hmm....ne help guys?

Former Member

hi guys, dont usually come onto this board, but id like help in knowing wat a-levels are best to be a medical doctor

thanx in advance

Former Member

Hiya, a lot of it depends on the unis you're thinking of applying to. I applied to Queen Mary, King's, UCL, and St Georges, and the general consensus was this:

Chemistry is a must. There's a handful of unis which will only ask for chemistry at AS, but I really would recommend taking it at A2 if you really don't want to be behind, and for those unis, I suspect they would want a high chem grade if you're only taking it as an AS.

I took biology, but you don't have to. Again, check with the unis, some want it, others don't. When I was doing my UCAS form, my friend was about to put Nottingham in the box, and they stated that they wanted a subject he had not taken. If you're not taking a subject that they want, don't bother applying, because your form will go straight into the reject bin, esp a place like Nottingham.

A lot of the universities want 'arts' subjects. I took politics to A2, and unis like UCL said that students who take a non science subject will be at a slight advantage. Basically, what they want to see, is proof that you can write essays, since you're going to be doing an awful lot of paperwork . And they also want to see that you have a broad range of interests, and are not completely obsessed with medicine, after all, you can be excellent at science, but make a crap doctor – there are plenty of them around!

I'd check out UCAS.com, cos they had a good table of what each uni wanted subject and grade wise, if you need any more help, just let me know, cos I'm due to start the course at UCL in September if I get the grades Best of luck x

Former Member

Sciences

Former Member

yeah id agree with what go_away said.... i applied with chemistry, biology and geography.

theyre very keen on chemistry, you also usually have a formal interview with the med school of the uni- very nerve racking!:(

for that you also need to have a broad general knowledge and its helpful to know specific scientific research which is related to medicine, eg. stem cells...

the offers depend on where you go- some require 4 alevels by the way- oxford and cambridge require AAA, the usual is AAB but there are a few that are ABB...

good luck if this is what you chose to do, very hard work, but it'll be worth it in the end

Former Member

thanx guys, bin a great help

Former Member

To add to go_away, Religious Studies is a good A-level to have for medicine. Not only does it show that you can write essays and have a wider range of further education (ie not just sciences) but you will get to study ethics, which has helped a lot of 6th formers at my school applying for medicine.

I doubt much of it is medical ethics, but I'm sure you get the idea!

Best of luck in future exams ~.NK~

Nearly forgot - if you haven't already, try and get as much work experience in medicine as you can. Bear in mind that a lot of people will have taken the same A levels as you, but not many will have had exactly the same work experience.

Showing you are serious about the subject and have a genuine interest in it (ie not just in it for the money!) will help you uni application. Depending on your age it might be hard to get work experience as a GP in a practice, hospitals are probably a safer bet. If you can't find a medical placement, you could always try a placement at a pharmacy or even in an old people's home - anything that shows you care about people!