Medicine 2019 - Part 2

[Monkey2001]

Oops, looks like none of noticed the old thread was full!

@HostessTrolley @Hoodiemum @4catsham @mamamedic @medicmom @mimiasovitch @Nightowlpossibly @ProfessorLayton1 @Tinkobell @Weaverspin @Itsthekissing @Sluj @Mumneedswine @Movingmountains

Apologies to any regulars I have missed

Does anybody know anything about studying medicine in Southern Ireland? A neighbour suggested DS should look into it. It looks like they do not interview, no PS and selection just by academics. Only 3K euros a year if BREXIT does not change things.

We are too late for a 2019 start, but DS considering doing it alongside a UK application next year as an insurance policy.

I know a little about Southern Ireland and Med School..first of all you are correct no interview etc but HPAT aptitude test usually done Jan /Feb of year of application I think ...applications via
Central Applications Office
www.cao.ie..you ll find lots of relevant information here. Its seriously competitive as there are are a limited amount of Medical Schools ,Trinity College Dublin,University College Dublin, Royal College of Surgeons (Dublin),University College Cork and University College Galway . Unsure as to exact grade requirements but will be high as in Ireland most students study 7 to 8 subjects for their leaving certificate which converts into a score/points system, Medicine points always high due to demand! Often students repeat their final exams to have another go at getting THE grades. Well worth considering though with fees etc..Dd had a brief flirtation with the idea but then dropped 4th A level subject before AS so meant her grades would not be near enough sufficient, then the idea of another aptitude test after Christmas as well as everything else was another issue 🤯. With final exams already achieved its certainly worth looking at. Obviously there are HPAT prep courses available...a quick google search would give you ideas of dates and locations. Maybe a nice trip on the cards to investigate the 3 main cities and Universities could be on the cards post exams for you!!!!😎☘🎉

Does anyone have any idea whether it's the norm for how to charge potential med students for the necessary vaccinations, or whether it's up to the individual surgery to waive the fees or not? She's been given the costs, and they're a bit steep for her (and us, thank you new boiler).

Has anyone here had a Manchester offer? We are still awaiting Bristol but am slightly anxious about accommodation for Manchester if he has to wait much longer. Have asked DSS if he has heard anything but he's in a grunting phase at the moment 😁🙄

We looked at Southern Ireland when DD was applying, and had she needed to reapply she probably would have applied there is parallel.

Things may have changed, though I doubt it. DD would have needed four A levels and a language at GCSE, and probably 3AA to be in Dublin, or perhaps 2A2A for somewhere like Galway. (If depends slightly on how well you do in the Irish equivalent of UKCAT.)

But no other hurdles. No PS, no interview, no work experience, no contextualisation, etc.

If you don't have a language (which I think Malta also requires) Malaysia, and a medical school which links with the UK or ROI might be worth looking at. Nottingham has a joint scheme with someone, and a Malaysian friend's son is currently in Ireland having a ball.

Mimiasovitch only know a little about Hep B.. my friends daughter /friend had to find a place to do vaccinations privately so had first two hep b vaccines before heading to Uni last year.Her GP s Surgery told her it was up to the Uni to sort it out, the Med School paperwork told her she needed it doing so she had to find a travel clinic and book in there!! Then the University Occupational health people were going to administer the third dose . It does however seem to depend on the University .Others may have had different experiences. At Gps they were told there was a shortage of Hep b vaccine but no problem finding it privately though!🙄

Itsthekissing- My DD has a Manchester offer. Her interview was on 9th jan, got offer a couple of weeks after that.

This week she received an information pack from them, don't know if accommodation applications were included, she is probably going to reject their offer so didn't enquire.

@Monkey2001 Do you know stats for how many UK candidates they have accepted in previous years? I am from Northern Ireland so have very little knowledge of the Southern Irish system but I would suspect that Irish universities will strongly favour their "own" candidates. If there are very few places compared to the number of applicants (I suspect Irish medicine hopefuls are coming to UK universities to study) then I'm not sure the benefit to "Ireland" of training a UK candidate at a cost far exceeding the tuition fees who will almost certainly look to return to the UK when qualified. From my experience Ireland favours home grown talent.
Sorry to be so negative but it would be a shame to make a huge investment of time and energy if it had little chance of being fruitful.

Ladsmum, ROI trains med students from across the EU, North America and also Asia. They have a high proportion of foreign students. EU law requires them to give equal consideration to EU students.

This, like in the UK, potentially provides a problem as each country will want to train sufficient numbers who are likely to stay in the country after graduation (there are some specific problems with medical training in France and Italy and probably elsewhere which makes the UK/ROI attractive). They wont want their own students crowded out.

Hence, I assume the strict requirements. All ROI students take a language. The school leaving cert is much broader than A levels. So they ask for 4 A levels and a language which automatically rules out a lot of Brits.

