Yr10, wants to do medicine but struggling with biology

[Thisismynewname123]

DD has her heart set on studying medicine and no matter how many times I say she should consider alternatives in case in doesn't work out. She won't. There is nothing else she wants to do. The problem is that although she is capable of 8s/9s is most subjects, she seems to be struggling with biology. I could get her a tutor. She'd probably be predicted a 6/7 if I asked her teacher today. But even with a tutor, is it worth pushing her to something which isn't her strength? How can I inspire her to something which uses her strengths - I think she capable of 9s in physics/chemistry/maths. Has anyone's child been in a similar position and what route did they end up taking?

I agree that Biology GCSE and A level is very specific, and the student needs to understand what the examiner is looking for. DD found that looking at past papers and mark schemes was particularly helpful. She also found that you need to apply your knowledge to anser questions, so it is less black and white compared to maths and physics. I hope that makes sense.

While chemistry at A level really needs to be a given I think she would struggle without A level biology as univeristies will assume prior knowledge.

I also agree that it could be a teacher issue, and getting a tutor is a good idea. The step up from GCSE to A level in Biology is pretty steep.

My worry would be that whilst biology isn’t a requirement for medicine you are making it harder for yourself . Moreover, the fact that biology is her weakest science makes me wonder if learning large amounts of facts and writing about them may be a area of ( relative ) weakness compared to the largely concept-based subjects.
That said medicine is not really as hard as people make out. The grade requirement reflects more the competitiveness than the actual abilities needed to complete the course( believe me I teach medical students ).

Maybe it’s the plant-aspects she doesn’t like much- that was true for me- I would have much rather studied zoology.

That said medicine is not really as hard as people make out.

That's my understanding. It is the volume of work rather than how hard it is. That said, DD is studying biomedical sciences. She said that in the first year her her medic friends had less (and easier) work than she did.

I have to agree with @swgeek if you are naturally good at maths and physics then you don’t need to work that hard. I got an A in A level maths without much work at all. I had to work much harder in other subjects as I actually had to learn the content and I have a shit memory.

If she is strong in other sciences and maths I'd look into why she's finding biology hard. Could be the teacher. A good tutor could transform her attitude and interest.

Biology teacher here. As PPs have said, she needs to learn how to answer the questions using the key words. There is definitely a technique to it. But not all tutors teach this way so they don't always help. She needs to go onto physicsandmaths tutor.com and print of a load of biology last papers (they are arranged by topic which is useful for practice for end of topic tests). She needs to do the questions then mark them herself using the mark scheme. Whilst marking them she should look for the use of the key words that are awarded the marks and underline them. Any key words in the mark scheme she needs to write onto her original answer (in a different colour). This will help her get used to the key words. There are only so many ways a question about a topic can be asked so the same key words are looked for. It is a skill she can learn!!

Having done an undergrad degree in biology, I can say that it involves much more learning of a new "language" and understanding and memorizing things about biological systems and how they work.

There is math, chemistry, and physics involved because biological systems work using the same principles.

I also studied rehab medicine and tend to agree with the poster that learning medicine is like learning senior level biology on steroids.

You may not need it for medicine but rest assured if you study medicine you are studying biology and you need to have an interest and enjoy it. Otherwise it will be a very painful exercise in memorizing things. Lots of things.

I hope your daughter succeeds in her dreams!

My husband taught A level maths to lots of young people going on to do medicine. He always said they needed maths, Chemistry and Physics, not Biology.

@supperlover that's true but if she studies medicine there will be plenty of biology. Not like she can just swerve it forever.

Given that your daughter is still doing GCSE's which are very broad I'd say it depends what areas of biology she's struggling with.

I remember loathing learning about leaves and plant reproduction but really enjoyed doing the heart in particular.

Now of course if she did biology A level she'd need to excel in all areas enough to get a good grade. But not having a firm grasp of plant reproduction doesn't mean she isnt cut out for medicine (as long as she has better knowledge of human reproduction).

[quote Porcupineintherough]@supperlover that's true but if she studies medicine there will be plenty of biology. Not like she can just swerve it forever.[/quote]
That's true, but maybe when relevant to course it might be easier to cope with. I'm surprised there haven't been any doctors or medical students offering advice on this as they're the folk who know.

This is really interesting because I felt like biology was very heavy on memorisation of facts (as were chemistry and physics) but also the ‘easiest’ to grasp of the sciences at GCSE. I did my GCSEs the year before it all changed though.

I’m told it’s a massive step up at A Level.

I’ve no type read the whole thread so sorry if I missed repeating. If she does want to do medicine my top tips are her joining the Medicine 2024 thread on TSR, asking school if they have a Med Soc and if not, are they willing to set one up?

And for you, follow the Medicine 2022 entry in Higher Education on here.

My DS is applying for this year and I just can’t begin to thank the MNers on that thread for all of their incredibly helpful advice.

Hope I’ve got the year right BTW, still feeling half asleep this morning [smile[

Just to say, any plan which assumes that if you do biomed you will later get into medicine is not a sure one. My DD got a 1st in biomed and still did not get into medicine in the UK (she is doing medicine in another country now).

Have you bought the CGP books (cheap from Amazon), as they are very "straight to the point" without all the waffles of normal text books and the exam practice workbook in particular is excellent for highlighting marking scheme answers etc to help cut out the unnecessary long "wordy" answers that seem common in the science teaching but get few marks.

That must have have bee now a difficult process for you all TheDudes. Which country is she in?

DS is planning on working in a Hospital for a year is he doesn’t get in on his first round of applications and then applying again.

@BunnyRuddington Bulgaria. She is in her final year now.

Other DD had a Masters, and an Erasmus year, resulting in a publication, and she didn't get into veterinary school in UK either (even harder than getting into medicine). She is now in her 4th year of vet school in Poland.

How does the language work @theDudesmummy? Do they had to learn the language very quickly or are the lectures in English? And how do you go on with funding?

@BunnyRuddington both those countries have course taught in English, which they are on. You do of course have to learn the language by your clinical years, in order to talk to the patients, but language classes are provided as part of the course. There is no funding, I pay for them, but the courses are cheaper than in the UK, as are their living costs.

*courses taught

That's very useful. Thanks so much .

If DS doesn't get an offer this year, that looks like it could be a possibility for next year.

PM me at any time if you would any further details. Bulgaria is not a super-easy place to live and the language is certainly challenging but she was incredibly determined to get the degree, and the one good thing is that next year she can apply for Bulgarian citizenship so will become an EU citizen again.

Thanks again. The EU Citizenship is worth having alone!