Medicine 2026 Part 3

[MyGreyBiscuit]

Hi everyone, here's the new thread!

We had the breakfast at PI and whilst there was trying to spot other candidates with their parents! 😁 didn’t walk around after as the rain was horizontal but we did check it out on open day. I would have liked to have checked out restaurants but the weather was rubbish. We got a deliveroo instead!

Haven't been on for a while but wow - all these YPs have done so brilliantly. Hope they are all so proud of themselves - think any of them would make excellent doctors just on sheer resilience alone. DD had Birmingham interview at the start of the week - she's not sure how it went but she's not one to dwell so I guess we'll wait... And she's got Southampton next week so will be following the well-trodden path to the premier Inn! Thankyou @MyGreyBiscuit for the tips on where to wait whilst they do their interview! Good luck with rest of interviews and with offers and those A'levels!

Did you drive to Southampton @MyGreyBiscuit and @inae ? How easy was it to park at the university?

hi @catty29 we took the train because we had back to back interviews from the day before and I was already travelling by train to the other one. But, for open day, we drove and still ended up parking in town because they had run out of parking spaces. Perhaps there's some info about parking in the invite letter? I didn't bother - I don't like driving other than poodling around my local area so driving 700 miles to 2 cities was not my idea of fun!

Many thanks @MyGreyBiscuit - can totally see why you took the train! Will ask DD to send the info over.

We're also taking the train, so I'm afraid I have no parking information. There was major disruption today on some of the train lines, but it looks fine now so we don't need to change plans last minute.

Hello, we drove to Southampton and there was a designated university car park provided in the written information which was 10 minutes walk from the interview location. I also sat in the student union which was close to the interview site.

Morning all,

Good luck with the Southampton interviews coming up.

DD had her Liverpool interview yesterday and wasn't happy with how it went, feels she messed up too many stations and some of the interviewers were unfriendly. DD is very self critical though, but it is the first time she's been so negative about one straight after. I tried to do help by saying it didn't matter as she already has an offer but that went down like a lead balloon 😂.

She will get over it, at least all interviews are done now. As it will be weeks before she hears anything now it is all about getting back focused on the A levels.

We sat in a room in the medical school with other parents whilst DD was interviewed and we were the only ones with an offer so far, the others were still waiting to hear, so although it feels like everyone else has offers, a lot don't. The conversations with other parents mirrored our discussions on here exactly!

Good luck to those with interviews today, nearly through most of them from what I can see and the can then focus on A levels/Advanced Highers for a while.

morning @bluefineliner - I think having an offer in hand really helps, so well done.

I do think that the slow dripfeeding of offers is maddening and although we would love to be in that position (none of our schools applied do that so it's not us/them), there's somehow surely the feeling that if you don't get an offer the next day, you aren't in the top 10% (and of course, one doesn't have to be in the top 10% - just in the top 200 places or whatever...I totally get that)... not sure I'm explaining it rightly...

anyway, nearly the weekend... hoping for better weather, sunshine and good news for all!

Thanks all, Southampton is done and DD enjoyed it. It rained pretty much all day, so we left after lunch and we're almost home now.

So 3 interviews done and waiting for the outcome + still waiting for an invitation from the 4th (with tiny, tiny chances now, but not 0 🤣). And mocks starting next week, what a journey!

hope you get to enjoy some downtime tonight my wait buddy!! safe journeys!

We were also at Southampton today @inae in the afternoon, Dd said she enjoyed it! We are done (I think) waiting to hear from UCL but that is looking unlikely with her UCAT likely to miss the cutoff this year.

Dd is now in a good position to focus on her exams. 3 interviews (Leicester, Birmingham and Southampton) and an offer from Birmingham.

Good luck to all waiting and still interviewing!

That's great to hear @notsoperfect33 and congrats on the Birmingham offer! I know 'you only need one' but I hope your DD gets multiple!

Thank you 😊

Morning all,

@notsoperfect33 well done to your DD on the Birmingham offer. Do UCL have a date after which they don't send interviews or could it drag on for weeks?

