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

Oh gosh, Monkey, isn't that so ridiculously unfair? MMIs clearly test BS skills rather than integrity...
Thanks for your POV of Sheffield, and thank you Hostess, too. Looking at schools was a bit the same. Are you looking for a school that puts on a good Open Day, or a good school for your child? Not always the same thing.

@hoodiemum - I’m not looking for a school for her - she is! Ultimately it’s her view that counts, it’s her decision to make. She felt that the med school was great but that the uni outside of the medical school felt less welcoming. It’s not just about the open day, it’s also the environment in general. She prefers Nottingham to Sheffield, her brother had a great 4 years there which helps, but she hasn’t yet heard back from them and her interview was a long time ago.

She went to the UCL open day with the intention of applying there but didn’t like the vibe, but went to the imperial one just tagging along with friends but loved it - she’s planning to firm her offer there. She’s also waiting to hear from KCL but their standard offer is the same as imperial, which she preferred.

@Hoodie...Sheffield started as an after thought for my DD and I had to persuade her to go to the open day. For all of our open days, it was pissing it down with rain and we invariably ended up walking the back route using google maps along busy flyovers or past strip clubs not having a bloody clue 😂 The Julian talk at Sheffield was good. Actually he presented a slide showing career routes from Medicine which was a real eye opener ....no other uni had done that, just mainly focussing on being a jobbing doctor. DD really wants dissection. She loved the vibe of the place, the active med soc and union...she's a big hiker so Peaks are a plus....but also the hope and promise of a place where you could realistically stay on and build a life so to speak.

Sorry @Hoodie...post was for @Hostess.....all these H's doing my head in!

Hostess, just to clarify I was talking about back in the day, looking at secondary schools (the oversubscribed ones with better reputations often made less effort with open days). If you met my DD, you would be under no illusions whatsoever that anyone but she would be choosing where to go to uni!

Thanks, Tinkobell. That's really interesting about the staying put afterwards. I agree that's a very appealing prospect, and ties in with what Monkey was saying about graduates staying in the area. DD1 looked at that quite carefully when choosing her (non-medicine) options, but there are so many other things to bear in mind with medicine that it's been rather forgotten this time around.

Thanks, all!

@hoodiemum - I think they all need a certain level of bloodymindedness to get to this point 😂

@swingofthings thanks for the offer of info re: Manchester; hope your DD is enjoying it there? I'm sure I will be asking you lots of things shortly

Had a rejection from Birmingham and still waiting for Bristol (which is his first choice). However, he is now getting more excited about Manchester; just having one offer has boosted his confidence and he feels like he has something to aim for now.

@hoodiemum my DS in first year at Sheffield. It was going to be his insurance but when he went to applicant day he loved it so much he decided to put it first choice. He says that because it is quite a small city night life is more concentrated in one area I think. The student union is also really good. He says the course is so big that it is easy to find friends. He is having time of his life. They also do a lot of clinical - he goes to s GP once a fortnight. They have a patient they visit in the community as well. He also did two weeks on a hospital placement - for first year I think this is a lot. Maybe the applicant day is worth visiting?

Prof Layton- glad your DD is ok about birmingham. My DD felt like that about manchester, but I know lots of people loved manchester.

It's lovely that your DD can go to UCL with good friends for that initial familiarity until she settles in and gets to know more people.

My DD has said the same thing about leaving school. She will be happy to leave behind most of the kids at school that she has known since primary, She is looking forward to meeting new people and making new friendships as the person she has matured into now, rather than just being the kid every one has known since they were all five years old. I suspect a lot of of them feel that way, and are ready to move on.

We have our fingers crossed for UCL, but DD found it harder than the MMI interviews, so not sure how well she has done. Also she has 3 offers already, to get a 4th would be absolutely amazing. So she almost feels like she is due a rejection. She is trying not to get her hopes up too much, and is grateful to have the offers she has.

