Original post by Asentrix
Hi, I've sat my gcses and waiting for results.
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
If you’re applying in Year 13 with predicted grades, no I wouldn’t count on that. I got a 6 instead of a 7 in maths and physics and Nottingham (who asks for a 7 in either maths or physics) said they’d reject me. If you’re applying after you have your actual A Level grades on a gap year, ask the universities first but there is more chance, as I got A*A*A (but it was the covid year we got given grades) and Nottingham then said they’d forgive me that GCSE grade. It is important to note with vet med they only want you to achieve their minimum grades, exceeding them does not place you any higher than a candidate who does get just the minimum, so your GCSE grades will likely be fine if you think you’re getting roughly 7s except maybe for Cambridge. The GCSE requirements for each university varies, for example Bristol I think only ask for a 4 in English and Maths, but I think the general consensus is to strive for at least five 7s and to try get 7s in English, maths, biology, chemistry and physics for the most “safe” position. Apply strategically as in do not apply to any vet school you don’t reach the minimum for unless you ask them otherwise and they clearly make an exception (even then, proceed with caution) and if you don’t get good enough GCSEs, resit them when you are in Year 12 - it’ll be worth it.
If you’re curious, I got 9s in Biology and English language, 8s in French, English literature and religious studies, A* in Polish, A in business studies, 7 in chemistry and history, 6s in maths and physics. Then A*s in biology and psychology, A in chemistry - choosing biology and chemistry for A Levels is probably the most important thing you can do. I got the 4 week (2 week clinical 2 week non-clinical) work experience which was minimum at the time the first time I applied, I got all rejections, I took a gap year and reapplied with over 12 weeks of work experience and got 1 offer from Liverpool, and I’ve just finished first year and have passed to go into second year. I do think work experience is really important too as that is what forms the basis of your application forms and interviews.
When I applied my GCSE's were 4A's (biology, history, physics, english lit), 4B's (chemistry, maths, english language and RE) and an E in French.
Definitely the higher your GCSE's are the more competitive your application but I wouldn't write yourself off based on GCSE's alone. Theres such a ridiculously big vet shortage at the moment - and the reasons for this may have something to do with the type selected into vet school to begin with - if your work experience is robust, your A levels good and you interview well I would still say there is a chance.
Definitely the higher your GCSE's are the more competitive your application but I wouldn't write yourself off based on GCSE's alone. Theres such a ridiculously big vet shortage at the moment - and the reasons for this may have something to do with the type selected into vet school to begin with - if your work experience is robust, your A levels good and you interview well I would still say there is a chance.
Original post by TheMixedVet
When I applied my GCSE's were 4A's (biology, history, physics, english lit), 4B's (chemistry, maths, english language and RE) and an E in French.
May I know what university you applied to?
And thank you for the reassurance!! Alot of people who apply to vet med always have straight 9s for gcse so I've always thought I'm likely to be rejected but it's nice to know that they won't write me off completely just bc of gcses.
Original post by RambleAmple
I took a gap year and reapplied with over 12 weeks of work experience and got 1 offer from Liverpool
Do you think taking a gap year is worth it to get more work experience?
Also if I have to retake anything, would you reccomend doing it in y12 or a gap year after y13?
Original post by Asentrix
Do you think taking a gap year is worth it to get more work experience?
Also if I have to retake anything, would you reccomend doing it in y12 or a gap year after y13?
Also if I have to retake anything, would you reccomend doing it in y12 or a gap year after y13?
Hi there.
You have some great advice above but I'll tag @aliaa03 who is an prospective vet med student who took a gap year and could advise further about resits. @Nessie162 could also provide some more great advice.
Gap years can be very useful to gain more experience, develop useful skills and strengthen your application. Best wishes.
(edited 2 years ago)
Original post by Asentrix
Do you think taking a gap year is worth it to get more work experience?
Also if I have to retake anything, would you reccomend doing it in y12 or a gap year after y13?
Also if I have to retake anything, would you reccomend doing it in y12 or a gap year after y13?
