Is it possible to do graduate medicine after a music degree
is it possible to do graduate medicine after a music degree?
I have taken french art and music for A level, but to be honest regret not fulfilling my lifelong dream of studying sciences and ultimately medicine. It has been something i wanted to do for a very long time but unfortunately extenuating circumstances meant i only achieved a 6-7 in my combined science gcses and a 6 in maths, which i didnt think was good enough do justify doing science at a level and then medicine. I really regret this. I dont qualify for the gateway to med widening access programs so applied for a music degree this year. I am sure i will enjoy it but my passion lies with medicine. i have thought about doing two science a levels next year (in a year) which would make me qualify for applying to medicine but most med schools want you to have done 3/4 a levels over two years rather than 5 a levels over three years. sorry if this is complicated but i am stressed as i don't want to make the wrong decisions.
i know medicine is extremely rigorous and difficult in the application process and once you get there. I am prepared to work incredibly hard. I just want to know everyones thoughts: is it worth doing a music degree and applying for graduate medicine?
or is it worth doing two science a levels next year and applying for medicine then?
or should i just give up lol
I have taken french art and music for A level, but to be honest regret not fulfilling my lifelong dream of studying sciences and ultimately medicine. It has been something i wanted to do for a very long time but unfortunately extenuating circumstances meant i only achieved a 6-7 in my combined science gcses and a 6 in maths, which i didnt think was good enough do justify doing science at a level and then medicine. I really regret this. I dont qualify for the gateway to med widening access programs so applied for a music degree this year. I am sure i will enjoy it but my passion lies with medicine. i have thought about doing two science a levels next year (in a year) which would make me qualify for applying to medicine but most med schools want you to have done 3/4 a levels over two years rather than 5 a levels over three years. sorry if this is complicated but i am stressed as i don't want to make the wrong decisions.
i know medicine is extremely rigorous and difficult in the application process and once you get there. I am prepared to work incredibly hard. I just want to know everyones thoughts: is it worth doing a music degree and applying for graduate medicine?
or is it worth doing two science a levels next year and applying for medicine then?
or should i just give up lol
Original post by jadorelamour
is it possible to do graduate medicine after a music degree?
I have taken french art and music for A level, but to be honest regret not fulfilling my lifelong dream of studying sciences and ultimately medicine. It has been something i wanted to do for a very long time but unfortunately extenuating circumstances meant i only achieved a 6-7 in my combined science gcses and a 6 in maths, which i didnt think was good enough do justify doing science at a level and then medicine. I really regret this. I dont qualify for the gateway to med widening access programs so applied for a music degree this year. I am sure i will enjoy it but my passion lies with medicine. i have thought about doing two science a levels next year (in a year) which would make me qualify for applying to medicine but most med schools want you to have done 3/4 a levels over two years rather than 5 a levels over three years. sorry if this is complicated but i am stressed as i don't want to make the wrong decisions.
i know medicine is extremely rigorous and difficult in the application process and once you get there. I am prepared to work incredibly hard. I just want to know everyones thoughts: is it worth doing a music degree and applying for graduate medicine?
or is it worth doing two science a levels next year and applying for medicine then?
or should i just give up lol
I have taken french art and music for A level, but to be honest regret not fulfilling my lifelong dream of studying sciences and ultimately medicine. It has been something i wanted to do for a very long time but unfortunately extenuating circumstances meant i only achieved a 6-7 in my combined science gcses and a 6 in maths, which i didnt think was good enough do justify doing science at a level and then medicine. I really regret this. I dont qualify for the gateway to med widening access programs so applied for a music degree this year. I am sure i will enjoy it but my passion lies with medicine. i have thought about doing two science a levels next year (in a year) which would make me qualify for applying to medicine but most med schools want you to have done 3/4 a levels over two years rather than 5 a levels over three years. sorry if this is complicated but i am stressed as i don't want to make the wrong decisions.
i know medicine is extremely rigorous and difficult in the application process and once you get there. I am prepared to work incredibly hard. I just want to know everyones thoughts: is it worth doing a music degree and applying for graduate medicine?
or is it worth doing two science a levels next year and applying for medicine then?
or should i just give up lol
Very short version: don't do a random degree with the sole aim of GEM. It's more competitive and way more expensive.