It feels like we are in a little lull for now, no prospect of any offers for DD for a few weeks and waiting for Leeds to update UCAS and invite to OHD. Back to A level revision for now and trying not to discuss the waiting for more decisions for now.

My attention has been turned to student finance following the plan 2 media coverage recently. My DD1 had a plan 1 loan when fees were much smaller so didn't think to much about repaying when she went to uni. I attended uni as a mature student (vocational job which required degree) and have a plan 2 loan which tbh I never look at the balance as I will never repay and my wage will remain fairly stable from now until I retire. I am fully behind the highlighting how awful the interest on these plan 2 loans is and how badly YP are affected by it.

It did get me researching plan 5 loans which DD2 will need for med now though. I was considering whether to pay some of the fees/maintenance loan for DD this time because of the repayment period of 40 years. Although DD as a doctor will most likely be a mid to high earner, so will most likely repay the whole lot, I'm still not sure what is best. What are anyone else's thoughts and plans?

Hi @bluefinelinerand all. Also in a lull here just waiting on unis that dripfeed offers. Have stopped asking DD every day if she has any news!

We have also considering gifting DD the money to enable her to pay upfront rather than borrowing. DH thinks she should borrow, to be in line with (presumably) most of her peers, and then we consider gifting money for an early payback later down the line once there is more certainty of her working as a doctor and therefore repaying the full amount.

I've also been looking at the news re: loans and not sure what to do. The interest rates seem punitive tbh and I'm aware that our YPs, as doctors, will be spending a fair time on a relatively low salary, during which time the interest will rack up, so we're considering either paying upfront or like you @rockstuckhardplace helping to pay off once DD is working. It just seems like such alot for them to handle on top of what isn't a particularly good starter salary along with crazy hours and exams continuing for years. We're speaking to a financial advisor about this next week so if I get any useful info I'll share on here!

I'm glad you are looking into it. I'm not in a position to pay the fees or maintenance for him and the talk of interest rates and the debt they will face has been keeping me awake at night. There was talk of writing off the debt for doctors that stay in the NHS for certain periods but that seems to have gone quiet

Hi all, my accountant says to take the loan. He's got a child who's currently in y1 of a degree (not med) and they've taken the loan. Something about how if you take that money that you'd gift them, and stuck it in some high interest savings account/ISA/LISA whatever then that money will make more than the interest rates that they'll be charged. Also, even if it doesn't, that money can be used when they're ready to settle, for a downpayment for their home. Or you can take that money and pay off the debt.

Our children at this age will still be able to open up a LISA - Lifetime ISA. Younger children (we have a younger one) will probably not be able to. This Lifetime ISA will allow for them to save up to £4000/year and the gov will gift £1000. So, if they hang onto it for 10 years (eg 5/6 years med school and then a few years of being a resident doctor etc) that'll give them at least £50k for a house downpayment/mortgage.

I do think a way forward would be to make uni free for med, nursing, dentists students (possibly also social care) in return for them committing to the NHS for several years post-training but that just seems too much to ask for...

for sure...! or for them to receive some sort of bursary - I thought nursing students or physio? receive such things.

it's not like we don't need more doctors!! go figure!

My thoughts ? If can afford to pay fees and maintenance and give them a house deposit then do it. Interest accrues from the day you take out the loan. My DD borrowed £50,000 and after 2.5 years of paying it back now owes £75,000. Doesn't even repay the interest yet (& won't until earns over £66,000). Still has deductions of £200 a month though.

Was not the loan agreement she signed and has been changed several times. It's a scam. Loan sharks would be in prison for less. She is forecast to repay over £250,000 by the time the loan is written off after 30 years.

What you sign up for might not be what you end up paying for the duration 😡

I'm sorry that's happened with your DD, and that is of course, what the Plan 2 is about and what Martin Lewis is rightly calling out. I never understood how they could start charging that crazy amount of interest from day 1... 0.5% maybe... 1% even... but that plus RPI? madness.

Plan 5 (for most of us looking into med school now) is different... but still a lot of money.

@MyGreyBiscuitRPI + 3-5%. The more you earn the higher the interest. It's a scam and not what was agreed. Really hoping it gets sorted fast.