For retaking GCSEs I'd do it in Year 12, that means even if your application is not what you'd 100% like in terms of work experience etc you can still apply (even if it's just to get some experience of the application processes) and stand a good chance. If you end up needing to retake A Levels I'd do it in a gap year. And I think gap years are worth taking if you want them and obviously do give you much more time to do work experience, however I do think you can still do plenty of work experience between now and Year 13 when you apply as there's so much time for you - just be proactive and start planning and contacting places in advance now. I only had the minimum by Year 13 because I found it harder to get work experience (now I'm better at asking and calling etc) and I also had a couple foot surgeries which messed up quite a few of my planned placements. I'd say to aim for applying in Year 13 if you can, research all the requirements really well (there's options of gateway etc you can look into if you must) and even if you can't apply to 4 unis try it as 1 you never know you might get in (and if you just wanted a gap year anyway most unis let you defer) and 2 cracking the application process has helped me a lot the second time I applied so the experience might help you.
Original post by Asentrix
Hi, I've sat my gcses and waiting for results.
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
hey ! (thanks for the tag @TriplexA )
well done on completing your GCSE's
they're stressful asf !unfortunately no matter how well you perform at A level, you need to fulfil the minimum GCSE requirements that each vet school asks for. There are a couple of exceptions to this such as Bristol that only ask for a 4 in maths but I really would not rely on that as that extremely limits the no. of vet schools you can apply to. The usual requirement that I've seen schools like Surrey, RVC and Nottingham ask for is five grade 7's including science, i.e if you did combined science // double award you need a 7-7, or if you did triple/ single sciences you need a 7 in all 3 sciences.
when I applied the first time I had a 7-6 in science and a 5 in maths, my teacher told me not to bother about those grades and focus on my A levels, however when I rang the vet schools they said I'd be rejected for not having the correct GCSE's regardless of my A levels/ predicted grades on UCAS, so I resat all the sciences + maths and then applied with the correct grades achieved. I wouldn't throw away any of your revision stuff yet just to be on the safe side, as you'll need to resit the science if you don't get at least a 7.
you don't need top grades though for your GCSE's to get an "advantage" over other applicants, as stated on their websites, to decide which applicants get invited for an interview they do an initial shortlisting where they go through and see who met the minimum requirements, like all the work experience and 7's in science and at least 4 other subjects. if you have got the correct grades they'll email you a questionnaire or SJT, it varies with each vet school, but basically if you got all 7's and another applicant had all 9's, the latter has no advantage over you as you both met the requirements.
initially when I applied I had a 5 in maths, 7-6 in combined science, a 6 in drama, 5 in Spanish, 9's in business and English lang + lit and a 7 in geography. I applied with the science and maths grades as "pending" on UCAS, which indicates to them that you're resitting, I then emailed over the certificates to each vet school once I received my results and had an 8-8 in science and an 8 in maths.
although I didn't get all 8's or all 9's and had a couple of grade 5 and 6's, I did manage to get all 4 interviews that year, so it really doesn't matter what you get as long as you reach their minimum required grades.
hope this is helpful and good luck with your application !!
(edited 2 years ago)
Original post by aliaa03
hey ! (thanks for the tag @TriplexA )
well done on completing your GCSE's they're stressful asf !
unfortunately no matter how well you perform at A level, you need to fulfil the minimum GCSE requirements that each vet school asks for. There are a couple of exceptions to this such as Bristol that only ask for a 4 in maths but I really would not rely on that as that extremely limits the no. of vet schools you can apply to. The usual requirement that I've seen schools like Surrey, RVC and Nottingham ask for is five grade 7's including science, i.e if you did combined science // double award you need a 7-7, or if you did triple/ single sciences you need a 7 in all 3 sciences.
when I applied the first time I had a 7-6 in science and a 5 in maths, my teacher told me not to bother about those grades and focus on my A levels, however when I rang the vet schools they said I'd be rejected for not having the correct GCSE's regardless of my A levels/ predicted grades on UCAS, so I resat all the sciences + maths and then applied with the correct grades achieved. I wouldn't throw away any of your revision stuff yet just to be on the safe side, as you'll need to resit the science if you don't get at least a 7.
