Late realisation of wanting to do medicine help

Hi everyone. This will probably be a long post so sorry about that. I really need some advice though.
I am a Scottish student in my last year of school (S6) and have kind of only just now come to the realisation that I want to study medicine.
It's been something I've gone back and forth over the years. I've always thought that it was something I'd enjoy and I've always thought it would be really interesting and up my street but I sort of dismissed it as I didn't think I was passionate enough and my interest fluctuated. I have always been under the assumption that the people who apply to med school have wanted to be a doctor for practically all of their life and love the job immensely. Because I was never that into it I kind of thought "oh well clearly im not interested enough to warrant all that time and effort"
(it probably didnt help that my only experience knowing somoene who got into med school wanted to be a doctor ever since her dad passed away when she was little)
It was only really a few weeks or smth before the early applicant deadline that things kind of clicked. Obv by that point it was too late for me to apply and now I'm not sure what to do. I was gonna apply for biology degrees at uni this year so idk if I should just apply anyway and see if I get offers because that pushes the decision making to later in the year?? Part of me is kind of worried abt throwing myself right into the "yeah i wanna do medicine" route in case I change my mind and screw myself over. The fact that I've not been invested in medicine for years really makes me worried about this being some sort of phase but also the idea of not going for medicine doesn't sit right with me
I got all As in nat 5 and all As in higher (I did english, maths, human bio, chem and computing). This year I'm taking two advanced highers and a higher (bio and maths advh and physics higher). From checking uni entry requirements (id only go scottish unis) I'm pretty sure I would be fine on that front as long as I do good in my advhs. I reckon I could also do decent on the UCAT if i prepped really well.
For med I also obv need work experience so I'd just have to totally throw myself in and try and get everything I can between now and summer probably so I can mention it on my PS which I'm willing to do. I've done some volunteering stints and stuff working with kids that isn't med related but maybe I could mention that?? Oh I'm also head boy and I'm really involved in school committees and debate and stuff if that means anything but since I'd have had a gap year before starting I'm not sure they'd be interested in that (plus it's not med related)
What I'm worried about is if it would look bad in my PS/interview to have only realised I wanted to medicine like a year ago (yeah it's been an consideration a couple times throughout my high school years but nothing came from it until now) even if I had done a bunch of work exp. If I was super passionate would that make up for it?
I kind of don't want to take a gap year but the other option would be getting a degree and applying for GEM which I don't really want to do as it wouldn't be covered by SAAS. Plus I know GEM is really competitive compared to the normal route whatever you call it.
Sorry I feell like this is a really jumpy post and doesn't make much sense. I guess what I want is advice based on my situation. Do I take a gap year and apply for 2027 entry? Is my choice reasonable/would I be hindered by the fact that I've not had my focus on medicine for years? I'd be so grateful for any help even just sharing your personal experience of deciding you wanna do medicine thanks
(sorry if this isn't the right thread btw im new to tsr)

It was only really a few weeks or smth before the early applicant deadline that things kind of clicked. Obv by that point it was too late for me to apply and now I'm not sure what to do.

I reckon I could also do decent on the UCAT if i prepped really well.

For med I also obv need work experience so I'd just have to totally throw myself in and try and get everything I can between now and summer probably so I can mention it on my PS which I'm willing to do.

I kind of don't want to take a gap year but the other option would be getting a degree and applying for GEM which I don't really want to do as it wouldn't be covered by SAAS. Plus I know GEM is really competitive compared to the normal route whatever you call it.

Do I take a gap year and apply for 2027 entry?

What I'm worried about is if it would look bad in my PS/interview to have only realised I wanted to medicine like a year ago (yeah it's been an consideration a couple times throughout my high school years but nothing came from it until now) even if I had done a bunch of work exp. If I was super passionate would that make up for it?

Hello, I am a Scottish applicant who applied and got into medicine last year and I would absolutely say you seem like a very strong and applicant and this year your aim should be to get high Bs or even As in all your subjects (this will make you more competitive) and apply next year, as another has already said, you have missed the application deadline this year.
Don’t worry about taking a gap year, lots of people take 1 gap year and I think it actually helps show develop maturity and experience. Plus you can probably work part time and save up some money. Your experiences from school, like being head boy and doing debating, etc. are definitely not irrelevant! In Medicine "soft skills" /transferable skills are very important and you can talk about how all these different extracurriculars have helped you develop skills that a good doctor needs.
Lastly, I will say absolutely do not worry about deciding that you want to do medicine late. I think there is too much pressure on students to decide what they want to do wayy too early. I would get some work experience and hopefully that will clarify the matter for you. You don't need to tell unis when you decided you want to do this course, just try and explain what about the job appeals to you. I think it's actually a bit ridiculous to have wanted to do medicine because of something that happened when you were 5 - it's much better to consider the job holistically as a mature person and make your decision that way.
Best of luck and feel free to ask if you have any more questions xx

