Medicine 2021 - Part 3

[SATSmadness]

Hoping for interviews and offers all round, now and well into next year !

It went quite well, a bit of a shaky start but then it settled down. She seems happy enough.

@emummy Glad to hear she feels it went well- another hurdle navigated, well done.

Glad it went well @emummy

Hopefully DD will follow in your footsteps to Ninewells

For the Oxford applicants - best of luck for tomorrow

@emummy had your daughter had an Edinburgh interview? My daughter has hers next eeek 😬 bit anxious! Does anyone know if any interviews are still holding group based stations in an MMI scenario? Sorry if that’s breaching any rules!

@Whereisthewine no, she hasn’t heard anything from Edinburgh either way. Good luck to your daughter. I don’t know about the group MMIs, sorry

Thanks @emummy and good luck to your daughter too! All so nerve wracking!

Ok, so DD didn't get the news she hoped for from Oxford.... but after a few tears, Starbucks and an episode of Greys, things are looking much cheerier. I couldn't be more proud of her and know she'll end up happy somewhere else (and a bit closer to home!)

@Millylovespuddles and with Medicine I think it matters far less anyway. Possibly just my opinion but......

I'm secretly hoping that DD ends up at the Uni closest to home out of all of her choices but would never share that hope with her naturally .

@Millylovespuddles so sorry to hear the news. But you are so right to be proud. How many people can say they had an interview at Oxford for Medicine? Not many - it’s a huge achievement in itself.

Glad DD is feeling cheerier and Oxford’s loss will be another great University’s gain.

I'm so sorry Milly. It is absolutely another University's gain - but the disappointment is real for now.

So sorry @Millylovespuddles. Rejection is tough, especially when they are used to excelling at everything. Totally agree that Oxford's loss will be another excellent med school's gain.

I hope everyone is ok today.

I see there’s more in the news about there being some kind of externally set tests this year to help with A level and GCSE grade awarding. Maybe this will help re the number of offers as the Universities might not be so convinced everyone will make their grades?

I know Oxford offered less yesterday I think by around 350 places, but that was spread across the whole University.

Cambridge have said on the radio that less offers will be made (overall not medicine specific) I think, but they normally over offer a lot. By the time the majority of medicine offers are being made in Feb and March maybe the A level process will be more confirmed.

Just thinking it over! I guess it also depends on why a Medical School normally over offers. So if it’s because students often don’t make the grade that’s one reason, but if it’s because they are often an insurance choice that’s another reason altogether.

I have too much time to think about this as the moment......!!

Hi LaLa. My understanding is that Med Schools make significantly more offers than they have places for both of those reasons. It seems that a reasonable number of students do well in GCSEs, UCAT/ BMAT and interview but then don't actually get the grades required and med schools need to factor that in. Also, a number of students will reject that Med School for a preferred choice, if they get more than one offer. I have no idea what the relative weightings of those factors are though. I think some reassurance can be taken from the fact that med schools who have issued invites in tranches are still doing so - we know that there have been more for Liverpool and I've heard that Bristol have sent out some more today. If the cancellation of public exams had a significant bearing on their offer numbers, would they not have stuck with the interview pool they had.

DS just had Bristol interview today. I'm feeling bombed out and my role in it amounts to keeping the dog in check!

Thanks @opoponax I think that’s it, the relative weighting of the reasons for over offering.

I think ultimately the same number of people will be successful as they have the same number of places!! I guess it’s just that it might be different applicants that end up being successful.

I think the offer process might be longer and more protracted this year, if they have to be more cautious and see what the uptake is. Perhaps waiting lists etc.

How did the Bristol interview go for DS? I hope it went well?

I have the same role during DD’s interviews - dog duty and making sure no other devices are connected to WiFi!

Good point about the interview offers still going out too!

Are you sure about another Liverpool tranche? There is nothing on TSR (and we have received nothing as well). Given that there are people who have received invitations with at least two points lower than DS (maybe three, I am not sure from TSR) we are expecting an interview at some point. Of course if it is alphabetical, then we might have quite a wait, assuming they only did the first part of the alphabet last time, but I havent' seen any further tranches.

@bimkom it was sounding like it was alphabetical for Liverpool. From what I’ve heard from DD about her friends, their scores and surnames! I hope you don’t have to wait too long, but if you’ve seen applicants with lower scores getting interviews then surely it has to be a given that your DS will too.

@Bimkom sorry if unclear, I meant more Liverpool invites last week after the exam cancellation announcement. I read on this thread that invites came out last Wednesday, the day after the exam cancellation announcement. However, maybe Liverpool is not a good example to pick though as it seems they are being sent out in alphabetical order and it would make sense that this process would continue as they would not offer interviews to applicants with lower scores over higher scores. Maybe Bristol is a better example as another tranche is reported to have come out today in rank order.

@LaLaFlottes thank you for asking how Bristol went. DS came out happy and felt that it had gone well but you never really know with interviews.

That’s good @opoponax - coming out happy is all we can really hope for isn’t it

I was just looking at Leicester’s admission info and they say that they expect to make 850 offers for 290 places. Obviously that will change, but they can’t have expected 560 applicants to miss their grades - a chunk of that must be because they are not chosen or are an insurance choice surely.

I think the Medical Schools will also be looking to the medical schools council for advice on this and what support there might be if they do end up over offering - I.e would the cap be lifted again for 2021 entry.

Good points @LaLaFlottes and I agree that a large chunk of the 560 has to be other choices/insurance. I hadn't thought about the cap being lifted but it makes a lot of sense, especially given the current healthcare situation.

Hello again!
I have just been reading up to try and catch up a bit.
DD was sadly rejected from Oxford (and rather bafflingly, Hull 🤷🏻‍♀️ A massive confidence blow as it was very much her backup!), but thankfully she has interviews at Leeds and Lancaster coming up.

She forwarded me the Lancaster email and it seems that any Wi-fi/connectivity issues during the online MMIs will not taken into account at all and no scores can be changed or altered if candidates cannot hear or answer questions.
We live rurally - and in a valley so mobile data also sometimes iffy - and Wi-fi could be an issue 😔 This is why she took the UCAT at a centre as we didn't want to risk it at home. I am trying to think of possible solutions for this. Obviously will make sure nobody else is using Wi-fi at the time.

We are still waiting to hear from 3 unis! Trying to keep ds morale up and he's trying his best to engage with very patchy online lessons. An interview invite now would be great as a boost as I think he's flagging with isolation, the constant changes to learning, not seeing friends and trying to teach himself 3 a levels. I hope the unis try and wrap things up by the end of Jan, even a rejection would help as ds can then move on.

Milly and grey sorry to hear about Oxford, I heard it was even more competitive than normal this year.

Lala I share your concerns re exams, I have a dc in year 11 too so you can imagine the stress levels in my house right now. Alongside trying to work from home, I'm trying to keep everyone calm, relaxed, fed, healthy, motivated and alive!! Honestly I'll be so glad when exams, in whatever form, are over this year.

So sorry to hear that, Grey. We too got a rejection from HYMS very early on and it was a blow as she would have received an interview last year.

Re the WiFi, that's a worry but yet another side effect of this bloody pandemic; having to navigate an interview this way. Definitely switch all devices off and be as close to the router as possible.

Would it be an option to do the interview at school? If they're open to key worker children they may let her sit somewhere quiet?

@Powergower fingers crossed for some news for you soon.

Hoping for some positive news on this thread soon, we need some light!