you don't need top grades though for your GCSE's to get an "advantage" over other applicants, as stated on their websites, to decide which applicants get invited for an interview they do an initial shortlisting where they go through and see who met the minimum requirements, like all the work experience and 7's in science and at least 4 other subjects. if you have got the correct grades they'll email you a questionnaire or SJT, it varies with each vet school, but basically if you got all 7's and another applicant had all 9's, the latter has no advantage over you as you both met the requirements.
initially when I applied I had a 5 in maths, 7-6 in combined science, a 6 in drama, 5 in Spanish, 9's in business and English lang + lit and a 7 in geography. I applied with the science and maths grades as "pending" on UCAS, which indicates to them that you're resitting, I then emailed over the certificates to each vet school once I received my results and had an 8-8 in science and an 8 in maths.
although I didn't get all 8's or all 9's and had a couple of grade 5 and 6's, I did manage to get all 4 interviews that year, so it really doesn't matter what you get as long as you reach their minimum required grades.
hope this is helpful and good luck with your application !!
well done on completing your GCSE's
they're stressful asf !unfortunately no matter how well you perform at A level, you need to fulfil the minimum GCSE requirements that each vet school asks for. There are a couple of exceptions to this such as Bristol that only ask for a 4 in maths but I really would not rely on that as that extremely limits the no. of vet schools you can apply to. The usual requirement that I've seen schools like Surrey, RVC and Nottingham ask for is five grade 7's including science, i.e if you did combined science // double award you need a 7-7, or if you did triple/ single sciences you need a 7 in all 3 sciences.
when I applied the first time I had a 7-6 in science and a 5 in maths, my teacher told me not to bother about those grades and focus on my A levels, however when I rang the vet schools they said I'd be rejected for not having the correct GCSE's regardless of my A levels/ predicted grades on UCAS, so I resat all the sciences + maths and then applied with the correct grades achieved. I wouldn't throw away any of your revision stuff yet just to be on the safe side, as you'll need to resit the science if you don't get at least a 7.
you don't need top grades though for your GCSE's to get an "advantage" over other applicants, as stated on their websites, to decide which applicants get invited for an interview they do an initial shortlisting where they go through and see who met the minimum requirements, like all the work experience and 7's in science and at least 4 other subjects. if you have got the correct grades they'll email you a questionnaire or SJT, it varies with each vet school, but basically if you got all 7's and another applicant had all 9's, the latter has no advantage over you as you both met the requirements.
initially when I applied I had a 5 in maths, 7-6 in combined science, a 6 in drama, 5 in Spanish, 9's in business and English lang + lit and a 7 in geography. I applied with the science and maths grades as "pending" on UCAS, which indicates to them that you're resitting, I then emailed over the certificates to each vet school once I received my results and had an 8-8 in science and an 8 in maths.
although I didn't get all 8's or all 9's and had a couple of grade 5 and 6's, I did manage to get all 4 interviews that year, so it really doesn't matter what you get as long as you reach their minimum required grades.
hope this is helpful and good luck with your application !!
hi, this is really helpful actually!! i think i may get 7-6 in science too (maths ill most likely have a 7 in though) so i was a bit worried i may not be able to take both bio and chem (as my school requires 7-7 to do 2 sciences)
what alevels did you take?
also did you retake gcses in y12 or did u do a gap year?
what you said about people w 9s having no more advantage than people w the minimum gcse grades required, does this apply to alevels too? most of the min. grades are AAA so if someone was to get A*A*A* would they have an advantage over the former applicant or no?
thank uu
Original post by Asentrix
hi, this is really helpful actually!! i think i may get 7-6 in science too (maths ill most likely have a 7 in though) so i was a bit worried i may not be able to take both bio and chem (as my school requires 7-7 to do 2 sciences)
what alevels did you take?
also did you retake gcses in y12 or did u do a gap year?
what you said about people w 9s having no more advantage than people w the minimum gcse grades required, does this apply to alevels too? most of the min. grades are AAA so if someone was to get A*A*A* would they have an advantage over the former applicant or no?
