Im so confused

2

guys i do A level mathematics, chemistry and biology i do alright at school and im working at a Astar in Biology, B in chem and a Bplus close to a A in maths. My plan was always to go into medicine into dermatology but the more i look into it the more i see how dumb i am and how much motivation i actually need i serious doubt i could eveer have the motivation or even passion in a career like that, i recentlyn got in A level maths and im thinking of going into a degree of finance but to be honest ive never truly been facinated with maths im alright not outstanding and its never really appealed to me. Lets say i do go intom medicine though im in year 12 and everywhere online tells me i should start preparing if i do go into medicine. How should i even prepare for that??? my dream is to go to a top university though like Cambridge or Oxford or even LSE. How should i prepare if i want to go to top unis in yr12??? im broke and i aint hella smart just enough. My Gcses were mid too guys i got 7 in math, 8 and 7 english, 6 and 6 in triple chem and bio. Do i have any hope in getting into Oxbridge????

Reply 1

DerDracologe

Study Forum Helper

20

Sounds to me like you need to explore your interests a bit further, from your post you dont really seem to have much actual enthusiasm for any of your options

Reply 2

AklemaIslam

OP

2

Original post

by DerDracologe

Sounds to me like you need to explore your interests a bit further, from your post you dont really seem to have much actual enthusiasm for any of your options

yeh i dont but i have tried exploring my options and it didnt exactly interest me alot its just for the aethetics like wow doctor wow fiance bro nothing really interests me i dont know what to do what can i even go into???? that still STEM based for my parents??? also thanks so much for replying i really wanna figure everything out before its too late for me to actually go into medicine hearttt

Reply 3

DerDracologe

Study Forum Helper

20

Original post

by AklemaIslam

yeh i dont but i have tried exploring my options and it didnt exactly interest me alot its just for the aethetics like wow doctor wow fiance bro nothing really interests me i dont know what to do what can i even go into???? that still STEM based for my parents??? also thanks so much for replying i really wanna figure everything out before its too late for me to actually go into medicine hearttt

Dw, its tricky finding what youre really interested in!
Are there any topics youve done in any of your classes that you really enjoyed? Any careers youve looked at and actually thought youve love spending your life doing that, regardless of reputation or money? Read any books or watched any documentaries that you thought were really interesting?
Idk if this is the case for you but i see a lot of people thinking that their only option with chem and bio a levels is healthcare- have you thought broader into life sciences? Im a bit biased cos i love ecology but i honestly think that if youve worked hard enough to be getting an A* in bio then you might have at least some interest in it, even if that doesnt translate to med.

Reply 4

normaw

20

Original post

by AklemaIslam

guys i do A level mathematics, chemistry and biology i do alright at school and im working at a Astar in Biology, B in chem and a Bplus close to a A in maths. My plan was always to go into medicine into dermatology but the more i look into it the more i see how dumb i am and how much motivation i actually need i serious doubt i could eveer have the motivation or even passion in a career like that, i recentlyn got in A level maths and im thinking of going into a degree of finance but to be honest ive never truly been facinated with maths im alright not outstanding and its never really appealed to me. Lets say i do go intom medicine though im in year 12 and everywhere online tells me i should start preparing if i do go into medicine. How should i even prepare for that??? my dream is to go to a top university though like Cambridge or Oxford or even LSE. How should i prepare if i want to go to top unis in yr12??? im broke and i aint hella smart just enough. My Gcses were mid too guys i got 7 in math, 8 and 7 english, 6 and 6 in triple chem and bio. Do i have any hope in getting into Oxbridge????

If you are keen on med and/or Oxbridge, you need to get going with your supercurriculars now so that you are ready to apply by the October deadline. Have a look at the medicine tab on the following link from Cambridge - the suggestions are good for all unis:

https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/apply/before/improve-application

Reply 5

martin7

20

Original post

by AklemaIslam

... that still STEM based for my parents???

You need to pick a degree and then a career (or in some cases, the career and the degree that's required for it) that's right for you -- it's you that's going to need to do the studying and then embark on a career, not your parents.

You don't need to go straight from school/college to university. If you're not sure what you want to study, then it's fine to take a year (or more) out from education and then go to university later.

Reply 6

username7882045

2

Stop thinking and just do.

Reply 7

UEA Rep Fatma

Official Rep

11

Original post

by AklemaIslam

guys i do A level mathematics, chemistry and biology i do alright at school and im working at a Astar in Biology, B in chem and a Bplus close to a A in maths. My plan was always to go into medicine into dermatology but the more i look into it the more i see how dumb i am and how much motivation i actually need i serious doubt i could eveer have the motivation or even passion in a career like that, i recentlyn got in A level maths and im thinking of going into a degree of finance but to be honest ive never truly been facinated with maths im alright not outstanding and its never really appealed to me. Lets say i do go intom medicine though im in year 12 and everywhere online tells me i should start preparing if i do go into medicine. How should i even prepare for that??? my dream is to go to a top university though like Cambridge or Oxford or even LSE. How should i prepare if i want to go to top unis in yr12??? im broke and i aint hella smart just enough. My Gcses were mid too guys i got 7 in math, 8 and 7 english, 6 and 6 in triple chem and bio. Do i have any hope in getting into Oxbridge????

Hey @AklemaIslam 🙂
You've had some great advice already, here some things I would add.