Actually Ireland would be interesting. US drugs companies need to do research and trials in the EU and an lot of this has gone to the ROI. So places like Galway offer more research than you might expect. DD was genuinely interested.

www.rcsi.com/dublin/undergraduate/medicine/entry-requirements

Re Irish Med School..Royal College of surgeons specific for anyone intetested . Irish leaving Certificate jas 3 core subjects ..Irish ,English and Maths then the others are opt in/personal choice

Thanks all for the Irish knowledge. DS did AS Biology and dropped it for A2, so he will have enough points if he gets 3As and the thought of not having to rely on interview performance after this years experience is very appealing. He would have to do a language GCSE so we need to find out whether it is acceptable if he does that next year. Not exactly enthusiastic about another* aptitude test, but he is good enough at those, so it should be fine.

Don't get any vaccinations before start. All medical schools send students to occupational help and any jabs not up to date are given for free. They are human pin cushions for a few weeks

Hi all, sorry been offline for sometime. We lost a family member end of year and now have another now v ill ☹️....so we certainly need a doctor or budding oncologists over here pleeaase! Re: Ireland, we've a family member at Trinity, loves it. Re: Jabs DD is an utter wimp and loathes having them (that'll have to change 😁) so we've been gradually bringing these up to date and filling any gaps. GP practise nurse will provide a dated printout showing Jan history plus so will school so hopefully this will minimise the need for repeat jabs at uni. @Ladsmum.....which halls did he plump for at Sheffield.....interested as we need to pull finger out on this soon post visit I hope.

@Tinkobell. DS went for Yarncliffe. He wanted ensuite in Endcliffe. It seems Ranmoor and City can be a bit tame. We ruled out Derwent and Howden ("party flats" apparently- probably not a great idea if he wants to pass first year). Yarncliffe and Froggatt are close to the lake but not too far to walk to Uni. What are your thoughts?

@lads...well not sure TIL we get there but I did contact accoms peeps as I know DD will literally want to lie in TIL last possible second before getting to Med school. They said Ranmore and Endcliffe were most closely located to med school. My impression is halls at Sheffield are like mini villages ie big. At Notts they’re not really too far apart - certainly on a bike not a major issue.

Tinkobell, sorry to hear your sad news. Are you taking up.the free Open Day accommodation offer when you go?

Our neighbour said that medicine at Trinity is not so lively socially due to high number in international students who tend to mix less than their European counterparts. DS is not a big partier, but does want a social life! Do you know anything about how your family member feels about that aspect of Trinity? Thanks!

@ItsTheKissing, no worry about accommodation at Manchester, places are allocated very late, I think end of August last year.

@ladsmum and @tinkobekk my DS is in Yarncliffe- he chose it for same reasons as your DS @ladsmum 😂. All the Endcliffe accommodation is pretty similar and as most of the students are there they have a ball! The lake seems to attract late night swimming 🙄. I thought it was quite expensive (but DS1 was at Manchester in Oak house which is really cheap) and think it is quite standard. However for second year DS is going into a shared house (9 medics) and is only 95 a week including all bills. It is a lovely house near Endcliffe and the med school. I think most medics choose Endcliffe as it is so convenient for med school. DS walks so no bus fairs 😊

Thanks @Monkey for kind thoughts. Re: Trinity our relative is an EU not a Britt and yes v international overall, they're not a party person. Not doing medicine there but works and studies which has combined v well. Did you look at Dundee at all?

@moving ....late night swimming is the kind of parent worry I definitely don't need to hear about right now. ☹️ Yarncliffe sounds v nice we will go take a look. Do they share a bathroom? I thought £7k per annum for others and no food was a bit £££ actually.

Sorry to hear about your family news @tinkobell

Dd got an email from Nottingham offering her a place for medicine on the Lincoln pathway, which she knows very little about. She can’t find out what the grade requirement is as track is down. She’s going to do some reading, but i think she’s likely to turn it down, and put Sheffield as her insurance - with still no decision received from kings.

Does anyone have any thoughts on Lincoln or go to any of the open days?

Lincoln is a beautiful city and currently used by Nottingham as one of their placements. Halls are brand new and lots of money being spent on the Uni - DDs friend is there doing science and she loves it. Be worth a look (although Sheffield was DDs insurance too)

And think Lincoln were offering AAB. So might be worth a look.

My very basic understanding is that it’s being set up as a stand-alone med school but with the curriculum and support of Nottingham - in much the same way that the new Kent med school will be supported by BSMS next year. I have been to Lincoln (used to live up in Hull) and I do like the city.

She is glad to have heard from them and happy to have an offer, but her instinct is that she’d prefer Sheffield if she missed her imperial offer. She really likes what she saw last weekend, and has just discovered that there’s a direct train from Sheffield to oxford (boyfriend 🙄) that takes two hours.

Thanks @hostess. I’m afraid I don’t know much about the Lincoln Notts set up, so not fair to comment....