts straighter. But I would really appreciate any thoughts or things I may not have considered. Thanks.