Medicine 2022 entry

[Monkey2001]

Support thread for aspiring medics.

We want all our DCs to succeed, whatever their school type. We share knowledge to help them to achieve their goals, celebrate success and support if things don't go well.

As we press the "send and pay" buttons on UCAS, we wish all our DC the best of luck in this tough year with so much uncertainty.

Good luck for your DD, @MidLifeCrisis007!
No interviews or rejections here yet. Not sure when the majority of interviews happen and when to suggest DD start interview prep. Wanted her to have a bit of a break between UCAT, BMAT (we’re waiting for results too, @SandyBayley) mocks in January.

Good luck to your DD @MidLifeCrisis007

Hopeful for good news @MidLifeCrisis007 . Fingers crossed for her.

🤞🤞@MidLifeCrisis007 hope she does justice to herself!

@notmedicmum most interviews are December/January, some let you choose a slot, others don't. We are trying to discuss a question or two over dinner each night and I am feeling quite encouraged. Classics like "if you were in charge of the NHS what would you change" and "if you had a liver available for transplant would you give it to a 50 year old alcoholic or a 9 year old". With all the questions it is really a matter of thinking out loud and making it broad enough without going down rabbit holes. School is doing a session of MMIs with volunteer teachers next week, and we are hoping a few friends who do lots of interviewing will do a zoom mock just to get used to doing an on line interview, but we are not going for an interview course.

There is a very good thread on TSR www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7094579

TSR post saying first batch of Newcastle interview invitations coming out today.

😱 on Newcastle. DD is out until about 10.30pm as it's the first night of a musical she's performing in. I hope she doesn't pick up on the fact that Newcastle invites might be coming out. If they do and she doesn't get one it will not put her in a good mood when she's already nervous 😬

Looks like interviews are coming out on TSR

I think the Newcastle invites are only A101 / Graduate. The wait continues...

Classics like ... "if you had a liver available for transplant would you give it to a 50 year old alcoholic or a 9 year old"

That would be a very unfair question, as it's not possible to answer it without considerably more information (What has caused the 9-year-old's liver failure? How long has the 50-year-old been abstaining from alcohol? What other health conditions does each of them have? How long will each of them live without a transplant?) There is no "all other things being equal" option.

I've seen this used as a question in mock interviews, where it can be useful to highlight if people are exhibiting values inconsistent with those of the NHS, but perhaps more in the form of "what things do you think you would take into account in deciding who gets the transplant?"

DD has been invited to interview by HYMS

@NoNotHimTheOtherOne exactly - there is no right answer, it is the thought process that matters. Somebody who hasn't thought about it would just say the 9 year old should have it.

On the specific question of liver transplants, it might be an idea also to be aware of this:

www.nhsbt.nhs.uk/organ-transplantation/liver/is-a-liver-transplant-right-for-you/types-of-liver-transplant/

Key points
The majority of livers are transplanted as a ‘whole’ organ.Approximately 1 in 10 donated livers can be divided into two. In these cases, the smaller left lobe of the liver is transplanted into a child, while the right lobe is transplanted into an adult of appropriate size.

The ability to transplant divided livers successfully is a wonderful improvement on the days many years ago when one was very aware that one was waiting for the death of a suitable other, healthy, child to occur, in order that the life of a child in need of a transplant could be saved.

Newcastle International A100 interview invites out…

@MidLifeCrisis007 was DD happy with her St Andrews interview?

She's sworn to secrecy on the content - all she did say was that she was interviewed by 4 people and she thought 3 went ok - the other was not so good.

She has an Exeter interview next Wednesday and I think the experience will stand her in good stead for that.

Was your DS one of the lucky ones who heard from Newcastle yesterday @Monkey2001?

That sounds reasonably positive, does she have a favourite? I stand by my prediction that at least 90% of interviewees will get an offer from Exeter because they are only interviewing very strong applicants this year.

No, only A101 and international applicants at Newcastle and somebody said Admissions told them next batch would be 13th December, which sounds very late - both years DS1 had done all his interviews by then.

Exeter gives a lot of offers for post-grad medicine especially those who have completed their first degrees there.

@Lovecatsanddogs

Exeter gives a lot of offers for post-grad medicine especially those who have completed their first degrees there.

Ineresting. Is there any data on the usual breakdown of students starting the course? So grads, contextual, non-contextual, pathway schemes? My main point was that as they are only interviewing general contextual/non-contextual with high UCAT this year, most Y13/Y14 interviewees will have 3 or 4 interviews, and get multiple offers. I agree that Exeter grads are likely to want to stay local.

Ughhh, Newcastle sending out interviews, but dates all currently in December. DS wants January, so hoping his invitation comes after more dates are released.

Hull York interview is Dec 16

Newcastle interview invite received today. :)

@BabbleBee missed your HYMS interview. Good luck.

Good luck to @kackle too. Are all yours way up North?

All up north apart from UAE

UEA even. :)

@Toofaroutallmylife

I’ve always said the hardest part of parenting is the one you’re going through.

It’s been a nightmare this week as I knew DD hadn’t made Exeter before she did. Exeter have offered her a biomed place but the thoughts above have been helpful

I’ve been so impressed by her resilience- after half an hour of tears she announced “it’s not the rejection, it’s how I deal with it that counts”

And @GANFYD I told her about your response on a TSR thread- ie you made a choice of safety versus desire based on the info you have, and you can’t beat yourself up if the crystal ball doesn’t work. So helpful, thank you

Ach, same here.

We got a nice email saying 'sorry, not inviting for interview, as we have so many deferred applications, we have raised the usual UCAT score - and he just missed it. But we'd like to encourage you to apply for our biomedical course (like your DD). DS only applied for 4 med places, did not want to go bio med route.

DS is much more resilient and forgiving: his take is 'ooh, I am quite flattered they'd still like me to come and do biomed and do medicine later'.

My cynical hard-bitten take is: the bare face cheek of Exeter! Oh, we don't want you for med school despite 3A* predicted A levels, volunteering at hospital every week, being on various panels/ work experience at hospice, yadda yadda yadda.... but we'll happily take £9K a year off you on another course.

Well done to your DD for being so resilient, and best of luck for the remaining choices.