thank uu
what alevels did you take?
also did you retake gcses in y12 or did u do a gap year?
what you said about people w 9s having no more advantage than people w the minimum gcse grades required, does this apply to alevels too? most of the min. grades are AAA so if someone was to get A*A*A* would they have an advantage over the former applicant or no?
thank uu
i retook my GCSE’s in year 12 but as it was a “covid” year where the exams were cancelled in may // june 2020 they ran a special exam series in the autumn in November for resits where i sat my sciences again (but usually this isn’t available, and you’d need to sit the science in summer instead of autumn) and then i resat the maths in january (this is always available to sit, not just in summer)
in terms of A levels it depends where you apply, there’s only 1 vet school where having A*s gives you an advantage over other applicants and that’s cambridge as obviously they’re more academically focused. for the others you can actually see on their admissions statements for the vet course that having A* predictions for your UCAS doesn’t give you any advantage over someone who was predicted A’s instead.
i did biology, chemistry and business alongside an EPQ.
Original post by Asentrix
May I know what university you applied to?
And thank you for the reassurance!! Alot of people who apply to vet med always have straight 9s for gcse so I've always thought I'm likely to be rejected but it's nice to know that they won't write me off completely just bc of gcses.
And thank you for the reassurance!! Alot of people who apply to vet med always have straight 9s for gcse so I've always thought I'm likely to be rejected but it's nice to know that they won't write me off completely just bc of gcses.
I applied in December 2016 for Liverpool, Nottingham, RVC and Surrey.
I received interviews and offers from Liverpool, Nottingham and RVC and a rejection the day after application from Surrey.
Academic achievement is important don't get me wrong - but too much emphasis is placed on it. Having A*'s coming out your ears just makes your first mistake or death hit even harder. A realistic person who works hard is far more desirable to a university course than a perfectionist who is running at 9/10 stress all year, that just isn't healthy.
Original post by Asentrix
Hi, I've sat my gcses and waiting for results.
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
Depending on what subjects you get the grades in it should be more than fine. As long as you reach the minimum GCSE requirements the unis dont care. I got 2 9's, 7 7,s and I did really well in the application process!
Original post by Asentrix
Hi, I've sat my gcses and waiting for results.
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
I'm predicting myself all 7s but may get one 8, or two-three 6s.
If I work hard for alevels and do work experience, do you think my alevel grades can compensate for my gcse grades for vet med?
The one to watch out for is Nottingham - unless they have changed their stance. When my daughter was applying they said that they ignored predicted A level grades and looked instead at GCSEs as being more useful indicators during the application process.
Hi so I wanna apply to do vet med and I got my gcse results today which are the following:
9 - chemistry
8- maths
8 - physics
8 - textiles (fashion)
7- english literature
7 -biology
6 - sociology (one mark off a 7 so i’ll get it remarked)
6- english language 😭
5 - french
please be harsh and state whether these grades are good enough to apply for vet med because most people doing vet med get straight 9s 😭 I’m taking bio chem maths for a level
9 - chemistry
8- maths
8 - physics
8 - textiles (fashion)
7- english literature
7 -biology
6 - sociology (one mark off a 7 so i’ll get it remarked)
6- english language 😭
5 - french
please be harsh and state whether these grades are good enough to apply for vet med because most people doing vet med get straight 9s 😭 I’m taking bio chem maths for a level
Original post by expectant-hustle
Hi so I wanna apply to do vet med and I got my gcse results today which are the following:
9 - chemistry
8- maths
8 - physics
8 - textiles (fashion)
7- english literature
7 -biology
6 - sociology (one mark off a 7 so i’ll get it remarked)
6- english language 😭
5 - french
please be harsh and state whether these grades are good enough to apply for vet med because most people doing vet med get straight 9s 😭 I’m taking bio chem maths for a level
9 - chemistry
8- maths
8 - physics
8 - textiles (fashion)
7- english literature
7 -biology
6 - sociology (one mark off a 7 so i’ll get it remarked)
6- english language 😭
5 - french
please be harsh and state whether these grades are good enough to apply for vet med because most people doing vet med get straight 9s 😭 I’m taking bio chem maths for a level
Most people doing vet med certainly don’t get straight 9s. Getting any grades above the minimum requirements doesn’t get applicants any extra points (bar maybe Cambridge), it’s just a tick in the box to say you meet them and you’re onto the next stage. You seem to meet the requirements for all the unis as far as I’m aware, so big well done, you should be proud! I’m going into my 4th year and I got 6s in maths and physics and refused to resit them.
