Medics et al 2021

[Rocksbestdoc]

Does anyone wish to join a nice supportive thread for people interested in applying for medicine & related degree courses in 2021? No one-upmanship, no nastiness, just general support & advice from people with very recent relevant experience of the application process and those going through it. Possible applicants for Aberdeen to Plymouth, Cardiff to UEA, all are welcomed here.

[mumsneedwine]

@MaddieElla just checked and she scores 13/16 on GCSEs. So she can easily get the 'score' needed with a good UCAT 😍

[mumsneedwine]

@MaddieElla I really should be working but ..

Hope this helps x

[897654321abcvrufhfgg]

goodbyestranger I will rephrase it as “ I asked her to read it”. The reason was to show her just how much effort some people are putting in to their children’s applications. She didn’t believe me. As a 17 year old I felt she was mature enough to cope with the content. I am a first time poster on medicine threads as the old post scared me as I am not massively informed about the whole process as it is my child’s application, not mine. I will help if and when she needs it. 😊

[897654321abcvrufhfgg]

Loving the tone of this thread so far.

[MaddieElla]

Thank you, that's really heartening. Oh yours is at Notts? That's great to know she's getting on fantastically. It really is our top choice.

They do score 8s and 9s the same at the moment but that may change with this application year? I'm not sure. Such a marathon though, will see how the ucat goes and then go from there.

[MaddieElla]

Thank you so much x

[mumsneedwine]

@MaddieElla I doubt they'll change the 8/9 thing. And mine is a 2nd year so any questions please just ask. She helped with interviews this year and expect will next year too (they pay them !).

[iabvvu]

I'm a medical student in my final year but can just about remember the application/interview process! Happy to help if anyone has any questions about it, although it has changed a bit since I went through it

[mumsneedwine]

Medify for UCAT. On all these threads, if we haven't agreed on much else we have agreed on that 😂😂

[Rocksbestdoc]

MaddieElla she is already ahead of my friend's DD who applied for 2020 entry & has had 4 immediate rejections. She hadn't realised how important related work experience was and had spent all of her time working in a local tearoom. Topped off with 3 x A predicted grades and GCSEs which I imagine aren't as good as your DD's, she's now going to take a year out & try again with grades in hand.

I think you need to help her understand that she needs to be prepared for rejections, but may get some unexpected surprises too. I'm sure wherever she goes will become her first choice, whether it's Nottingham or somewhere else she just put into the form on the off chance after an open day.

[Rocksbestdoc]

& many thanks for all the kind offers of help so far.

[mumsneedwine]

The rejection thing is tough as their friends will probably not have to go through that. The mantra is always one offer is all they need. I've gone through it again with DD2 for vet med and it never gets easier.
Grades, UCAT/BMAT, work experience (some medical, some actual work), interviews -just to get an offer. One hurdle at a time.

[Pumpkintopf]

@MaddieElla we're in Lincs too! Whereabouts roughly are you? DS has also done a bit of work experience through the Lincolnshire talent academy (only a week so far). Is your dd considering the Nottingham Lincoln pathway or is that too close to home?

[goodbyestranger]

Usernamenumbersletters in the real world most parents don't get this invested. My own DS did all the research he needed to online and only went to one Open Day. It's very easy to be misled by the MN medical threads into thinking that it's all incredibly complex when it isn't. There's almost an industry here, wanting parents to believe that in order to 'help'. Your DD is being worried needlessly and it sounds as if you're buying into it - try to resist.

[goodbyestranger]

By online I mean he went through the various uni websites. He didn't use TSR - found the whole vibe offputting. He was fine. Most of his friends did exactly the same and very few went to multiple Open Days.

[goodbyestranger]

Quite right that it's your DD's application. Keep it that way!

[SirTobyBelch]

It's very easy to be misled by the MN medical threads into thinking that it's all incredibly complex when it isn't

It isn't so complex if you know what you're doing, but there's a very steep hill to climb if you don't.

I was at an HE fair at a big comprehensive in a moderately deprived inner-city area on Wednesday evening. I met a few very bright year-11 students who were keen on medicine, none of whom had been told anything previously about aptitude tests. Now, their sixth-form colleges will fill them in once they pick up their interest in medicine but they'll be a bit behind their peers from more high-achieving secondaries in their knowledge of how to plan a medical school application. None of these kids have parents who've been to university, so they're reliant on what they can find out for themselves.

