Getting into UK med schools is very similar to Australian med schools

UK medical school require are the same UCAT entrance exam, same MMI Interview and very similar ATAR requirements to Australian med schools. Why stay in Australia when you can apply to 37 other schools, double your chances & study overseas?

Why You Should Consider UK Medicine

The UK is one of the world’s top destinations for medical schools - the allure of its prestigious and long-established institutions is undeniable. In fact, it is home to the most reputable medical schools in the world such as Oxford, Cambridge and UCL.

Learn how Jeremy got #ACCEPTED to Oxford Medical School and why he chose an international medical school pathway.

There are 3 Pathways to Medical Schools in the UK:

Undergraduate Medicine

This pathway is open to school-leavers and involves direct entry into a medical degree straight out of school, at the end of which they graduate with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS/MBChB). This pathway is offered by select universities, to students who perform exceptionally well in school and in the UCAT / BMAT.

Postgraduate Medicine

This pathway is open to those who have completed any undergraduate degree, and who meet subject prerequisites for some universities. This pathway requires applicants to have high results in both their GPA and GAMSAT exam. These scores are combined to determine an applicant's eligibility for a medical interview.

Standard Entry Pathway

Similar to the Australian medical schools, "Direct Entry" in the UK is referred to as the “Standard Entry” pathway. This is applicable for students whose educational level at the time of taking the test is equivalent to students currently enrolled in an undergraduate course or have completed the final year of high school. This course type is usually 5 years long (it may lead up to 6 years in certain universities). All results under this pathway grant a Bachelor’s degree in medicine.

Subject Requirements for the UK

All U.K medical schools will require Chemistry, and most require Biology/Human Biology, Mathematics or Physics.

Compared with Australian medical schools which may require the following three prerequisite subjects to be taken in your final year are Chemistry, English and Mathematics (Advanced).

Entrance Exams

In Australia, students must sit the UCAT ANZ to get into Australian medical schools. In the UK, students sit the same UCAT exam (UK UCAT) but just at a different time of the year,

What is the UCAT?

The UCAT is a two-hour standardised, computer-based exam, with five separately timed sections each containing a number of questions in a multiple choice format.

Students are only permitted to take the UCAT once in an admission cycle. Your scores are only valid in the year that the test is taken in, which means you have to take the test in your year of application.

What is the BMAT?

Oxbridge and the top medical schools in the UK require students to take a different entrance exam - the BMAT. This covers similar content and skills as the UCAT but presented in a different format.

The BMAT is a two-hour paper-based aptitude test. Unlike the UCAT, the BMAT only has three sections. This test is for admission to Oxbridge, UCL, Imperial College plus a few other assorted medical programs for all students wishing to apply.

Students are only permitted to take the BMAT once in an admission cycle. Your scores are only valid in the year that the test is taken in, which means you have to take the test in your year of application.

Interview Process

When you receive a medical interview offer, the interview process in Australia and the UK follows a similar format called the MMI Interview - Multiple Mini Interview.

MMI Interview

During the MMI, each student spends between eight to ten minutes at each station, of which there are 5-8. Students have two minutes of reading time per station, with the remaining six to eight allocated as interview time. While the interviewers are judging you from a holistic perspective, there are some key teamwork, collaboration and motivational soft skills and characteristics they are looking for.

A similarity between Australia and the UK is that both countries give the highest weightage to the interview process.

This step also happens to be the final stage of the application process for medicine.

Panel Interviews

Medical school interviews at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge tend to be a little more traditional, following the conventional panel interview format. There are typically two interviews at each university, and interviews will last between 20 to 45 minutes.

Unlike the MMI, Oxbridge interviews will focus primarily on specific knowledge from high school content. You will also be asked about your personal statement and other relevant application requirements.

The Application Process

In Australia, there are three application requirements - ATAR, UCAT & MMI Interview. In the UK, you need a similar ATAR, you sit the same UCAT exam, same MMI Interview, the only additional requirement is a UCAS application.

Your UCAS Application is an essay on who you are, your personality and why you want to study medicine.

Many students prefer to apply to the UK because there is more opportunity for them to discuss and display their extracurricular and leadership activities as well as their personality.