You have 2 questions here, the first is do you take a gap year. Answer is yes. Do not start a degree you don't actually want to study. That's a long and potentially expensive journey to travel.
So:
- Gap year next yr
- Prep for UCAT
- Get good WEX
Second question is regarding PSs, I have reviewed quite a few medicine personal statements in recent years (including the ones for the current cycle). The best PSs do not mention when the applicant became interested. Some of them put in a childhood anecdote about a brother/sister/parent being ill and this inspired them (it's quite an overdone trope). But I always let out a little groan when I read any statement that opens with "I first realised I wanted to...". You don't need to write that, so if you're worried about a lack of conviction in your PS based on your late realisation, just don't mention it! Your PS will probably be better for it.

Thank you so much! I'll definitely make sure to get work exp and hopefully like you said that will clarify things a bit. Good to know my other experiences are not irrelevent too. I've heard people talk about how important it was to have med/healthcare/care/whatever experience if you want to apply to med so was worried that things other that that wouldn't matter much. I'll just make sure I relate the skills it gave me back to medicine (tbh for all degrees it seems like just stating activities is bad and you wanna reflect on them and how it relates to your course anyway)
Honestly even just nice to see another scottish applicant because like no one from my school has gone for medicine so I can't even ask anyone irl for advice 😭
If you don't mind me asking do you have any tips for advh biology? I saw you took it on your profile and got an A1. I love bio so much but the course is going so fast and we've got barely any teaching time (literally two taught periods per week) so any resources/tips/etc would be really appreciated

Hi everyone. This will probably be a long post so sorry about that. I really need some advice though.

I am a Scottish student in my last year of school (S6) and have kind of only just now come to the realisation that I want to study medicine.

It's been something I've gone back and forth over the years. I've always thought that it was something I'd enjoy and I've always thought it would be really interesting and up my street but I sort of dismissed it as I didn't think I was passionate enough and my interest fluctuated. I have always been under the assumption that the people who apply to med school have wanted to be a doctor for practically all of their life and love the job immensely. Because I was never that into it I kind of thought "oh well clearly im not interested enough to warrant all that time and effort"
(it probably didnt help that my only experience knowing somoene who got into med school wanted to be a doctor ever since her dad passed away when she was little)

It was only really a few weeks or smth before the early applicant deadline that things kind of clicked. Obv by that point it was too late for me to apply and now I'm not sure what to do. I was gonna apply for biology degrees at uni this year so idk if I should just apply anyway and see if I get offers because that pushes the decision making to later in the year?? Part of me is kind of worried abt throwing myself right into the "yeah i wanna do medicine" route in case I change my mind and screw myself over. The fact that I've not been invested in medicine for years really makes me worried about this being some sort of phase but also the idea of not going for medicine doesn't sit right with me

I got all As in nat 5 and all As in higher (I did english, maths, human bio, chem and computing). This year I'm taking two advanced highers and a higher (bio and maths advh and physics higher). From checking uni entry requirements (id only go scottish unis) I'm pretty sure I would be fine on that front as long as I do good in my advhs. I reckon I could also do decent on the UCAT if i prepped really well.

For med I also obv need work experience so I'd just have to totally throw myself in and try and get everything I can between now and summer probably so I can mention it on my PS which I'm willing to do. I've done some volunteering stints and stuff working with kids that isn't med related but maybe I could mention that?? Oh I'm also head boy and I'm really involved in school committees and debate and stuff if that means anything but since I'd have had a gap year before starting I'm not sure they'd be interested in that (plus it's not med related)

What I'm worried about is if it would look bad in my PS/interview to have only realised I wanted to medicine like a year ago (yeah it's been an consideration a couple times throughout my high school years but nothing came from it until now) even if I had done a bunch of work exp. If I was super passionate would that make up for it?

I kind of don't want to take a gap year but the other option would be getting a degree and applying for GEM which I don't really want to do as it wouldn't be covered by SAAS. Plus I know GEM is really competitive compared to the normal route whatever you call it.

