Do I need to do Maths A-Level for medicine at Oxford?

Original post by ssafiyah

I have dreamed of going to Oxford since such a young age. Everything appeals to me from the way the courses are taught to the facilities and sheer amount of research they do.

I am 100% set on medicine as it is the career path I think I would do the best in and what I find most interesting.

I am in Year 11, doing my GCSES in May, hoping for grade 9s in everything (apart from French), and I am currently in the process of applying to sixth forms and choosing my A-Levels.

I will definitely doing Biology and Chemistry and I know the best third option is maths, and while I am good at it, I dislike the subject. I attended a careers and university fair today and all universities I spoke to heavily recommended Maths for Medicine. I have a huge passion for History and English Literature, and I know that these subjects will give I am also confident I can achieve good grades with them. I also adore Physics and would take it, but there seems no point without Maths.

While not recommended at my school, I do have the option to do 4 A-Levels. However, I do not want 4 A-Levels to interfere with how much I can achieve with them.

Also, if I do not take maths I will take Core Maths and, in any scenario, do an EPQ, but apparently these do not hold much weight for Oxford?

...So do I need Maths for Medicine at Oxford?

PS. so sorry for this super long and confusing post, I am just so conflicted about my future.

dont think so. med schools never say u need maths or itll help ur application
idk about oxford but i highly doubt itll give you an advantage if u do it, id say really read the entry requirements , 99.9% sure u dont need to do maths though
better off doing like english or smth u enjoy and get an a* there as u need ideally a*a*a* for oxford :smile:

Reply 2

OP

Original post by aneer3wq3wt

dont think so. med schools never say u need maths or itll help ur application
idk about oxford but i highly doubt itll give you an advantage if u do it, id say really read the entry requirements , 99.9% sure u dont need to do maths though
better off doing like english or smth u enjoy and get an a* there as u need ideally a*a*a* for oxford :smile:

Hey thanks so much for your reply. Entry requirements on website do not require maths, but the reason I was asking was bc so many unis have said maths is needed or very heavily recommended so I was wondering if it was unlikely to get in without it.

Reply 3

aneer3wq3wt

Original post by ssafiyah

Hey thanks so much for your reply. Entry requirements on website do not require maths, but the reason I was asking was bc so many unis have said maths is needed or very heavily recommended so I was wondering if it was unlikely to get in without it.

for med? which unis are saying that lol, myb u mixed it up with another course?
im no admission tutor but this is the first time ive heard that unis say maths is heavily recommended lol + many ppl in my school arent doing maths and applying for med, some doing psychology, english, geog etc
if u arent good at maths and u dont see urself getting at least an 8 ideally a 9, dont take it for a level as u need to get an A minimum for med in ur 3rd subject(maybe B with some contextual offer) but for oxford u need A* so dont take it if ur not enjoying it and doing well in it :biggrin:

Reply 4

aneer3wq3wt

Original post by ssafiyah

I have dreamed of going to Oxford since such a young age. Everything appeals to me from the way the courses are taught to the facilities and sheer amount of research they do.

I am 100% set on medicine as it is the career path I think I would do the best in and what I find most interesting.

I am in Year 11, doing my GCSES in May, hoping for grade 9s in everything (apart from French), and I am currently in the process of applying to sixth forms and choosing my A-Levels.

I will definitely doing Biology and Chemistry and I know the best third option is maths, and while I am good at it, I dislike the subject. I attended a careers and university fair today and all universities I spoke to heavily recommended Maths for Medicine. I have a huge passion for History and English Literature, and I know that these subjects will give I am also confident I can achieve good grades with them. I also adore Physics and would take it, but there seems no point without Maths.

While not recommended at my school, I do have the option to do 4 A-Levels. However, I do not want 4 A-Levels to interfere with how much I can achieve with them.

Also, if I do not take maths I will take Core Maths and, in any scenario, do an EPQ, but apparently these do not hold much weight for Oxford?

...So do I need Maths for Medicine at Oxford?

