Medicine 2023 Entry

[opoponax]

Hi all,

I don't think there is a Medicine 2023 Entry thread yet, so it might be an idea to get one started.

Anyone out there with DC applying or reapplying for Medicine 2023, please join a friendly thread for mutual support and useful advice from those who understand the UK Medical School application process.

@Ame45 don't worry about the essay section, that but has less time pressure and for most places does not contribute much to score (I think BSMS use it more than others). At Cambridge most colleges ignore it and at Imperial it just needs to be competent. With 9s in GCSEs it should really not be an issue at all.

She got 2740 in her mock test today! She's worried it was just an abnormally easy mock though. She's consistently getting band 1 on SJT but I don't know how relevant that will be with a low overall score. This is all so stressful and I'm not even taking the test. So hard when their friends are out and about enjoying the hols. DD slogging through UCAT and EPQ work and volunteering. Sending a virtual hug to all of you going through this right now.

@DTJ band1 is fantastic - opens lots of doors. And 2740 would give plenty of options. It is tough, and it will be a bumpy path to that offer. But, she's doing well and just needs to keep her eye on the prize (a 48 hour contract for low pay and little chance of a life outside the hospital 😊).

@Ame45 DD is approaching her final year, but had a similar problem. A poor UCAT and unable to take BMAT because of illness. Her academics were good (4xA* predicted) as were her extra curricular, but these only take you so far.

UCAT is a timed test, and so difficult for those with slow processing speeds.

Luckily at that point medical schools tended to put less emphasis on UCAT. Indeed Bristol, where she is, did not use it at all.

We decided to treat it as a two year process. She would only apply to places she wanted to go to, and which were likely to interview her. Otherwise she would work to ensure she got her A level grades and try again the following year, this time with BMAT - something her teachers predicted she would find easier than UCAT.

She got three interviews, all in the same week in March as then did SEN interviews last, and the other choice was a long shot, given her UCAT score. She ended up with 2 offers, and then decided to ask to defer as by this point she has become increasingly focussed on her gap year plans. She had a great year, including working a ski season and then an American summer camp, and has never once regretted having a break between school and University.

It seemed pretty bleak at the time, but it all worked out in the end.

Good luck.

@Needmoresleep - Was your DD not aware that people with slow processing speeds can apply for extra time in the UCAT?

I just looked up the rules on this..

"We offer the following extended versions of the UCAT:

UCATSEN (150 minutes) for candidates eligible for 25% extra test time.

UCATSA (140 minutes) for candidates eligible for rest breaks but not for extra test time.
The UCATSA has the standard UCAT subtest timings with 5 minute, timed instruction sections before each subtest.

UCATSENSA (168.75 minutes) for candidates eligible for 25% extra test time who also need rest breaks.
The UCATSENSA has the UCATSEN subtest timings with 5 minute, timed instruction sections before each subtest.

UCATSEN50 (180 minutes) is for candidates who are eligible for 50% extra test time."

Yes, they are allowed extra time but extra time is not a universal panacea.

DD has very very low processing speeds and needs to concentrate hard. It is a long exam. Her experience was that she was exhausted at the end of normal time, and absolutely unable to do anything constructive in the extra. Not helped by test centre conditions, which again can vary widely. The air conditioning at her centre, in a Central London basement, had failed and it was the hottest day of that year. (Oh and a tip from a friend's son - take ear plugs, some centres are noisy.)

All applicants will have a range of strengths and weaknesses. DDs strengths were academic, interview and a good range and depth of extra curricular, including in health care/volunteering settings. She consistently performs poorly in UCAT type exams (CAT tests, 11+ and so on). Others might ace the UCAT but perhaps struggle at interview. Or struggle to get the offer grades.

The trick is in part to recognise where the issues might be, do your best to improve and to pick medical schools carefully, based on the emphasis they give to various proficiencies. Oddly having got through to interview she thinks her SEN may have helped her stand out. Medical schools like diversity amongst their intake, and probably like some who tick the SEN box but who are clearly capable academically. There are surprisingly few on her course who qualify for extra time.

(She came a long way from primary school where the Headmaster claimed she would not be able to cope with an academic or selective school, so the increasing focus on UCAT scores was a relatively small hurdle. The plan B would have been to look at the Republic of Ireland, pre-Brexit, where there is more emphasis on A level performance.)

DD worked for a well known family ski company as a chalet girl. It is a pity it completely put her off paeds, as she had plenty of interesting exposure to different family dynamics.

Tip from my DD. Make sure the pen works on the whiteboard before the person leaves ! There is often no way to get their attention during the test.

Trying not to get stressed here, DD a week out from taking her UCAT. I did one of the Abstract Reasoning mocks with her last night - well, I say with her, I mean I just watched her. I could see the pattern on 2 sets of questions (so about 8 out of the 50). It is incredibly diffiuclt and the timing is insane.

