2019 -- medicine - Dd awaiting updates from university

[Monica53]

Hi

Our Dd has had a few interviews for medicine Bristol bring her first choice, however she is getting very anxious about it all? It's along way from home, should I take a year out at work as possibly HCA and gain experience though then hard to a get into uni after that?.
She also works p/t to help her own finances as we aren't well off.

Anyone got any advice or words of wisdom. She didn't apply for uni at home even though it was suggested!. Second thoughts or general worry?

Thank you for reading x

[HostessTrolley]

Has she had any offers of a place yet?

It’s normal for them to feel scared and apprehensive whatever subject they’ve applied for. So much stress and pressure for the upcoming exams, the medicine application process is a nightmare in itself, leaving home, leaving school and going into a completely new environment- so much change. My d is also a medicine applicant, a mixture of excitement, stress and nerves. Not to mention ‘am I good enough? What if I can’t cope? What if I can’t make friends? My d has also had a job all the way through sixth form as well, lots work and it’s giid for them in a lot of ways.

How she’s feeling is normal.

My d’s plan if she doesn’t get in is to work in a healthcare setting for a year and reapply as there’s nothing else she wants to do. Having said that she has offers now, so not getting in would mean that she hadn’t got the grades which would make things complicated.

Have you spotted the medicine 2019 thread here? There’s also a medicine 2018 thread which might be worth a read as I bet many of the young people who are first year medics now were feeling exactly the same this time last year x

[HarryTheSteppenwolf]

There are a few separate issues here.

How far away from home is Bristol? Are any of the other places she's had interviews easier to get to? She might want to look at the courses & universities again to work out where she could imagine herself studying if she gets offers.

It is not harder to get in to medical school applying during a gap year, particularly if working in healthcare. However, giving up any offers from this year to reapply next year would be a big gamble. It would be worthwhile to get her to think very carefully if/when she receives an offer.

If she is good at organizing her time (and doesn't need huge amounts of sleep) there's no reason why she shouldn't work part-time while at medical school. Lots of our students do it.

[Monica53]

Hi Harry- thank you for replying- Bristol is 5hrs away from home. She is waiting to hear from Nottingham ?

The gap year is an option working in health care to gain experience, not sure how it would effect uni for following year and if she got offers this year if it could be deferred? Apologies this is all new to me.

DD was advised to apply for uni at home though totally said no? As teens do not listening to parents? Reckon she wishes she had?

[WH1SPERS]

Your dd has done very well to get several interviews. Many well qualified applicants get one or even none.

Please try not to worry . If she is old enough to and smart enough to get into medicine then she will cope fine with living 5 hours away.

As a PP said, it would be very foolish to turn down any offers she gets this year in order to take a gap year.

If she gets an offer and if / when she gets her grades, she can always ask if they will let her defer. The answer will probably be no, but it doesn’t hurt to ask.

The time apply for a deferred place was September last year when she put in her UCAS form to her school and discussed her application with her school referee.

There’s nothing she can do about it now. Just let her focus on her work and getting the grades she needs.

It’s normal to be anxious but you need to help her stay calm , even if you don’t feel it.

[HarryTheSteppenwolf]

If she gets an offer this year and would like to defer to next year, the time to ask is as soon as possible after receiving the offer. The medical school might say no but if they think they can fill the extra place for 2019 by making one or two extra offers they might be willing to let her defer, although they might well want to know what she's planning to do with the year and why she didn't apply for deferred entry in the first place. The later it gets, the more likely they are to say no. This is because offering the 2019 place to someone else becomes more complicated. If she waits until after A-level results are published they will almost certainly say no.

She does need to think carefully about what it will be like to spend a year working at home before going to university, especially if many of her friends are moving away. Five years at medical school can feel like a long time, anyway, when your friends are graduating and earning money while you still have two more years to go. If your friends are graduating while you still have three more years to go, it can get a bit demoralizing.

[Monica53]

Thank you for advice etc, DD has discussed with friends etc and will wait and see if she gets offers.

We have said she obviously has skills to get to interview stage, however she needs to concentrate and manage her time on run up to A level exams as time is sort.

It all seems a bit of a mine field, however if she wants to be in medicine she will have to get used to hard work, and this is again another discussion we have all had,also that it is not out of the question of working PT whilst at uni, as we know many people whose kids of studied and had to work to assist in living costs.

Thank you again

[mumsneedwine]

Just a note of caution about working during term time as a medic. They have long days in lectures and practicals and my DD's timetable varies every week so would be hard to commit. Also there is a lot of work !! Mine intends to work lots over the summer to earn some cash but no way could she work while at Uni.

[2B1Gmum]

Just visiting after a long break, was one of last years anxious mothers. I saw a post on this thread asking about dd taking a year out in which to apply and I can see many advantages to that strategy. As my old friends from last year will know my dd found herself in fab and surprising position of three offers (invited to 4 interviews but turned down last as she was very happy with her first offer). She had a solid UKCAT score, good gsces, and o believe an interesting ps etc. Tbh I tried to talk her out of medicine, she had recently diagnosed health issues and an eyesight problem that we thought could be problematic (no med school info but at an offer day we’re told she would have to Declare it and have some minor adjustments made). Of course her experience as a patient may well have helped at MMI. Sadly the one area we trusted the school with let her down and she missed the required grades.

I think about it still and I should have trusted my gut instinct that the school who were only in the third year of a levels, were not on track. Change of teachers, resignations and disappearing teachers in her subjects did not help. 2 girls got offers, neither got the grades. Although One who didn’t apply on advice of the school did get the grades and my DD took time out to meet with her and give her advice on her application.

Dd decided to go for pharmacology in clearing and is getting very good results in exams - she had completely lost confidence and she is getting it back now. It is an interesting and academically rigorous course, with a handful of other previous medicine applicants. Some may try post grad. But for now dd is loving student life and medicinal pharmacology and something else about Nuero biology?🤔.

It is a stressful year, for all those with or without offers - make sure your DCs work as hard as they can to get the grades - it will keep doors open or maybe open some that you thought were shut. There are medicine places in clearing! Good luck.

[2B1Gmum]

apologies for typos, was on the tube and the ticket collector came along half way through my message, ticket is on my phone and I had a mild panic about how that worked!