Resit some a levels, get the grades you need, and then go for it. If you get the right a levels with good grades you can still get in. There are universities that don't really look at GCSEs, and what university you go for doesn't matter for clinical medicine.
Slightly longer version: doing a music degree you have a genuine interest in and will equip you with marketable skills for life is not a bad thing. This is where your experience is, this is what you know and this is what you're good at. It doesn't sound like a random degree, it sounds like one you wanted to do. It could be a good option for you and I very much doubt that it would be a random choice.
I'd encourage you to really think about what your motivation is. Did you read something? See something on TV? Have a really positive experience with the health service? All of the above? What did you do next? What have you done to develop and explore your interest? Have you done the work that allows you to reflect if you'd be a good match for this career? Do you think you have the skills and qualities required for a doctor and can you evidence this? What provision are you making to ensure that you get those A level grades in sciences? How are you going to afford to do them? Were sciences disproportionately affected in your GCSEs compared to your other subjects? If so, what is your plan for closing the gap?
These are the questions that you need to ask yourself and find answers to before embarking on a very uncertain educational pathway that could leave you a year down the line with no further options than you currently have. Take the worst case scenario: say you do your two science A levels and you didn't get the grades you needed. This would put you a year behind your peers. You take another year to resit, it still doesn't go well. You're now two years behind your peers and still at least 3 years away from getting a degree, if that is what you want. What would be your plan then? How far would you take it to do medicine? How much time of your early adulthood would you be willing to dedicate to the process of trying to get in? Is it all or nothing or is there a point where you draw a line and move on to something where you get to experience success and professional development and move on with your career? Again, questions and conversations to have with yourself. What would plans B, C and D look like?
I'd encourage you to look at alternatives to medicine that may be accessible to you already, that might be a better fit, and may be a better platform for getting into medicine later if you chose to do it down the line. Medicine is so visible and high profile (alongside nursing) that I do wonder if you've even considered alternatives to that doctor-nurse binary. A music and language interest would be a great base for professions such as Speech and Language Therapy or Occupational Therapy. These degrees would allow you to have a clinical role on graduating and may play more to your strengths as a person right now.
This isn't a reflection or a judgement on you. Remember, I only have what you have said to go on. But as you're not coming at medicine from the standard two sciences + another subject background, given that you're coming to this later than many (though certainly not all) school leavers come to the process, you will need a plan and you will have to contend with things that a traditional applicant would not have to. And I mean a really practical plan. Remember, taking A levels privately, sitting entrance tests and accounting for resits could end up costing you between £3k and £5k minimum (I've done it just for one A level and I can't personally think of a way I could have done the bare minimum that I needed to do more cheaply). It is also at least a year and likely two years of your life as the majority of people applying to medicine don't get in first time. In the grand scheme of things, maybe it's not much and it becomes trivial in time if it's what you really want but you will need a practical way to accomplish all of that.
I'd encourage you to really think about what your motivation is. Did you read something? See something on TV? Have a really positive experience with the health service? All of the above? What did you do next? What have you done to develop and explore your interest? Have you done the work that allows you to reflect if you'd be a good match for this career? Do you think you have the skills and qualities required for a doctor and can you evidence this? What provision are you making to ensure that you get those A level grades in sciences? How are you going to afford to do them? Were sciences disproportionately affected in your GCSEs compared to your other subjects? If so, what is your plan for closing the gap?
These are the questions that you need to ask yourself and find answers to before embarking on a very uncertain educational pathway that could leave you a year down the line with no further options than you currently have. Take the worst case scenario: say you do your two science A levels and you didn't get the grades you needed. This would put you a year behind your peers. You take another year to resit, it still doesn't go well. You're now two years behind your peers and still at least 3 years away from getting a degree, if that is what you want. What would be your plan then? How far would you take it to do medicine? How much time of your early adulthood would you be willing to dedicate to the process of trying to get in? Is it all or nothing or is there a point where you draw a line and move on to something where you get to experience success and professional development and move on with your career? Again, questions and conversations to have with yourself. What would plans B, C and D look like?