Can anyone reassure me that if she's getting 10-12% above the "mean" score of Medify students, she's doing OK.

@Africa2go she's doing ok. Remember, everyone who takes UCAT is clever, they wouldn't be trying it otherwise. So above average is good. I can't do AR at all but apparently there are patterns that reoccur a lot.
It is a horrible test, no easy way of passing it, and it comes down to a bit of luck on the day. But, practice and speed will help. Good luck !

Thanks @mumsneedwine I know - all the children applying for medicine and therefore doing UCAT must all be outstanding or they wouldn't have the predicted grades necessary. It all seems a bit like the 11+ again - a test which lasts for 2 hours having such importance for the next stage of her education. I definitely need to take on board your user name!

@Africa2go 😂 my DD applying for medicine is the reason for my username. But she taught me so much so I can now help others. It's such a tough process but I suppose it's sets them up for a life in the NHS !
V glad mine never took the 11+ as always sounds hideous. Nice local comp for my 2 😊.

Thank you @[email protected] thats very helpful. I just hope she gets what she deserves, she's working so hard and has aligned everything for the last couple of years at least to medicine (but I'm sure thats what all the parents say ).

@HunkyDory69

Three weeks before my daughter takes it. She has banned all mention of it by parents or siblings.

She's got a lot planned after it but it's becoming a slog to get there.

How much work are your kids doing for the UCAT ?
My DD is sitting it in 4 weeks - doing 200 questions a day in Medify for last 2/3 weeks. Doesn't seem to be getting any better at VR though and is below average. Other sections are average or just above average. I assume that's not good enough.
Hasn't done a full past paper. Just doing questions in sections. I've no idea how to help her. Doesn't seem that stressed by it but has no one to help or advise her. I don't think she has fully grasped the importance of it.
We are in scotland so she's back to school in 2 weeks so will have less time to prepare the final 2 weeks before exam.
We could push it back possibly but I'm unsure if that would be any help as the school work piles up and the UCAS application needs to be done. No point spending weeks writing it for medicine then need to change direction if ucat score is poor.

Doesn't seem to be getting any better at VR though and is below average. Other sections are average or just above average. I assume that's not good enough.

It depends where she wants to apply. The thing she needs to be aware of is that all medical schools have a huge excess of applicants and they have to filter them somehow. Medical schools that don't require high UCAT scores will be looking at something else (GCSE grades, predicted A-Level grades, personal statement or other autobiographical form). It's a matter of applying to places whose criteria match your strengths.

VR is a bit odd, and it seems to be the best discriminator between strong and weak applicants (this is why Nottingham gives it double weighting). On the face of it, it's the most straightforward section. However, it is also the most time-pressured and there is a particular skill to working out which questions to answer properly and which to guess.

My DS s UCAT exam is at the end of the month. I am now thinking that perhaps a closer date would be better since I think he is not very focussed right now. His friends are making plans and he is struggling to say no. The weather is so nice too. It is a shame this has to be such a stressful process for everybody involved. Considering the staff shortage that needs to be closed, you would think they would make it easier and more attractive for young people to apply and continue to study and work. It is a very challenging sector. Best wishes and good luck to you all.

DD has hers tomorrow. Its that age old dilemma of wanting it out of the way v having sufficient time to prepare.

@Africa2go good luck to your DD.

@itsmypartyandilljusteatallthecakeifiwant has she tried watching some of the you tube videos? We watched some MedEntry ones with Emil, but there are loads out there. They help with some of the techniques because the exam is as much about technique as it is ability. As well as working on the weakest area, she can also try to boost the areas she is good at by improving her technique. Medify has loads of mocks so it is probably worth her trying a mock to see what her overall score is in the timeframe of a longer mock.

Hi all, is it too early to find out what a good UCAT score is? Are the centiles published anywhere or do you have to wait for the exam window to close?

Ignore me, it looks as though the details are not published until mid September when testing ends.

Testing ends on 29 Sep.

You can't calculate deciles until you have all the data. They publish interim deciles in mid-September, based on all the results up to then. Scores in the last week of testing are usually significantly lower than those from earlier dates, so the final deciles are likely to be very slightly lower than the interim ones.

The decile scores have been fairly consistent over recent years, though: www.ucat.ac.uk/results/test-statistics/

Thank you - thats what I looked at.

Just trying to reconcile that with the info on the Medify website www.medify.co.uk/blog/medical-schools-ucat-requirements - it gives details of the threshold for interviews for 2022 entry and it looks like for Newcastle, you needed a UCAT score of 2820 and for Bristol it was 2870. Those scores are very close to (Newcastle) and beyond (Bristol) the 9th centile.

Am I understanding that correctly - that you wouldn't be offered an interview unless you were essentially in the top 10% of UCAT scores?