Will be glad when we finally hear, as she can then make her choices, and focus on getting those grades. Apart from the small matter of her driving test in a couple of weeks! 😊

DS found out that he got gold in Chemistry Olympiad today. Nice to have some success after all those rejections!

That's fantastic Monkey. He sounds like he's taking everything in his stride, which will stand him in great stead in the future.

monkey that is amazing! Very impressive! He should be very proud of himself.

Clever mini Monkey! Well done him. Hope it's a portent of more good things to come.

Any advice ... DS got put in Winter Pool for Cambridge Medicine but didn't get a place, on hold with Bristol at the moment, turn down by Cardiff but told to phone on Aug 15 with his results as they might then have a place. It's like playing poker! Many of the Universities said you will probably get a place in the end.... He got an outstanding UKCAT score too. Everyone else seems to be getting offers. Hope will be OK in the end.......

We have a Bristol offer!!!! She is screeching the house down now. Also it's AAC or ABB, so better than the AAA for Cardiff. Off to find some champers

mimia - hurray!! If you want any Bristol advice (city and university, not medicine), I would be happy to help.

MaggieLk - that is quite close to our experience, although DS has the 4 rejections. I think some boys may find it more difficult to come across well in interviews if they are not naturally chatty. We are becoming increasingly keen on a year out as DS would like to have another go at Cambridge with the experience of an application cycle and a bit more life experience.

Maggie sorry to hear about your DS.

DD applied last year, so I was avidly reading all tsr threads then. What I learnt is that Bristol can keep people on hold for ages - until May, so don't give up. Other places may give out really late offers once they have heard back from everyone - they don't want any empty spaces and it seems most places would rather offer to someone they have already interviewed than set up new interviews (although some do). If that doesn't happen, it is worth ringing on results day, so make sure he does his best to get 3As. I personally know 3 people who had offers last year and dropped one grade and didn't get accepted, so it can happen!

Is he waiting to hear back from a 4th place?

Have all the phone numbers ready on results day. Probably 1st call those where you were interviewed and then others and be prepared for a short notice interview and have ukcat and bmat scores to hand

I hope he manages to keep motivated. It's such a stressful process

Yes my son is not naturally chatty which may be an issue.
The comment about them wanting to revisit those that have interviewed is more or less what they said when we were at Southampton.
So just keep waiting.

Fab news mimia and monkey juniors! And hi and welcome Maggie, the wait is horrendous

We are sitting in the bar at the endcliffe accommodation in Sheffield, in readiness for the offer holder day tomorrow. Dd reckons the rooms are a lot better than they look on the website, and at £141/week for an en-suite, a lot cheaper than imperial which she’s planning to firm. She’s also impressed with the bar prices 😂

We'll be on our way at 6.30 tomorrow morning, Hostess. See you there!

I wonder whether you will meet? Hope you have a good day and that Hoodie Junior remembers why she liked Sheffield enough to apply.

Having a very positive visit at Sheffield. So glad you lot persuaded DD to give it another look.

Glad that your DD has a positive visit @hoodiemum

For us, staying over on Friday night made a huge difference to dd’s view of Sheffield - she’d previously loved the course and medical school, but felt unsure about the wider uni and whether she’d settle in Sheffield. She felt the accommodation was nicer than she’d thought from the website, and really liked the vibe of the area, said it felt safe and friendly, so it was worth the trip up. And having found out a bit more about the course structure and met some of the current students, felt sure that she’d be happy there. She was also told ‘off the record’ that in previous years, results of A*AB have been accepted on results day with an AAA offer, although this was not guaranteed for this year as it depended on the wider picture for results.

I think she’s still likely to firm imperial and insure Sheffield if she gets no further offers, but feels much happier about the prospect of actually going to Sheffield if she didn’t get the grades for imperial, so is less edgy about not hearing back from her other two applications yet.

Dear tinkerbell- apparently I have been mentioned by you. Can you illuminate. Unless I had a session I can’t remember I have never used Mumsnet chat.

Apologies
@tinkobell..... I can spell