Medicine application

[MauAnt]

Hello all
My daughter in L6 is considering applying for Medicine. She got 11A*s at GCSE and is doing Maths, Further Maths, Chemistry, Physics and Biology. She had wanted to do French but I discouraged her and now she thinks that she is at a disadvantage for medical school because she does not have a contrasting subject to science to show essay writing, breadth, all roundness and her ability outside Science and Maths. Won't her ability show in her GCSE results and is she really at a disadvantage for not taking a non science subject at A level?

Very useful link Dapoxen and shocking to see how many rejections despite ticking the seemingly right boxes!!!

@Dapoxen: thanks for the applicant profiles link, DD & I spent ages on that.

My DS did Maths, Biology, Chemistry and choose History rather than Further Maths for As thinking it would help demonstrate his well-roundness. He did get 2 interviews and into an excellent medical school, but with hindsight it would been a much more sensible and logical option to have not done History.

DD did Maths, Further Maths, Chemistry and German. She dropped Biology after AS and was aware that Maths and FM would be classed as one A level by most.

Oddly, one of her offers was for an A and a B (this was 5 years ago) in Chemistry and German because that particular med school was happy with the Maths from the year before, despite saying in the prospectus that all subjects must be passed in the same exam cycle, or whatever the form of words was.

Although Biology was not a requirement she does concede that the first year would have been easier if she had completed the entire A level course.

I agree with all others who have said that you must check current requirements very carefully.

Regarding work experience, DD had very little. This was partly because we are out in the sticks and partly because of her age. Insurance issues for under 18s seemed to be a huge sticking point. At interview the interest seemed to be on anything she had done in a teaching role such as being an au pair, mentoring younger, less able pupils in science classes and the like.

SilverBirch my DS did History alongside the three sciences because he enjoyed it, rather than to consciously demonstrate any roundedness. He got three offers out of three interviews (Oxford, Imperial, Birmingham). I don't think either lack of Maths, let alone Further Maths, proved a disadvantage, nor the presence of History.

Molly, great stealth boast there! My son did History because he enjoyed it (& an opportunity to go on a fantastic school trip to Russia), however it was a lot of work fo him on top of everything else he was doing and for him Further Maths would have been a much easier option. Each individual is different, and I suspect there is not actually an ideal combination.

I am however concerned that some on this thread seems to be suggesting to the uninitiated that Chem and Maths are not pretty essential. The vast majority of Med Schools are looking for them and it would be pretty silly to limit your options in such a competitive application process.

SilverBirch I'm merely countering your inference that the fact of taking History somehow damaged your DS's application and to be fair you did say his motive in taking it was to 'help demonstrate his well roundness', which is a bad reason to take a subject. Chemistry is essential almost everywhere, but maths isn't. If it was, DS wouldn't have got three good offers. That's not a stealth boast or even a straight boast, it's just a fact.

I'm probably 4 or 5 years out of date, but certainly Maths was considered essential for a couple of those mentioned on your list. A number of Med Schools did take without, but you had to do an additional module in your first year to get up to the level needed beyond GCSE? It just goes to show you need to read the current admission criteria carefully to ensure you know what's what.

I do realise my earlier post could be read that way, because that's what it said!

DS hasn't had to do any additional modules at Oxford SilverBirch. He had to think quite hard before statistics came easily I remember him saying, but nothing more onerous than that.