[mumsneedwine]

@SirTobyBelch that is my experience. I worked at a school like that and so made it my mission to not only help those students, but others from schools who do not know the procedure. It is not a simple process if you have no experience in applying ! Some schools have loads of people to help but a lot have no one and so we do our best. One student I met thought UCAT was a spelling mistake for UCAS. She is now, take a breath, at Oxford in her 1st year 😁.

[goodbyestranger]

That's interesting Toby. You see our school is one of those slammed as high achieving (it's a super selective grammar) and absolutely no mention is made of any aptitude tests - whether for Medicine or Law or Oxbridge - before Y12. So you may think that the school you visited is behind the curve, but is it actually?

Your outreach work is clearly necessary and a definite good, but it's main good will be in sparking interest in medicine as a career among bright but disadvantaged young people rather than in closing the gap with admissions advice. I wouldn't expect our school to be behind the curve - as I say, for whatever reason, we do have a phenomenal rate of success with med school applications. January of Y12 is when aptitude tests are first mentioned.

[mumsneedwine]

@goodbyestranger but your school has all bright students who have very probably researched their career choice, with a bit of parental help. You and me know enough to guide our own kids and we have obviously both learned a lot along the way. Unfortunately there are some students who don't have any knowledge of even going to Uni and it's those that outreach is fantastic for. The UCAS fairs are great but always so busy and it's great that so many medical schools are now involved in WP and I'm sure it encouraging more to apply.

[mumsneedwine]

And that is the end of that discussion from me. People asked if this place cold just be for advice to prospective parents do let's respect that. @goodbyestranger I know you think I started it and and it is fulls of all my friends but alas I only wish I had the time to be an internet ninja. I now have to mark year 13s attempts at some very nasty multiple choice I set them.

[goodbyestranger]

mumsneedwine my point was to Toby, to say that actually students in our high achieving school aren't told about aptitude tests until Y12. Yes they're bright but by definition so are those Toby is targeting. Toby seemed to think that other students in higher achieving schools were getting on with planning at a much earlier stage - I'd say they almost all weren't.

We're not in a playground mumsneedwine, I don't give any thought to your 'friends'!

[HostessTrolley]

Hi all, my daughter is a first year medic at Imperial. She had interviews at Sheffield, Nottingham and kings, got three offers but withdrew from kings before hearing the outcome because she was happy with what she had. My two older kids went through non-medicine uni courses (maths and information security) so the stress that the med school application process added to year 13 came as a surprise.

Anyway, I’m not an expert, I’m just a mum that helped my daughter through this process quite recently. If I can help anyone just drop me a line. It’s quite a rollercoaster ride, but for me, well my d is loving life in London, working hard, and thoroughly enjoying uni and her course. She says first year medicine is full on, fast paced, demanding but fun, and not nearly as stressful as year 13

[MaddieElla]

@Pumpkintopf we're about 20 minutes from Lincoln (North Kesteven). Her talent academy placements were Spalding and Grantham hospitals. Where did your DS go? She's really undecided about the Lincoln pathway but we did go to the open day. It would still be a Nottingham degree as you know but there's just something putting me off about Lincoln, probably that's it new and there isn't even a medical school built yet. But I will take anything if it means she gets to go.

[swingofthings]

Bit worried for DD. She has three As predicted so far during year 12, had lots of work experience in hospitals through Lincolnshire talent academy and works part time in a pharmacy. Trying to tick other boxes but "only" has 5 x 8s, 5 x 7s and a 6

This was very similar to my DD. She got 2A* (but Maths and Further Maths, so often counted as one only), 7As and 2 Bs.

To make it worse, even though she did well in her UCKAT (8th percentile), she got an incomprehensible 4 on the situational judgement test.

At this point she thought her chances to get in where already out of the way but ironically, it turned out to go the other way as it made the selection much easier. She opted for BSMS, Bristol, St George and Manchester. Her first choice was originally St George, her last default one, Manchester (because of it being PBL heavy).

In the end, she had three interviews and three offers (never heard back from Bristol) and it's at interview that she decided that Manchester was definitely the one she wanted to go to.

She's in her 2nd year and so happy about her decision. It's hard to believe now that there was a time when the idea of her being there seemed more like a wishful dream than a reality.

You need to go through each school requirements. These results will limit the schools she should apply to, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. A number of schools will require a certain level of GCSEs, but don't rank on them, so these are good ones to consider.