COVID-19: FAQs About its Impact on Medical School Admissions Part 2

If you missed out on part one of this FAQs session check it out here: COVID-19: FAQs About its Impact on Medical School Admissions Part 1.

Have you any specific advice for Scottish students applying for 2021 medical school entry?

Although the terminology is different when it comes to GCSEs and A-Levels in Scotland as in National 5s, Highers and Advanced Highers, the principles are the same. The guidelines for teacher-assessments are the same as the rest of the UK. 

How can I make sure my skills are more medical-based rather than general?

Medical schools understand that medical work experience is impractical and unsafe at the moment and they will take that into consideration during your application. But, transferable skills are important. For example, working in a coffee shop where you handle money, shows you are trustworthy. A track record of being punctual shows you’re reliable and coping with large queues shows you can work under pressure. These are all transferable skills that you can apply to medicine. Voluntary work during COVID-19 such as doing shopping for the vulnerable in your community or befriending a person who is self-isolating at home shows skills that are required for medicine. For more on work experience alternatives during COVID-19 check out COVID-19 and Work Experience Alternatives.

I was supposed to resit an exam but it was cancelled, what happens now?

This is a very unfortunate situation. We’re not 100% sure of the answer but we think you should try and resit it as soon as possible and then apply with that grade. You could be one of those unfortunate people who might have to wait another year which we understand would be very frustrating. You could try to contact the exam body, research their website for answers, or get in contact with the teacher of that exam subject.

Is the UCAT requirement higher for graduates than non-graduates?

Yes. If you are a graduate applying for a graduate entry course, it is competitive; therefore the only way of shortlisting people would be the UCAT requirements, which would need to be higher. To improve your UCAT scores check out How to Improve UCAT Scores.

As a mature student hoping to apply through an Access To Medicine course, do you foresee any changes to this route of entry?

No. We don’t foresee any negative impact on the future of these courses. Although this is not a guaranteed route into medicine, if anything, there should be more courses like these available. 

I’m from Ireland with an offer to study medicine in the UK. My exams have been postponed to late July/early August. If my exam results are not released by 30th August will I lose my offer?

Offers are usually binding and unlikely to be changed. Specific dates of resits or exam results have not yet been confirmed.

Due to Year 12 missing classroom lessons, will medical schools, GCSEs and A-Levels sat next year be more considerate?

This question is a topic that will have a lot of issues associated with it. It’s not confirmed whether they will be more lenient next year. The longer the lockdown continues the more these issues will need to be considered.

Hopefully, this two-part FAQs session has answered some of your questions, but if you still have any questions please send them in via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or email us at help@medify.co.uk

To keep up-to-date with the COVID-19 and medical school admissions situation bookmark our Live update page Live Updates: COVID-19 and Medical School Admissions.

If you’re still to start your UCAT revision and fancy improving your chances of gaining a great score check out our UCAT 2020 Online Course.

We have a bank of over 10,000 questions, a decision-making section, and 8 full mock exams and 18 mini-mock exams; we even give you performance feedback too.

We’ve been lending a successful helping hand since 2009. Medify’s here to support you, just reach out to us.

Note: In response to COVID-19, Medify has rolled out a COVID-19 guarantee scheme for those purchasing a UCAT season pass. This means that even if the UCAT exam is delayed, we will guarantee access to the Medify platform until your exam date.