A question for gem students and all medical unis

I have a question for anyone doing GEM here and need some serious life advice. What ucat scores are u aiming for it's because I'm seriously considering doing gem I'm almost 21 and still haven't started a degree so I feel so behind in life right now but medicine is what I really wanted to do but it doesn't seem to be happening so I know its a longer more competitive expensive route but at least I'll have a backup and still be able to chase medicine. I dream of opening my own clinics in poor countries like my home country Bangladesh for the poor and building better clinics and facilities in the UK. I also want to teach others through social media the importance of taking care of our own health especially mental health. I want to specialise in ER to help those in war torn countries those are a couple of reasons for why I wanna be a doctor. I haven't sat the ucat yet and will make my final decision after that but for now I'm heading towards gem because even my family are stressed for me and rightfully so I have a duty towards them as the eldest son I want to provide for my parents but right now I feel like I'm getting nowhere close to my dreams. I'm a resit applicant btw I took 2 gap years and am going into my 3rd. I achieved BED at a level both times and am planning on doing my third resit and achieved the minimum grade requirements (7 in maths and 7 in English and 7-6 in combined science for GCSE ) for unis. I come from a low income household and leave in a low progression zone, went to a bad secondary school and am the first generation of people to go to uni in my family. I have anxiety and depression as well as insomnia and combined ADHD so my a levels were one of the worst points of my life (I've had these conditions and symptoms since childhood but only got my support and help now due to personal reasons) I've been working a few years as a domiciliary carer and mental health HCA whilst doing these gap years to build my experience and it's fueled me more to study medicine. I'm now getting the help and meds I need. I don't know is gem better for me or not? Is medicine good for me I really want it to be but you guys probably know better?

Hi,
You have great reasons for wanting to study medicine. Gem is a shorter degree (4yrs) but you need to have completed a degree first so overall it is longer than a standard entry medicine degree (5yrs). If you wanted to do a degree before medicine, you need to make sure that you carefully select which degree as lots of medical schools require applicants to have a relevant 'biosciences' degree. For standard entry medicine you may want to look at widening access courses, based on where you live, if you're a first generation wanting to go to uni, income related reasons etc then there is special consideration for those factors and generally require lower grades (i think they consider via a case by case basis). At the same time its worth noting that some universities may not allow grades from a level resits, you may be able to find more info on this from a specific university 'entry requirements' page, but if it doesn't have enough info then you can just email the med school admissions and ask the specific questions. To explain why you may have struggled with qualifications in the past/present based off of mental health, learning disabilities outside of meeting/not meeting widening participation then it may be worth applying to universities that look at your personal statement to explain gap years, struggles, work experience etc, some universities don't score personal statements but some don't even look at it! so definitely review each uni on a case by case basis. With the UCAT, if you have severe mental health issues, a learning difficulty or something like ADHD then you can apply for access arrangement's through the UCAT website to ensure that you're supported. Also with the UCAT if you're applying to med schools via widening participation Im pretty sure that you don't require a competitive UCAT score as they review each applicant on other measures, definitely check that but its worth noting! If you have a drive to study medicine, i dont think anything should stop you from trying to pursue it, even if you dont think your qualifications are enough still apply!! You sound like a very compassionate, caring person and ultimately that is a very large part of what you need to be a doctor! Also its worth noting that some unis have entry requirements for mature non-degree applicants and i think that classifies as anybody over 21yrs old. If you need help navigating all the different nuances, then it may be worth seeking a mentor similar to yourself that is in a position you want to be in, this way you can understand what that person had to do get where they are! check specific uni pages as they may have an alumni section or a current student section to give advise. Personally I am not a med student, i am applying for the 2025 start as a degree graduate so i have had to do lots of research, hope this helps!! good luck with your a-levels and medicine!