Medicine deferred entry question

Hey! Not sure about Cambridge but having spoken to Cardiff's admissions team, they said they didn't disadvantage deffered entry, thought gap years were beneficial and even favoured those speakimg about their plans for gap years during interviews in some cases. All the other unis i contacted (bristol, UEA) about this also claimed that it would not disadvantage applicants. I was having a similar quelm to you because a lot of info online speaks very negetively about it. I would deffo reconmend emailing your uni admissions teams and then probably go for it anyway. Worst case scenario, you have to reapply on your year out but its definately worth a shot Good luck!

I am currently in year 12 and am planning on applying for medicine, but I really like the idea of applying for deferred entry so that I can take a year out to gain experience and travel whilst safely having my place and not needing to worry about ucat/interviews while on the gap year.
Some unis that I've researched (UCL/Manchester) seem to not mind if the UCAS application is deferred, as long as the gap year will be used productively, while Cambridge asks that you request a deferral after getting your offer, so in that case which year would I apply to on my application? Also, nothing online seems to tell me if applying for the following year will be a disadvantage? I understand that you need to be a very strong applicant but is it much harder to get an interview/offer?
I mentioned deferring to my head of year who told me it would be much harder to get in and would therefore be a waste of time, is it really this bad?
Thanks

hey i don't really have a response to this LOL but just wanted to say how mature a decision this is especially as a year 12, you'll thank yourself for taking that time out before such a rigorous degree like medicine, i hope everything works out for you <3

I am currently in year 12 and am planning on applying for medicine, but I really like the idea of applying for deferred entry so that I can take a year out to gain experience and travel whilst safely having my place and not needing to worry about ucat/interviews while on the gap year.
Some unis that I've researched (UCL/Manchester) seem to not mind if the UCAS application is deferred, as long as the gap year will be used productively, while Cambridge asks that you request a deferral after getting your offer, so in that case which year would I apply to on my application? Also, nothing online seems to tell me if applying for the following year will be a disadvantage? I understand that you need to be a very strong applicant but is it much harder to get an interview/offer?
I mentioned deferring to my head of year who told me it would be much harder to get in and would therefore be a waste of time, is it really this bad?
Thanks

I am currently in year 12 and am planning on applying for medicine, but I really like the idea of applying for deferred entry so that I can take a year out to gain experience and travel whilst safely having my place and not needing to worry about ucat/interviews while on the gap year.
Some unis that I've researched (UCL/Manchester) seem to not mind if the UCAS application is deferred, as long as the gap year will be used productively, while Cambridge asks that you request a deferral after getting your offer, so in that case which year would I apply to on my application? Also, nothing online seems to tell me if applying for the following year will be a disadvantage? I understand that you need to be a very strong applicant but is it much harder to get an interview/offer?
I mentioned deferring to my head of year who told me it would be much harder to get in and would therefore be a waste of time, is it really this bad?
Thanks

My daughter is yr 13 and has applied for deferred entry to medicine (she applied oct 2024 for entry sept 2026). She got 4 interviews so now just waiting for offers to come out 🤞 She found that any med school that accepts deferrals won’t discriminate but that not all med schools will allow deferrals so double check this before you apply (this meant my daughter couldn’t apply for a nearer med school she would otherwise have done!) Med schools will select a deferral applicant as if they are not deferring: ie. They are compared to the candidates of the application year and if they would have received an offer for that year then they get an offer with a deferred place (if my daughter gets an offer this year then she will have earned that place with this years applicants but will get an place for 2026)
I think it’s great to take a gap year. The end of year 12 and yr 13 are stressful years if applying for med, so to then leap into 5 years of med school, 2 foundation years and then life as a junior doctor doesn’t give much opportunity for freedom/exploration and personal development without a lot of side pressures. If my daughter doesn’t get an offer this year then she knows it doesn’t change her plans too much for next year so that also helped to ease some pressure in this year’s application process (not that she ever wants to study for the ucat again if she can help it 😂)
Good luck

My daughter is yr 13 and has applied for deferred entry to medicine (she applied oct 2024 for entry sept 2026). She got 4 interviews so now just waiting for offers to come out 🤞 She found that any med school that accepts deferrals won’t discriminate but that not all med schools will allow deferrals so double check this before you apply (this meant my daughter couldn’t apply for a nearer med school she would otherwise have done!) Med schools will select a deferral applicant as if they are not deferring: ie. They are compared to the candidates of the application year and if they would have received an offer for that year then they get an offer with a deferred place (if my daughter gets an offer this year then she will have earned that place with this years applicants but will get an place for 2026)
I think it’s great to take a gap year. The end of year 12 and yr 13 are stressful years if applying for med, so to then leap into 5 years of med school, 2 foundation years and then life as a junior doctor doesn’t give much opportunity for freedom/exploration and personal development without a lot of side pressures. If my daughter doesn’t get an offer this year then she knows it doesn’t change her plans too much for next year so that also helped to ease some pressure in this year’s application process (not that she ever wants to study for the ucat again if she can help it 😂)
Good luck

Hi @Sonbird19
Wishing your daughter the best of luck! Do let us know how she gets on with her applications
If there are any questions, feel free to ask
UEA REP Tiffany 😊

Thanks - she’s had an offer (deferred obviously!) from UEA and is Soooo pleased 🥳🤩😊
The other 3 haven’t started to send their offers/rejections, so no news there yet!

Congratulations, you must both be delighted! Please can I ask a question about applying for deferred entry, as my daughter is in Y12 and looking to defer too? Could she apply for deferred entry for some unis and on the same application apply for another uni without deferring? For example if she wants to apply to one uni that doesn’t allow deferrals as well as to 3 who do allow it? Or if you apply to defer is it for your whole application and all unis? Thanks

Thank you - delighted (and relieved 😅) Still got to get the grades now though 🤞
That is a very good question that we are not sure about! Best to check with a sixth form, senior teacher. My daughter said she thinks it would be possible, as on the ucas form she had to click year of entry for each university separately but please don’t just take our word for it! The only issue I can think of is the personal statement, as it’s good to put a line in there about why you want a gap year/what you plan to do in it. Not all med schools look at the PS though, so if it was one of those you were applying to for the non-gap year, then that wouldn’t be a problem.

Second deferred offer just came through for my daughter today (HYMS) so it’s definitely possible to get deferred entry offers without being some kind of super-human, perfect genius! Trust me - I know her well and she’s definitely not any of those 😉😂
I think it’s an outdated notion that deferrals are unlikely to be successful or that you need to be an exceptional candidate. All med offers are difficult to get, hard earned and come with a touch of luck, but deferrals aren’t any less likely than standard applications.
Take the plunge and apply for deferred entry if you want a gap year. Assuming she gets the grades this summer, this is a great position to be in 🤩

Second deferred offer just came through for my daughter today (HYMS) so it’s definitely possible to get deferred entry offers without being some kind of super-human, perfect genius! Trust me - I know her well and she’s definitely not any of those 😉😂
I think it’s an outdated notion that deferrals are unlikely to be successful or that you need to be an exceptional candidate. All med offers are difficult to get, hard earned and come with a touch of luck, but deferrals aren’t any less likely than standard applications.
Take the plunge and apply for deferred entry if you want a gap year. Assuming she gets the grades this summer, this is a great position to be in 🤩

All 4 deferred applications successful for my daughter. She is surprised but very happy to be in this position.
Good luck to you all, whether you defer or not - but do not be worried about deferring! Your application has the same chance of getting an offer as it would be if you didn’t defer (if the med school accepts deferred entry applications of course!!!!)