Sorry I feell like this is a really jumpy post and doesn't make much sense. I guess what I want is advice based on my situation. Do I take a gap year and apply for 2027 entry? Is my choice reasonable/would I be hindered by the fact that I've not had my focus on medicine for years? I'd be so grateful for any help even just sharing your personal experience of deciding you wanna do medicine thanks

(sorry if this isn't the right thread btw im new to tsr)

No problem, glad to help. It's true there aren't too many Scottish students on here so I always try to chime in where I can lol.
As for AH bio, only two teaching periods a week is crazy!! I can definitely see why you are struggling.
You may have already done this but my first tip would be to download the course specs (search up sqa advanced higher biology course specifications and they should come up) and use them as your revision guide, they have everything that you need to know for the exam.
Then I would say that YouTube is your best freind (also for any other AHs, I found it rlly useful for maths). Search up Advanced Higher biology Playlist and videos of poeple explaining the course should come up - I would say specific channels, but mostly just go with the most recent one since they probably have the most up to date knowledge.
This will help to make sure you understand the content and I would also say since you mentioned you are finding the pace fast - try reading ahead and then you can use the two teaching periods you do have to ask your teachers questions for clarifying and explaining things.
Diagrams are also great for understanding things.
Aside from that I would highly recommend using active recall in your revision - flashcards and blurting. I used Anki for flashcards but you can also use quiz let, whatever works, or you can just rely on blurting (I mostly did that for AH since making flashcards takes too much time and I had 4 subjects lol) but the main things is TEST YOURSELF. Don't just passively read and make notes.
Also, try and do as many past papers as possible and start early. Especially for data analysis and experiment questions the best way to get good at them is practice and they make up way more of the paper. At AH the exam is far less about just blurting information and more about applying information - so you have to know it and be able to apply it which is what makes it hard.
Let me know if all of that is useful, feel free to ask any more questions. I didn’t cover the assignment either but I'd be happy to help with that too if you need it later on.

P. S. Another thing I didn't mention is I have my own online notes that I made for AH bio that I pass onto candidates sometimes, they cover everything I learned for the course. Definitely still use the course specs and don't rely on anything else, but if you want to message me I can send you a link to them as well.
JABChem is also really great for past papers though most ppl know abt it but just in case.

Is there any chance you could also send those notes to me aswell?, I’m also struggling with bio and what worked for me in higher (blurting) Irdk how to use with such a vast amount of information (of which idk what I even need to know), thanks.

Hi everyone. This will probably be a long post so sorry about that. I really need some advice though.
I am a Scottish student in my last year of school (S6) and have kind of only just now come to the realisation that I want to study medicine.
It's been something I've gone back and forth over the years. I've always thought that it was something I'd enjoy and I've always thought it would be really interesting and up my street but I sort of dismissed it as I didn't think I was passionate enough and my interest fluctuated. I have always been under the assumption that the people who apply to med school have wanted to be a doctor for practically all of their life and love the job immensely. Because I was never that into it I kind of thought "oh well clearly im not interested enough to warrant all that time and effort"
(it probably didnt help that my only experience knowing somoene who got into med school wanted to be a doctor ever since her dad passed away when she was little)
It was only really a few weeks or smth before the early applicant deadline that things kind of clicked. Obv by that point it was too late for me to apply and now I'm not sure what to do. I was gonna apply for biology degrees at uni this year so idk if I should just apply anyway and see if I get offers because that pushes the decision making to later in the year?? Part of me is kind of worried abt throwing myself right into the "yeah i wanna do medicine" route in case I change my mind and screw myself over. The fact that I've not been invested in medicine for years really makes me worried about this being some sort of phase but also the idea of not going for medicine doesn't sit right with me
I got all As in nat 5 and all As in higher (I did english, maths, human bio, chem and computing). This year I'm taking two advanced highers and a higher (bio and maths advh and physics higher). From checking uni entry requirements (id only go scottish unis) I'm pretty sure I would be fine on that front as long as I do good in my advhs. I reckon I could also do decent on the UCAT if i prepped really well.
For med I also obv need work experience so I'd just have to totally throw myself in and try and get everything I can between now and summer probably so I can mention it on my PS which I'm willing to do. I've done some volunteering stints and stuff working with kids that isn't med related but maybe I could mention that?? Oh I'm also head boy and I'm really involved in school committees and debate and stuff if that means anything but since I'd have had a gap year before starting I'm not sure they'd be interested in that (plus it's not med related)
What I'm worried about is if it would look bad in my PS/interview to have only realised I wanted to medicine like a year ago (yeah it's been an consideration a couple times throughout my high school years but nothing came from it until now) even if I had done a bunch of work exp. If I was super passionate would that make up for it?
I kind of don't want to take a gap year but the other option would be getting a degree and applying for GEM which I don't really want to do as it wouldn't be covered by SAAS. Plus I know GEM is really competitive compared to the normal route whatever you call it.
Sorry I feell like this is a really jumpy post and doesn't make much sense. I guess what I want is advice based on my situation. Do I take a gap year and apply for 2027 entry? Is my choice reasonable/would I be hindered by the fact that I've not had my focus on medicine for years? I'd be so grateful for any help even just sharing your personal experience of deciding you wanna do medicine thanks
(sorry if this isn't the right thread btw im new to tsr)