I'd encourage you to look at alternatives to medicine that may be accessible to you already, that might be a better fit, and may be a better platform for getting into medicine later if you chose to do it down the line. Medicine is so visible and high profile (alongside nursing) that I do wonder if you've even considered alternatives to that doctor-nurse binary. A music and language interest would be a great base for professions such as Speech and Language Therapy or Occupational Therapy. These degrees would allow you to have a clinical role on graduating and may play more to your strengths as a person right now.
This isn't a reflection or a judgement on you. Remember, I only have what you have said to go on. But as you're not coming at medicine from the standard two sciences + another subject background, given that you're coming to this later than many (though certainly not all) school leavers come to the process, you will need a plan and you will have to contend with things that a traditional applicant would not have to. And I mean a really practical plan. Remember, taking A levels privately, sitting entrance tests and accounting for resits could end up costing you between £3k and £5k minimum (I've done it just for one A level and I can't personally think of a way I could have done the bare minimum that I needed to do more cheaply). It is also at least a year and likely two years of your life as the majority of people applying to medicine don't get in first time. In the grand scheme of things, maybe it's not much and it becomes trivial in time if it's what you really want but you will need a practical way to accomplish all of that.
Original post by jadorelamour
is it possible to do graduate medicine after a music degree?
I have taken french art and music for A level, but to be honest regret not fulfilling my lifelong dream of studying sciences and ultimately medicine. It has been something i wanted to do for a very long time but unfortunately extenuating circumstances meant i only achieved a 6-7 in my combined science gcses and a 6 in maths, which i didnt think was good enough do justify doing science at a level and then medicine. I really regret this. I dont qualify for the gateway to med widening access programs so applied for a music degree this year. I am sure i will enjoy it but my passion lies with medicine. i have thought about doing two science a levels next year (in a year) which would make me qualify for applying to medicine but most med schools want you to have done 3/4 a levels over two years rather than 5 a levels over three years. sorry if this is complicated but i am stressed as i don't want to make the wrong decisions.
i know medicine is extremely rigorous and difficult in the application process and once you get there. I am prepared to work incredibly hard. I just want to know everyones thoughts: is it worth doing a music degree and applying for graduate medicine?
or is it worth doing two science a levels next year and applying for medicine then?
or should i just give up lol
I have taken french art and music for A level, but to be honest regret not fulfilling my lifelong dream of studying sciences and ultimately medicine. It has been something i wanted to do for a very long time but unfortunately extenuating circumstances meant i only achieved a 6-7 in my combined science gcses and a 6 in maths, which i didnt think was good enough do justify doing science at a level and then medicine. I really regret this. I dont qualify for the gateway to med widening access programs so applied for a music degree this year. I am sure i will enjoy it but my passion lies with medicine. i have thought about doing two science a levels next year (in a year) which would make me qualify for applying to medicine but most med schools want you to have done 3/4 a levels over two years rather than 5 a levels over three years. sorry if this is complicated but i am stressed as i don't want to make the wrong decisions.
i know medicine is extremely rigorous and difficult in the application process and once you get there. I am prepared to work incredibly hard. I just want to know everyones thoughts: is it worth doing a music degree and applying for graduate medicine?
or is it worth doing two science a levels next year and applying for medicine then?
or should i just give up lol
If you truly want to do medicine - then don't do a music degree. As has already been mentioned the route becomes much harder once you've done a degree for many reasons (lack of funding for non-grad entry degrees, and skeleton funding for grad entry, much more competitive applicant pool both in terms of competition ratio but also the quality of the competition i.e people who may have been working in healthcare for years, and also prolonging time in education).
There are ways to get into medical school from having not-so-great/incorrect school-leaving qualifications in which others on here will be more informed than I am. But if you do a separate degree first it's possible you preclude yourself from ever getting into med school
Have you considered a foundation year to study biomedical sciences or something similar? I know someone who did this at the University of Liverpool, at least.
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