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will i still be able to get into medicine?

so in short last October I had a traumatic brain injury, this caused me to miss a couple months of school and forget some of the content (theres a post on my page going in a little more detail). Im catching up now however I wont get the GCSE grades typically required for medicine, however i'm confident if this didn't happen I wouldn't have had a problem. Im planning on doing A level maths, biology and chemistry at A level, aiming for pretty high grades, due to the circumstances at GCSE would I still have a chance?
Original post by djsimpson1_
so in short last October I had a traumatic brain injury, this caused me to miss a couple months of school and forget some of the content (theres a post on my page going in a little more detail). Im catching up now however I wont get the GCSE grades typically required for medicine, however i'm confident if this didn't happen I wouldn't have had a problem. Im planning on doing A level maths, biology and chemistry at A level, aiming for pretty high grades, due to the circumstances at GCSE would I still have a chance?

Even if you do manage to get into medical school, will this brain injury not continue to affect your memorisation?
Basically the whole of medical school is remembering everything about the human body and how conditions effect it, from each artery and muscle, to random diseases that affect very small numbers of people. You have to know it all.
So if you were to make it in, how do you know you will be able to remember all of this and not fail your exams?
You get 3 chances at medical school.
The end of year test, if you fail, you are allowed a resit.
Fail the resit, you have to repeat the year.
Fail again, they kick you out for good.
Have you/ are you going to fully recover from this injury?
Original post by stilllearning123
Even if you do manage to get into medical school, will this brain injury not continue to affect your memorisation?
Basically the whole of medical school is remembering everything about the human body and how conditions effect it, from each artery and muscle, to random diseases that affect very small numbers of people. You have to know it all.
So if you were to make it in, how do you know you will be able to remember all of this and not fail your exams?
You get 3 chances at medical school.
The end of year test, if you fail, you are allowed a resit.
Fail the resit, you have to repeat the year.
Fail again, they kick you out for good.
Have you/ are you going to fully recover from this injury?


great question, i should of been more specific.

By the time I get to year 12 i’m pretty much anticipating I will be back to normal
Original post by djsimpson1_
great question, i should of been more specific.
By the time I get to year 12 i’m pretty much anticipating I will be back to normal

Well then, yes I think you should be able to get in, if you find it within yourself to get the grades, work experience, volunteering then a half-decent ucat score. And, of course, do well in interview.
Your injury should make you eligible to have extenuating circumstances, which could make schools look past your gcse grades, and also possibly ask for lower A-level grades from you. You should email the uni admissions teams at the universities you were thinking of for a definitive answer.
Best of luck!
Original post by stilllearning123
Well then, yes I think you should be able to get in, if you find it within yourself to get the grades, work experience, volunteering then a half-decent ucat score. And, of course, do well in interview.
Your injury should make you eligible to have extenuating circumstances, which could make schools look past your gcse grades, and also possibly ask for lower A-level grades from you. You should email the uni admissions teams at the universities you were thinking of for a definitive answer.
Best of luck!


thank you!!!
You should be fine considering your injury will count as extenuating circumstances, medical schools will take it into consideration when you apply
Original post by djsimpson1_
so in short last October I had a traumatic brain injury, this caused me to miss a couple months of school and forget some of the content (theres a post on my page going in a little more detail). Im catching up now however I wont get the GCSE grades typically required for medicine, however i'm confident if this didn't happen I wouldn't have had a problem. Im planning on doing A level maths, biology and chemistry at A level, aiming for pretty high grades, due to the circumstances at GCSE would I still have a chance?

You don't have to focus on getting great GCSEs tbh. Just make sure that you can get the grades required to take maths, bio and chem at A-level. Also need above grade 6 in maths and English (forgot whether it was lit or lang) as some universities such as UCL require a minimum to be met. Aside from that there are many many med schools that do not weigh GCSEs up when shortlisting applicants (with exceptions like oxbridge, nottingham keele etc). So GCSEs are no where near as vital as you A level predicted grades (as long as you meet the course requirement you don't have to get higher than that). Get WEX and prepare well for UCAT (main deciding factor)
Original post by clapmichael
You don't have to focus on getting great GCSEs tbh. Just make sure that you can get the grades required to take maths, bio and chem at A-level. Also need above grade 6 in maths and English (forgot whether it was lit or lang) as some universities such as UCL require a minimum to be met. Aside from that there are many many med schools that do not weigh GCSEs up when shortlisting applicants (with exceptions like oxbridge, nottingham keele etc). So GCSEs are no where near as vital as you A level predicted grades (as long as you meet the course requirement you don't have to get higher than that). Get WEX and prepare well for UCAT (main deciding factor)


thanks for you response, i’m guessing it’s lang and what is WEX by the way? (heard of UCAT)
Original post by djsimpson1_
thanks for you response, i’m guessing it’s lang and what is WEX by the way? (heard of UCAT)

WEX stands for Work EXperience.
Original post by stilllearning123
WEX stands for Work EXperience.


ah right okay, cheers. i’m planning on making work experience enquires for gp surgeries, pharmacies and nearby hospitals. also planning on volunteering for my local hospital and air ambulance charity
Original post by djsimpson1_
ah right okay, cheers. i’m planning on making work experience enquires for gp surgeries, pharmacies and nearby hospitals. also planning on volunteering for my local hospital and air ambulance charity

Very best of luck!
Remember it's not how much you do, it's how you reflect on your experiences when asked in interview or in your personal statement.
Original post by djsimpson1_
thanks for you response, i’m guessing it’s lang and what is WEX by the way? (heard of UCAT)

work experience

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