would a D in core maths look bad on my chemistry Mchem application?

I wanted to do medicine at first, but changed my mind, and now want to study Chemistry, and thought I would have to have grade 9s in all my GCSES and have lots of extra stuff to do Medicine. So I ended up studying chemistry, biology, economics and core maths at a level, core maths was only one year. This put so much burden on me that I ended up doing really badly in core maths achieved a D. Now my chemistry in second year is good, I love the maths and may achieve an A* but i made quite dumb decisions, not only was my core maths grade bad but also because i got a 6 in my GCSE I ended up resitting my maths GCSE in hope of bumping up my grade which i feel like was so unnecessary because i later on found out i could get into medicine with grade 6 in maths, but anyways i ended up resitting and got a 5, my grade went down. Now let's say even if I get an A* in chem and As in my economics and bio, would it not look really bad on my application and decrease my chance of acceptance?? The universities I'm applying to are St Andrews, Newcastle, Bristol, King's College and Southampton.

When I applied, most of my unis didn't care what I got in my 4th and 5th subjects, they just wanted 3 good grades (although some did give offers for 4 subjects as well). I think you should be ok with those grades if your teachers are predicting them for you, because the unis will see that and probably you just had a bad day with the core maths, and if you get them then a pass in core maths is an added bonus. There are already only a select group of people doing 4 subjects, so even a pass is above many other applicants.
Hope this helps

If its not a specific entry requirements for the courses you intend to apply for - and you meet any GCSE Maths requirement - it really wont matter. You still need to declare it on your UCAS application, but if its not required, Unis will just ignore it.

I wanted to do medicine at first, but changed my mind, and now want to study Chemistry, and thought I would have to have grade 9s in all my GCSES and have lots of extra stuff to do Medicine. So I ended up studying chemistry, biology, economics and core maths at a level, core maths was only one year. This put so much burden on me that I ended up doing really badly in core maths achieved a D. Now my chemistry in second year is good, I love the maths and may achieve an A* but i made quite dumb decisions, not only was my core maths grade bad but also because i got a 6 in my GCSE I ended up resitting my maths GCSE in hope of bumping up my grade which i feel like was so unnecessary because i later on found out i could get into medicine with grade 6 in maths, but anyways i ended up resitting and got a 5, my grade went down. Now let's say even if I get an A* in chem and As in my economics and bio, would it not look really bad on my application and decrease my chance of acceptance?? The universities I'm applying to are St Andrews, Newcastle, Bristol, King's College and Southampton.

Hi @cocoroses123
This information is most relevant to 2025 entry, and may be subject to slight changes, so we would advise checking with us closer to the time of application for the most up to date advice, but I'll provide some guidance below.
Our Chemistry BSc programme has typical entry requirements of ABB including Chemistry. No additional science required but Mathematics, Physics, Biology preferred. For Biology, Chemistry and Physics A Levels, we require a pass in the practical element. GCSE Mathematics grade B or 6 required if not offered at a higher level.
We wouldn't consider your core Maths qualification for entry, so please don't be worried about the mark you have achieved. If you have achieved or are on track to meet our entry requirements, this would not impact your application.
I hope this helps 😊
Lydia

Thank you helps a lot! For the GCSE would my grade 6 be counted (first attempt) or the 5 after resitting?

Thank you helps a lot! For the GCSE would my grade 6 be counted (first attempt) or the 5 after resitting?