PS. so sorry for this super long and confusing post, I am just so conflicted about my future.

btw, if u rly like physics take it!! it does have quite a bit of maths but bio chem physics(although very hard combo) will still work for med, mate of mines doing that and hes applying to cambridge med(same thing as oxford xd)

Reply 5

OP

Original post by aneer3wq3wt

for med? which unis are saying that lol, myb u mixed it up with another course?
im no admission tutor but this is the first time ive heard that unis say maths is heavily recommended lol + many ppl in my school arent doing maths and applying for med, some doing psychology, english, geog etc
if u arent good at maths and u dont see urself getting at least an 8 ideally a 9, dont take it for a level as u need to get an A minimum for med in ur 3rd subject(maybe B with some contextual offer) but for oxford u need A* so dont take it if ur not enjoying it and doing well in it :biggrin:

I spoke to liverpool, exeter, aberdeen, dundee and a few more. The only admissions advisior that did not imply maths was needed was Manchester. I could see myself getting an A/A* in maths at A-LEvel, but my main concern is that I do not enjoy it. I will probably end up doing 4 A-Levels though, Maths being one of them :frown:

Reply 6

OP

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by aneer3wq3wt

btw, if u rly like physics take it!! it does have quite a bit of maths but bio chem physics(although very hard combo) will still work for med, mate of mines doing that and hes applying to cambridge med(same thing as oxford xd)

physics is definitely an option. for some reason i love physics maths but not maths maths lol

Reply 7

reubenn05

Chat Forum Helper, Study Forum Helper

Original post by ssafiyah

I spoke to liverpool, exeter, aberdeen, dundee and a few more. The only admissions advisior that did not imply maths was needed was Manchester. I could see myself getting an A/A* in maths at A-LEvel, but my main concern is that I do not enjoy it. I will probably end up doing 4 A-Levels though, Maths being one of them :frown:

those advisors are giving out incorrect information. the med school websites clearly state subject requirements/preferences. the only med school which prioritises those with a 3rd science a level is cambridge.

(edited 7 months ago)

Reply 8

thrivingfrog

21

Most of the med applicants I know are either doing bio, chem, maths or bio, chem, psych. I also know someone doing bio, chem, spanish. This isn't to say that you NEED maths- most unis will only ask on the requirements for biology and chem. Maths can be helpful for your application (ik some of my friends who don't do maths found it harder on the ucat) but it's not necessary

For reference, this is taken from the entry requirements on oxfords website:
A*AA in three A-levels (excluding Critical Thinking, Thinking Skills and General Studies) taken in the same academic year. Candidates are required to achieve at least a grade A in both Chemistry and at least one of Biology, Physics, Mathematics or Further Mathematics.

(edited 7 months ago)

Reply 9

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by ssafiyah

Hey thanks so much for your reply. Entry requirements on website do not require maths, but the reason I was asking was bc so many unis have said maths is needed or very heavily recommended so I was wondering if it was unlikely to get in without it.

No it is not needed. Oxford's statistics show applicants with 3 STEM subjects (not distinguishing between physics or maths) at A-level have similar success similar rates to those with just 2 STEM subjects at A-level. Although a majority are doing 3 STEM subjects the minority not doing them appear to still have the same chance of being successful.

By contrast for Cambridge this is not the case and the small minority applying there with just 2 STEM subjects are considerably less likely to be successful. Cambridge is the only medical school where to be competitive you need to be taking a third STEM subject; there is no preference for whether this is physics or maths for most colleges at Cambridge.

Maths is neither needed nor recommended by any other medical school. Two other medical schools (UCLan and Liverpool) specify the third subject be "academic" but this can include humanities and social science subjects as well as STEM subjects (mainly just rules out vocational A-levels like accounting).

(edited 7 months ago)

Reply 10

Crow_M

22

Not really, only Chemistry is required. I know someone studying at Oxford who did not take A Level Biology (do not recommend!).

Reply 11

Tulipbloom

11

Original post by ssafiyah

I have dreamed of going to Oxford since such a young age. Everything appeals to me from the way the courses are taught to the facilities and sheer amount of research they do.

I am 100% set on medicine as it is the career path I think I would do the best in and what I find most interesting.

