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To intercalate or to not intercalate...

Hey there,
I'm a 4th year medical student and im deciding or not to intercalate. I applied to go externally as I really wanted to do global health (which isn't offered at my uni) and I got rejected from release (Cardiff make it hard for u to leave). I don't know whether to suck up another year at Cardiff, despite not liking any of the intercalated courses offered but getting the extra points from intercalation, or waiting and doing a masters further down the line in something I do like i.e. global health. thanks !

Reply 1

nexttime

You'd have to self-fund a masters, is that right? Whereas intercalation will get added to student loan.

Aside from the application points, there's also just how much you want to do it. Some people are really keen to take on the responsibility and get earning, whereas others are keen to prolong uni life. That can only depend on you.

Reply 2

Smile88egc

By the time you get to applying for UK FP it may be that you no longer get additional points for an intercalated degree so make sure you have enough other motivating factors for doing it other than a higher UKFP ranking

Reply 3

esmeelouiza

Original post by Smile88egc

Oh really? They’re gonna scrap the extra points ?

Reply 4

nexttime

Original post by esmeelouiza

Oh really? They’re gonna scrap the extra points ?

There's been a trend against it. Things fall in and out of fashion all the time.

As things stand its still relevant to FPAS, as well as most core training and speciality training applications though.

Reply 5

seaholme

For what it's worth, intercalating was probably my favourite year in many ways. It was really interesting, I had a lot more free time, I actually felt like I was actively doing some science instead of just trying to passively stuff my brain with it, aaaand it was a chance to experience life as a regular Uni student with a more normal timetable. It depends what you intercalate in, but if there's something on offer that interests you, it'll probably be a great experience. Whether that stacks up against finances, an extra year, blah blah, depends on you.