Considering Medicine for 2028

[ElectricThrowAddict]

Dd is 17 and in year 12.

She is considering Medicine but also has an interest in Physiotherapy.

We have been to open days at Bristol, Exeter and Cardiff so far and have Birmingham and Southampton booked too.

She applied for the Dorset Med Experience programme but wasn't successful, so we are looking at other opportunities.

Anyone else at this stage?

Happy to supply my handy spreadsheet of how unis select. Of there some fantastic info in ukcatpeople website.

Dd is wanting to study medicine, in year 12. She is certain it’s what she wants, although spent years wanting to be a vet. She is a St John’s ambulance cadet and has helped out at a local vets, so has made up her mind. I’m not sure of her preference but she does want to be up north, so is looking at Newcastle, Leeds, Sheffield. We’re London based but have family in Yorkshire and visit every year. She definitely doesn’t want a London uni. Obviously it will depend on ucat.
I’ve read lots of the other threads on here and seems a very intense process, but dd seems committed

I envy her certainty @IMTHECRAZYOLDLADY , feel like that will help her!

Has she been to any open days? I think going to the talks has helped dd realise the courses and admissions processes are quite different. Some give contextual offers for the school's dd attends/did gcse at.

I have seen @mumsneedwine brilliant spreadsheet on other threads and think we need to really look at it properly. Dd got all 9s at gcse and some give that more weight, which I think would be good to capitalise on.

@ElectricThrowAddict this might be of interest

https://www.bsms.ac.uk/about/events/2026/11-24-bsms-brightideas-information-session.aspx

@ElectricThrowAddict Those are amazing grades! Dd got three 9s, and seven 8s. She is contextual at a non selective state school, although the kids generally do quite well there and have a few that go to Oxford, Cambridge, Warwick, Imperial, UCL. Quite a few got onto excellent apprentice ships last year too. I don’t think the school is contextual, but dd is as she has qualified for FSM for a few years, and is also considered to be a young carer with autistic brothers. She might want to try for Birmingham I think, because Ds received a hugely reduced contextual offer for maths, although didn’t go there in the end, reduced by two grades, obviously same contextual indicators.
I don’t think any medical schools contextualise the UCAT score apart from Imperial

Lots contextualise the UCAT score. Diff scores needed for interview and often lower grades required. However contextual means different things at different places.