I am in Year 11, doing my GCSES in May, hoping for grade 9s in everything (apart from French), and I am currently in the process of applying to sixth forms and choosing my A-Levels.

I will definitely doing Biology and Chemistry and I know the best third option is maths, and while I am good at it, I dislike the subject. I attended a careers and university fair today and all universities I spoke to heavily recommended Maths for Medicine. I have a huge passion for History and English Literature, and I know that these subjects will give I am also confident I can achieve good grades with them. I also adore Physics and would take it, but there seems no point without Maths.

While not recommended at my school, I do have the option to do 4 A-Levels. However, I do not want 4 A-Levels to interfere with how much I can achieve with them.

Also, if I do not take maths I will take Core Maths and, in any scenario, do an EPQ, but apparently these do not hold much weight for Oxford?

...So do I need Maths for Medicine at Oxford?

PS. so sorry for this super long and confusing post, I am just so conflicted about my future.

Hey 2 of my friends actually got interviewed for Oxford med last year. One did math, bio, chem, and an EPQ while the other did math, bio, physics, chem and an EPQ (yes at my school the EPQ was mandatory). When applying for med, it is really important that you get the predicted grades you need whilst having enough time to do work experience, entrance test prep (the BMAT), and if you choose to do the EPQ that's a whole different story. Having subjects you are passionate about is great! I actually did not like maths either but for me it was a safe bet as maths is quite straightforward when it comes to revision and scoring in the exam is not difficult. Another med friend of mine decided to do English Literature. She got a 9 for it in GCSE and got predicted an A* for it in A levels but got a B at the end (missed an A by 1 mark). At least recently, the grading for lit has been quite harsh. Another friend of mine got into Oxford for PPE and her offer got confirmed only because she took 4 A levels where 3 of them were A*A*A with the 4th subject being a B in lit. Everyone in my year who did well in GCSE lit took it in A level but I can confirm that in A level lit there is an immense step up from GCSE. I do not know too much of A level history so I will not comment. In the case of physics, it is never wrong to take it even if you don't do maths. When studying for the BMAT, having either physics or maths would be an advantage. Based on my experience, having studied bio and chem meant that I could skip through most of the section 2 syllabus. The EPQ might not count as an actual A level in your application but it truly was a worthwhile experience and allowed us med applicants to further research a particular topic of interest in the field (you can mention it in your personal statement, talk about it during your interview, and as an added bonus: it's a great stress reliever and for med topics its easy to score an A*). To close, no you don't need maths. Hope this helps!

Reply 12

AF2Dr

12

You don't need maths, but if you are, as you say, fully committed to both medicine and Oxford, I think it would make sense to study 3 science/maths A Levels. Entry to Oxford for medicine is highly competitive (obviously), and scientific ability is a key factor in the admissions process.

Reply 13

OP

Original post by AF2Dr

You don't need maths, but if you are, as you say, fully committed to both medicine and Oxford, I think it would make sense to study 3 science/maths A Levels. Entry to Oxford for medicine is highly competitive (obviously), and scientific ability is a key factor in the admissions process.

Thank so much for your answer! Is the just the maths ability needed, or the qualification as well? Because I will be taking core maths if I dont do it as an A-level to ensure that I retain skills from GCSES, so Im not too worried about my maths ability hindering me in the BMAT and UKAT but just the lack of the qualification if i dont choose to pursue it.

Reply 14

AF2Dr

12

Original post by ssafiyah

Thank so much for your answer! Is the just the maths ability needed, or the qualification as well? Because I will be taking core maths if I dont do it as an A-level to ensure that I retain skills from GCSES, so Im not too worried about my maths ability hindering me in the BMAT and UKAT but just the lack of the qualification if i dont choose to pursue it.

I guess the "official" answer would be that it's your scientific ability that matters, and they don't require A Level maths knowledge or qualification.

My personal opinion (which you are free to disregard) is that if you are strongly committed to studying a very scientific medical degree which is also fiercely competitive for admission, then it makes sense to do 3 science/maths subjects for A Level.

Reply 15

OP