I am thinking of taking medicine but I am unsure about my grades.?

Question

I got 3A*s at gcse in maths, additional science and ict. 5As in english lit, science, statistics, history and re. and then 2Bs in french and english language.

I hope to get at least AAB in my a levels in two years time. I am going to study chemistry, biology, physics and maths. However, I have heard about people who do have done brilliantly but yet still get turned down by universities, will my grades be enough and what else can I do to ensure that I will be accepted by the universities that I will apply for?

Answer 1

I am assuming you are from the UK. I am from Bangladesh but studied the British GCE curriculum at high school. While I did well on my O Levels (we still take O levels, not GCSE's), getting 8 As, my A Level scores weren't nearly good enough (including a C in chemistry). However, I am now a resident of the USA and I am starting college there. Fortunately for me the door is not closed on medicine as a possible career as med school here starts after students get an undergraduate degree, and med school acceptance depends solely on university and not high school records.

If you want to go to medical school in the UK, I suggest you work really hard to get at least three A grades at A Levels, including A's in Chemistry and Biology. Even then, there is no certainty of getting into med school; candidates with 4 As at A Levels are routinely turned down due to the competition for places.

If you can afford it, consider applying to college in the USA or Canada; there you can enrol in college as a biology/biochemistry/chemistry or other science major and complete all medical school admission requirements over your four years in college. This might improve your chances of getting into med school, especially as there are some med schools in the UK that now accept students who have already completed an undergraduate degree and offer accelerated courses in medicine (3 or 4 years duration) for post-baccalaureate students. This plan will take more time than getting an undergrad MBBS from an UK university, and cost you a lot of money, but if your A Level scores are not that great, its probably your only option.  

Answer 2

Grades are good, but you also want to try to get some other activities in.  If you do community service or play sports at your school and maintain your grades, it will make you a desirable student.

With good grades, you can get into a bunch of schools, but the problem is paying for them.  If you play sports (well) and actively do community service things (like volunteering at a local animal shelter or something), then you can qualify for more scholarships making college more affordable.  Also, join clubs at your school and try to get a leadership position.  The 3 things most scholarship people look for are leadership, academics, and extra-curricular activities.  I had great grades in high school and got accepted to everywhere I applied, but the problem was being able to afford the tuition.

So basically keep up your grades and try to get some extra-curricular activities.