The Student Room Group

can i get into medical school?

im aiming for a grade 8/9 in biology and chemistry but a 6 for maths. is it still possible for me to get into med school with bio chem and dt as a levels or do i need to change my plans and deviate from becoming a surgeon?
Yes, you only need bio/chem/one other for all medical schools except Cambridge (which requires a 3rd STEM subject). Other medical schools don't care if your third subject is a STEM subject or not. The only others that have any requirements at all for the third subject are I believe UCLan and Leeds which state the third subject should be "academic" and give lists on their websites I believe for that. Outside of those three there are no expressed preferences or requirements at all for your third subject.

Reply 2

Original post by artful_lounger
Yes, you only need bio/chem/one other for all medical schools except Cambridge (which requires a 3rd STEM subject). Other medical schools don't care if your third subject is a STEM subject or not. The only others that have any requirements at all for the third subject are I believe UCLan and Leeds which state the third subject should be "academic" and give lists on their websites I believe for that. Outside of those three there are no expressed preferences or requirements at all for your third subject.

so like, ive applied for this engineering scholarship but want to keep my options open so could i do chem, maths DT and still be accepted or would they prefer people with biology instead of DT. i am pretty good at DT and thought it would be an easy way to get an A/A*
Original post by -murder
so like, ive applied for this engineering scholarship but want to keep my options open so could i do chem, maths DT and still be accepted or would they prefer people with biology instead of DT. i am pretty good at DT and thought it would be an easy way to get an A/A*

Current medical school A-level requirements are listed here: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5611422

You would be able to potentially choose between twenty medical schools to apply to based on the above (just under half). Having biology would give you a much wider range of choices for medical schools, which is relevant because applying to medical school is about applying tactically, and by limiting the numbers you can choose between to start with, once you begin filtering out those you wouldn't be competitive for on the basis of their shortlisting methodology (e.g. if they're GCSE heavy, UCAT heavy, etc), you may end up with fewer than 4 that you could be a realistically competitive applicant for.

It's certainly possible though. That said taking DT rather than physics though does rule out Liverpool, UCLan, and Cambridge (I'd also note if you're interested in keeping engineering open as an option at degree level, you should plan to take physics for that regardless).

Reply 4

Original post by -murder
im aiming for a grade 8/9 in biology and chemistry but a 6 for maths. is it still possible for me to get into med school with bio chem and dt as a levels or do i need to change my plans and deviate from becoming a surgeon?
I’m in the similar situation as you, but you do know you can resit? Based on my results I will probably resit 3 in order to get 9s in them

Reply 5

Original post by -murder
so like, ive applied for this engineering scholarship but want to keep my options open so could i do chem, maths DT and still be accepted or would they prefer people with biology instead of DT. i am pretty good at DT and thought it would be an easy way to get an A/A*

Hiii, so I am in 1st year at uni studying dentistry, but I remember there was a boy in my sixth form who was deciding between medicine and engineering. He opted to start with 4 a-levels in Year 12 and did Bio, Chem, Physics and Maths. After Easter in Yr 12, he decided med was not for him so he dropped biology but because he was really close to finishing the AS for biology he sat that exam. Then in Yr 13, he did Chem, Physics and Maths. He has done really well and is studying engineering at a top uni! So I say all of this as something you could do as well :smile:, if your school permits it and if you want to do 4 to start off with
(edited 11 months ago)

Reply 6

Original post by MsBobatea123
Hiii, so I am in 1st year at uni studying dentistry, but I remember there was a boy in my sixth form who was deciding between medicine and engineering. He opted to start with 4 a-levels in Year 12 and did Bio, Chem, Physics and Maths. After Easter in Yr 12, he decided med was not for him so he dropped biology but because he was really close to finishing the AS for biology he sat that exam. Then in Yr 13, he did Chem, Physics and Maths. He has done really well and is studying engineering at a top uni! So I say all of this as something you could do as well :smile:, if your school permits it and if you want to do 4 to start off with

yeah im stuck between both too, i was thinking of choosing maths, chemistry and DT in the end because the engineering course im interested in requires maths and an applied science like DT or chem. my school requires us to have 64+ capped points to do 4 or more a levels and i dont think ill reach that mark.

Reply 7

Original post by artful_lounger
Current medical school A-level requirements are listed here: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5611422
You would be able to potentially choose between twenty medical schools to apply to based on the above (just under half). Having biology would give you a much wider range of choices for medical schools, which is relevant because applying to medical school is about applying tactically, and by limiting the numbers you can choose between to start with, once you begin filtering out those you wouldn't be competitive for on the basis of their shortlisting methodology (e.g. if they're GCSE heavy, UCAT heavy, etc), you may end up with fewer than 4 that you could be a realistically competitive applicant for.
It's certainly possible though. That said taking DT rather than physics though does rule out Liverpool, UCLan, and Cambridge (I'd also note if you're interested in keeping engineering open as an option at degree level, you should plan to take physics for that regardless).

i was looking at different degree apprenticeships such as nuclear engineering for Rolls Royce, if i did engineering it would be an apprenticeship. ill think abt it and prolly decide on results day, thanks for the help!
Original post by -murder
i was looking at different degree apprenticeships such as nuclear engineering for Rolls Royce, if i did engineering it would be an apprenticeship. ill think abt it and prolly decide on results day, thanks for the help!

Bear in mind though even in a degree apprenticeship, you will be studying the degree content of engineering science which is fundamentally applied physics and maths (I imagine perhaps even a bit more than average on the physics side for nuclear engineering). So you really would be doing yourself a favour to develop a physics background. Equally if you don't like physics you may want to reconsider if engineering is for you...

Reply 9

Original post by artful_lounger
Bear in mind though even in a degree apprenticeship, you will be studying the degree content of engineering science which is fundamentally applied physics and maths (I imagine perhaps even a bit more than average on the physics side for nuclear engineering). So you really would be doing yourself a favour to develop a physics background. Equally if you don't like physics you may want to reconsider if engineering is for you...

yeah no so i got the scholarship and do enjoy both physics and chemistry, what if i take one at AS level or is that not worth it
Original post by -murder
yeah no so i got the scholarship and do enjoy both physics and chemistry, what if i take one at AS level or is that not worth it

Chemistry, physics, and something else (if you're aiming for engineering, presumably maths as that's essential for that subject area) would also be fine for most (slightly more than half of) UK medical schools. Realistically though just AS physics (or maths) will considerably limit your options for engineering for direct entry, and only AS chemistry (without biology) will considerably limit your options for medicine.

However there is also the option of going into engineering without physics/maths by applying to a course with a foundation year - which you could do after doing bio/chem/any 3rd (including DT). This would give you the option of almost any UK medical school and many if not most engineering courses (including at quite strong unis for engineering like Southampton, Birmingham, Manchester etc).

Reply 11

Original post by -murder
im aiming for a grade 8/9 in biology and chemistry but a 6 for maths. is it still possible for me to get into med school with bio chem and dt as a levels or do i need to change my plans and deviate from becoming a surgeon?

Yes I got into med school with 6 maths you have shop around but a lot will accept these days

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