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.

@opoponax over 3,000 if similar to this year. And even then we've had rejections. Edinburgh is nuts !

Thanks @mumsneedwine. So did you have students with perfect stats, over 3,000 UCAT and contextual and still not get an interview? Bonkers!

@opoponax

Thanks *@mumsneedwine*. So did you have students with perfect stats, over 3,000 UCAT and contextual and still not get an interview? Bonkers!

I'm pretty sure the need for UCAT > 3000, SJT band 1 and perfect stats only applies to RUK non contextuals.

There was a non contextual RUK student with 3340, perfect stats and SJT band 2 rejected by Edinburgh which shows they have ZERO tolerance to anything other than SJT band 1.

But I also remember seeing an RUK contextual student getting an interview with 2550 and SJT band 3.

I think Edinburgh was 3040, band 1, AAA including A*chem, can't remember whether GCSEs have to be absolutely perfect.

Thanks Monkey. If she stays on her current track her A Level predictions should be all A* but the UCAT can change everything, especially with that SJT element. I don't think you can predict how they are going to do in the UCAT just because they are academic. DS has some very bright friends who got decent but not amazing scores. So we are definitely not counting any chickens yet! On another note, DS has just finished his first ever set of Medical exams today. That sure came round quickly!

The SJT banding is quite up and down from one year to the next.

Here's a summary of SJT band 1s in recent years:-

2021 14% (so way lower than the third you alluded to @opoponax)
2020 30%
2019 17%
2018 21%
2017 26%

PS I'm a bit hung up on this as DD was rejected by Edinburgh despite a 3190 UCAT (SJT B2).

@Monkey2001

I think Edinburgh was 3040, band 1, AAA including A*chem, can't remember whether GCSEs have to be absolutely perfect.

Need 8 A* equivalents, including the usual core subjects - crazy!

@MidLifeCrisis007 thanks for heads up re the SJT stats (I'll ask for that post to be deleted in case it misleads anyone). I would be hung up on it too if it had cost an interview. Was the SJT B1 requirement for Edinburgh just introduced this year?

@opoponax sorry, yes meant to add need B1 and 3,000+. We had a contextual student rejected with perfect stats and a UCAT of 3010. I'm advising not Edinburgh next year.

Edinburgh only introduced interviews in 2019 (2020 entry), before that they used SJT and PS heavily. Since doing interviews I think the scoring algorithm has not changed. It is odd how some med schools weight SJT so heavily (particularly Edinburgh and Nottingham) and others ignore it. It is particularly unfair that it makes so much difference when you could be 1 correct answer off a band 1.

DD seems to think it's not even 1 question that can separate SJT B1s and B2s. She says some answers get half marks... don't know if it's true so it could be half a question!

Suppose it prepares them for the SJT in 5th year that counts for 50% of total marks. Not that anyone seems to think it's any good - lots of moaning that it's a bit of a lottery.
Edinburgh flummoxes me as to what they are looking for. Far too risky if have a good UCAT as plenty of others are a certainty for an interview with 3,000.

Thanks for the information, about Edinburgh, really valuable. I am correct in thinking the UCAT results are known before applying?

You get your UCAT results before you leave the test centre on the exam day @Phantomfan. No agonising wait but a bit nerve-racking too.

Yup. Handed to the student as a folded bit of paper. Always seems a bit surreal that it's so simple for something that carries so much weight. Should be in a gilded envelope with a fanfair 😊.

Wow have not checked in for a while, lovely to see offers. Congrats @sandybayleys dd and whoever has the dundee offer! Its all starting to happen! I think the same about the ucat @mumsneedwine, dd just brought hers outside and asked me to look at it! She's a 2nd year at Edinburgh if there were any other questions, she had the same kind of stats mentioned though. No news here yet for ds, bar the non medicine fifth offer which he doesn't want to take. Keeping everything crossed here.

Thanks @speedyhedgehog - I'd have liked DD to have had a shot at Edinburgh but her UCAT was too low even though she had a Band 1.

I really hope next years aspirants are well advised and don't waste choices at places like Edinburgh and Birmingham if their profile is wrong.

DD’s original list included Exeter, Edinburgh and Nottingham, all of which I persuaded her off based on the excellent advice on this thread. It’s now clear that she wouldn’t have got an interview at any of them, so I feel incredibly grateful to all advisers.

However, yet again having a parent who can access advice and understand data gives an advantage to my already advantaged children. That can’t be fair.

I’m reading this completely gobsmacked. My d is year 3 at imperial, has been in the top 10% of her cohort in all exams so far - she wouldn’t have even got an interview at some of these unis this year as a non contextual applicant. So many excellent candidates are missing out :-(

I must say I really regret not having found this thread last summer! I thought DD’s school would know what they were doing, but apparently not. I think DD has found the lack of transparency very upsetting (eg she hadn’t appreciated how much not being Welsh would count against her for Cardiff - although she still hasn’t heard one way or another from them yet).

Just crossing everything for Nottingham (she had a Band 1)

@Onewildandpreciouslife Band 1 and a good VR score should get her an interview at Notts.
It is madness how strategic you need to be, especially at the moment with Covid grade issues. And it does help to have parents (or a me at school) who can navigate the system.
Lots more interviews should after to trickle through from next week so 🤞🤞🤞

@mumsneedwine thanks - she was invited to interview at Nottingham this week so that’s why I’m crossing my fingers!

@HostessTrolley it is so tough for them and such a shame that there are not enough places for so many excellent candidates. What really gets me is that those kids have the credentials to pursue far more glamorous and lucrative careers with much quicker paybacks. And yet they don't care about any of that, they just have their hearts set on being good doctors and anything else feels like a failure to them. My DH lives in perpetual fear of anyone making the mistake of referring to this generation as 'snowflakes' in my presence.

@Onewildandpreciouslife excellent news. Hope interview goes well. It's a lovely Uni with fantastic hospitals for placements. And they are v good at paying petrol or providing accommodation if away from Notts. And JVT is going back 😊.
It's such a shame that more students can't get in but they need the opportunities to train on the wards so it's a finite resource. Really sad that many many excellent candidates don't get in each year.