Applying to Medical School

My application journey

I applied to university in the 2020-2021 academic year. I sat my UCAT in early 2020 during COVID (we had to wear masks for the full test!) and all my interviews were online as we were in lockdown in early 2021. I still had to manage all the stress and anxiety that comes with applying to such a competitive course.

I applied to three medicine courses (Birmingham, Nottingham, and Leicester) and two biomedical science courses, so slightly unusual! I received two offers to study biomedical sciences within two months, but I was more concentrated on my medical school application.

I finally got my first response - an interview from Leicester! I was so excited! However the excitement was short lived as I received a rejection email from Nottingham. This really knocked my confidence in my prospects of getting into a medical school, even though I had an interview offer.

No one really prepares you for the rejection from a medical school. It is something I really struggled with as a I poured so much into it. However, having been through the process I can now understand it all much better. Rejection is a very normal part of life. If you do get a rejection email, it is absolutely fine to take some time to feel sad and upset! Every medical student I know had a rejection during their application, it is very normal!

I was then only waiting to hear back from Birmingham, and just before Christmas I heard back with an offer for an interview! I now had two interviews planned, and the Christmas holidays to prepare. 

My first interview was with Birmingham, straight after the holidays, in the same week as my year 13 mock exams! The run up to the interview and exam was so difficult, trying to cram in as much work as I could but I was able to manage my time to make sure I felt prepared. Then, the tricky bit; the wait to see if I had been successful. The wait was agonising, especially as some of my friends were getting offers. However, I finally got an email from Birmingham. A successful interview and an offer to study! This was such an exciting moment for me; all my hard work had paid off!

Top tips

• During the application process, make time for yourself and have things to look forward to! Book in time in your calendar, whether it be to go for a run, do some baking, or sit and watch your favourite movie. You deserve it!
• Make people aware of your important deadlines. It is very normal to feel stressed and anxious around deadlines. Therefore, it can be helpful to let those close to you know that you will be busy and focused around these times.
• Make use of the online resources and applications tips available to you. Birmingham provide a handy guide to applying to Medicine which you might find useful! 

I hope I have given you some insight into my experiences of the application process. Of course it is a daunting time, but it is all worth it in the end when you finally get your offer to study your dream course! I wish you the best of luck with your application!