Before you pick a degree/career you need to know it is right for you and that you will enjoy it. I appreciate this is hard to figure out and you are not the only one!
I originally applied to chemistry, but realised I also wanted to study biology alongside it, and so I switched to Natural Sciences. I actually changed my mind after I attended an applicant day, so I know how hard it is to decide!

With medicine you need to apply earlier and so you need to figure out what you would enjoy most.
I would highly recommend you actively seek out opportunities to see what medicine (and any other career ideas) is like. You can do this through;

•

Open days at university. Look at the open days before October (most will be around July & September time) and go to them. Speak to students on the day who are doing medicine, finance etc.. and ask them any questions you have.

•

Some universities have the option for you to speak to students online, for example UEA has the Unibuddy website where you can chat to current students. This is another fantastic way to get your answers answered by someone actually doing the course. This can help you to clarify if medicine/finance is the right path for you.

•

Try to seek out internships/shadowing opportunities. I appreciate this is hard, but especially for medicine, having that real-life experience can put things into perspective and it will reveal whether you want to pursue that career or not pretty quickly. For this, you can email any firms or GPs etc... and ask if they will take you on - even for just a few days. Do be prepared to not get a response however!

Another thing I wanted to say is that you do not need to be smart to pursue a career you like. You need to genuinely like your career and have some form of discipline. Motivation does help, but being disciplined is what will drive you forward with your goals when motivation inevitably dips. With that being said, before the October deadline you should aim to figure out what career path you would enjoy most, and then try to pro-actively seek out opportunities to help you stand out when applying to universities.

I hope this helps, let me know if you have any questions! 🙂
Fatma.

Reply 8

Kingston Trenyce

Official Rep

11

Original post

by AklemaIslam

guys i do A level mathematics, chemistry and biology i do alright at school and im working at a Astar in Biology, B in chem and a Bplus close to a A in maths. My plan was always to go into medicine into dermatology but the more i look into it the more i see how dumb i am and how much motivation i actually need i serious doubt i could eveer have the motivation or even passion in a career like that, i recentlyn got in A level maths and im thinking of going into a degree of finance but to be honest ive never truly been facinated with maths im alright not outstanding and its never really appealed to me. Lets say i do go intom medicine though im in year 12 and everywhere online tells me i should start preparing if i do go into medicine. How should i even prepare for that??? my dream is to go to a top university though like Cambridge or Oxford or even LSE. How should i prepare if i want to go to top unis in yr12??? im broke and i aint hella smart just enough. My Gcses were mid too guys i got 7 in math, 8 and 7 english, 6 and 6 in triple chem and bio. Do i have any hope in getting into Oxbridge????

Hi, Medicine is intense and requires massive motivation. You need to love it because it's 5-6 years of study + placements plus exams like a UCAT/BMAT. Start early UCAT/BMAT prep: These entrances exams for most UK med schools. I would advise practice using online formats: https://www.ucat.ac.uk/.

Trenyce (kingston rep)

Reply 9

normaw

20

Just to note that BMAT is no longer required for a medicine application. The majority of UK unis require UCAT.

Reply 10

13343213

11

Original post

by AklemaIslam

guys i do A level mathematics, chemistry and biology i do alright at school and im working at a Astar in Biology, B in chem and a Bplus close to a A in maths. My plan was always to go into medicine into dermatology but the more i look into it the more i see how dumb i am and how much motivation i actually need i serious doubt i could eveer have the motivation or even passion in a career like that, i recentlyn got in A level maths and im thinking of going into a degree of finance but to be honest ive never truly been facinated with maths im alright not outstanding and its never really appealed to me. Lets say i do go intom medicine though im in year 12 and everywhere online tells me i should start preparing if i do go into medicine. How should i even prepare for that??? my dream is to go to a top university though like Cambridge or Oxford or even LSE. How should i prepare if i want to go to top unis in yr12??? im broke and i aint hella smart just enough. My Gcses were mid too guys i got 7 in math, 8 and 7 english, 6 and 6 in triple chem and bio. Do i have any hope in getting into Oxbridge????

"the more i look into it the more i see how dumb i am" You won't be going anywhere with that mentality.
Medicine at Oxbridge is brutally competitive and I do not think your GCSEs could help you. I am unsure for LSE though - as far as I know, Oxbridge are the ones who really use GCSEs as a part of determining your suitability for the course.
I could be wrong though as medicine is bound to be competitive everywhere.
Start revising for your UCAT now. If you do not think you can get the predicted grades you need for medicine, either take a gap year (though you must do something productive in it, otherwise unis will be much more hesitant to take you in) or pivot entirely. You can always do medicine postgrad. You do not have to go into it in undergrad. An A* in biology is very impressive. Did you look into biomedicine? You can do medicine postgrad from that.

Though I will be honest and agree with the other commenters. It does not really sound like the course appeals to you. You do not have to be "hella smart" because anybody can get lovely grades. However, you must be prepared for 5-6 years of absolute commitment. You will NOT make it through medicine easily if you have no love and no passion for the course. Please don't beat yourself down. From the way you condescend yourself I would've assumed you're working at all Es. A* BB is not bad, and AAA + grades are very much on the table for you.

You can do dermatology. You just need to worry about your UCAT and grades first. ❣️

There are many alternative courses you can do with your A-levels. Are you fascinated with biology, judging from that A*? You could look into that.

You are doing the course. Not your parents. You are going to be the one to deal with the workload and the responsibility. They have no say in determining your future.

I wish you well ❣️

Im so confused

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