How far back could poor GCSEs set me in medicine?

I'm in year 11 going to sit my GCSEs in about a month and I'm worried that I might not do well enough for medicine which I would like to pursue. I am predicted 6s in almost everything and I believe I could get 6s-7s in my GCSEs but even if it fits a universities "minimum requirements" I'm worried that it could set me back in the application proccess. I am setting up good work experience and volunteering and if I work hard then I believe I will have very good extra/supercurriculars and recieve very good A level results (the reason I am not doing better in GCSEs is result of procrastination) so would GCSEs in that range set me back? Would it be possible/benificial to resit GCSEs? How bad it?

Reply 1

TSR Hippocrates

10

Hey there, thanks for posting a question in the Medicine forum. :biggrin:

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The "Which Medical School Should I Apply To?" Uberthread
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Reply 2

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by Anon7548

I'm in year 11 going to sit my GCSEs in about a month and I'm worried that I might not do well enough for medicine which I would like to pursue. I am predicted 6s in almost everything and I believe I could get 6s-7s in my GCSEs but even if it fits a universities "minimum requirements" I'm worried that it could set me back in the application proccess. I am setting up good work experience and volunteering and if I work hard then I believe I will have very good extra/supercurriculars and recieve very good A level results (the reason I am not doing better in GCSEs is result of procrastination) so would GCSEs in that range set me back? Would it be possible/benificial to resit GCSEs? How bad it?

The medical schools that just have minimum requirements literally do not score GCSEs beyond these. For those medical schools it's a tick box exercise - exceeding the minimum requirements won't get you "bonus points" there.

As long as you focus on applying to those medical schools and avoid the GCSE heavy ones that do score GCSEs, you have as good a chance as anyone else...provided you also take the required A-level subjects, are predicted suitable grades in them, do the requisite work experience reflect critically upon that etc.

Reply 3

Anon7548

OP

5

Original post by artful_lounger

The medical schools that just have minimum requirements literally do not score GCSEs beyond these. For those medical schools it's a tick box exercise - exceeding the minimum requirements won't get you "bonus points" there.

As long as you focus on applying to those medical schools and avoid the GCSE heavy ones that do score GCSEs, you have as good a chance as anyone else...provided you also take the required A-level subjects, are predicted suitable grades in them, do the requisite work experience reflect critically upon that etc.

I didn't realise this, thank you! Do you know where I would be able to find a list of universities to avoid?

Reply 4

GANFYD

18

Original post by Anon7548

I didn't realise this, thank you! Do you know where I would be able to find a list of universities to avoid?

Have a look at the GCSE info linked here and then check nothing is different for the year you will enter
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7233558

Reply 5

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by Anon7548

I didn't realise this, thank you! Do you know where I would be able to find a list of universities to avoid?

As GANFYD says, it's always best to check - and remember that unis can and do change their methodologies, sometimes considerably! So one that is GCSE heavy now might not score them at all by the time you apply. A very relevant example is that up until 2021 Oxford was one of the most GCSE heavy medical schools - then they stopped scoring GCSEs over COVID and decided that actually it worked out so well, they aren't going to score GCSEs anymore at all for the forseeable future!

So it's probably more something to bear in mind for when you do get to the end of year 12 and thinking about where to apply, factoring that in when you are looking at different medical schools. Any list provided now may well not be accurate by that point so it's just something to revisit at that time :smile:

Reply 6

TMTDRN

9

There will be universities you can target, albeit a slightly more limited number which you can expect to shrink again after UCAT is taken into account.

Best thing is to focus on developing good study habits now and for A level. If you can’t grow those habits now, you may find that medicine remains inaccessible, even if you were to manage to get in.

Medicine isn’t just going to be a matter of clearing all the hurdles. It’s not going to suddenly become easy once you get in. It will require sustained effort. There is a reason that some universities do expect consistency in academic performance as it is often a good predictor of how well you’ll continue to do and indicates a person’s ability to sustain their efforts over time. Just something to bear in mind. You may prefer a course that’s a little less relentless or is perhaps more practical in its academic leaning. You’ve got a lifetime of learning to get on board with if you go for medicine, and the exams never really stop in the first few years. There are many courses related to medicine that may suit you better. Medicine doesn’t have to be the be all and end all.

How far back could poor GCSEs set me in medicine?

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