Original post by aliaa03
i retook my GCSE’s in year 12 but as it was a “covid” year where the exams were cancelled in may // june 2020 they ran a special exam series in the autumn in November for resits where i sat my sciences again (but usually this isn’t available, and you’d need to sit the science in summer instead of autumn) and then i resat the maths in january (this is always available to sit, not just in summer)
in terms of A levels it depends where you apply, there’s only 1 vet school where having A*s gives you an advantage over other applicants and that’s cambridge as obviously they’re more academically focused. for the others you can actually see on their admissions statements for the vet course that having A* predictions for your UCAS doesn’t give you any advantage over someone who was predicted A’s instead.
i did biology, chemistry and business alongside an EPQ.
in terms of A levels it depends where you apply, there’s only 1 vet school where having A*s gives you an advantage over other applicants and that’s cambridge as obviously they’re more academically focused. for the others you can actually see on their admissions statements for the vet course that having A* predictions for your UCAS doesn’t give you any advantage over someone who was predicted A’s instead.
i did biology, chemistry and business alongside an EPQ.
Hi I just got my GCSE results and got a 5 in maths and physics. I got 7s, 8s and a 9 in the rest. I want to resit physics and maths but I read something a while ago that vet schools only accept resits if you meet mitigating circumstances. do u know if that's true? most vet schools ask for a 6 in maths. also i did meet that 5 grade 7s requirement. it is just maths that is my main problem!!
Original post by gi_07x
Hi I just got my GCSE results and got a 5 in maths and physics. I got 7s, 8s and a 9 in the rest. I want to resit physics and maths but I read something a while ago that vet schools only accept resits if you meet mitigating circumstances. do u know if that's true? most vet schools ask for a 6 in maths. also i did meet that 5 grade 7s requirement. it is just maths that is my main problem!!
I don’t think you necessarily have to resit the physics, but resitting your maths would be beneficial as you say to aim for at least a 6. The majority of vet schools don’t have an issue with resits at all, the exceptions being Glasgow, Edinburgh who don’t allow resits (although I believe at A Level, not sure about at GCSE level) and I’d check Cambridge. So you still have plenty of options of where to apply 🙂
Original post by gi_07x
Hi I just got my GCSE results and got a 5 in maths and physics. I got 7s, 8s and a 9 in the rest. I want to resit physics and maths but I read something a while ago that vet schools only accept resits if you meet mitigating circumstances. do u know if that's true? most vet schools ask for a 6 in maths. also i did meet that 5 grade 7s requirement. it is just maths that is my main problem!!
Hi, yes I did meet the requirements in the end but I retook maths twice to get it up to a grade 7.
I would just check the requirements on all the vet school websites for the ones you want to apply to, since I did combined science I had to resit all 6 papers but if you did triple / single sciences then a 5 in physics might not matter as long as you have a 7 in bio and chem, but each vet school asks for different grades so i’d just check and according to that you’ll know whether you need to resit or whether you’re fine with your grades
Original post by RambleAmple
I don’t think you necessarily have to resit the physics, but resitting your maths would be beneficial as you say to aim for at least a 6. The majority of vet schools don’t have an issue with resits at all, the exceptions being Glasgow, Edinburgh who don’t allow resits (although I believe at A Level, not sure about at GCSE level) and I’d check Cambridge. So you still have plenty of options of where to apply 🙂
so sorry for the late reply. but thanks this is really useful, I’ve decided on only resitting maths in summer 2025 exam season. I want to get as high of a grade as I can
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