Access course in medicine or A-Levels

Hi,
I’m 19 and will be using this year to re take and study more GCSEs and then use next year to either do an access course to medicine or do A-Levels.
And of course the access course is muchhh cheaper.
What should I do

Access courses tend to be aimed more at people over the age of 21 as widening participation tools - they typically don't accept school leavers/recent school leavers. Some may though, but it's worth bearing in mind and looking into further before making any firm plans. They may also have specific requirements around work experience before starting the course.

Something otherwise to bear in mind is not all Access to Medicine courses are accepted by all medical schools. Usually medical schools will accept specific Access to Medicine courses from specific providers, so if you are considering one you should check with the medical schools you wish to apply to if it would be accepted. Typically they either publish this information on their websites or you can contact them to confirm.

A-levels give you the most flexibility and don't have any of the above caveats, but you will need to do the science endorsement which as an independent student is often very expensive (i.e. ~£1-2k per science I've heard). This can be a major barrier for many, and unlike Access courses it's less clear if you can get an Advanced Learner Loan (ALL) for these costs (and Access courses uniquely have the ALL written off if you subsequently complete a degree!).

That’s unfortunate. But I really don’t mind what route I choose, I thought it would just be much cheaper and also quicker but I can easily go with an online college and pay monthly instead of all in one and I can save up for next year after my GCSEs.
I’ll try contacting them and I’ll see if any colleges near me offer the access course before contacting unis.
The ALL is so helpful but it’s annoying that it’s probably not suitable for me. So, would you say that studying Bio, Chem and Environmental Science would be a good mix for Medicine? I’m aware that you need to find field work for Environmental science though… not sure if Med schools accept that A-Level either. I just don’t think I could handle Physics 🫤.

Access courses tend to be aimed more at people over the age of 21 as widening participation tools - they typically don't accept school leavers/recent school leavers. Some may though, but it's worth bearing in mind and looking into further before making any firm plans. They may also have specific requirements around work experience before starting the course.

Something otherwise to bear in mind is not all Access to Medicine courses are accepted by all medical schools. Usually medical schools will accept specific Access to Medicine courses from specific providers, so if you are considering one you should check with the medical schools you wish to apply to if it would be accepted. Typically they either publish this information on their websites or you can contact them to confirm.

A-levels give you the most flexibility and don't have any of the above caveats, but you will need to do the science endorsement which as an independent student is often very expensive (i.e. ~£1-2k per science I've heard). This can be a major barrier for many, and unlike Access courses it's less clear if you can get an Advanced Learner Loan (ALL) for these costs (and Access courses uniquely have the ALL written off if you subsequently complete a degree!).

is there upper age limit for access courses?