MEDICINE
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DENTISTRY PATHWAY
(Year 11 to Upper Sixth)
September – December (Autumn Term)
• Attend beginner-level clinical skills club
• Write a reflection on the clinical skills learned during this term for future use in personal statements and interviews
January – March (Spring Term)
• Concentrate on GCSEs. You should aim for 8s and 9s in Sciences and Mathematics
April – June (Summer Term)
Attend UCAT Training Sessions:
• 1 – Introduction to UCAT
• 2 – Medical UCAS Pathway
• 3 – Early UCAT Preparation
Summer Holidays (between Year 11 and Lower Sixth)
Use information from the UCAT training sessions to begin preparation:
UCAT Mathematics and Reading Tasks
• Complete the UCAT mathematics checklist
• Record baseline reading speed online at Swift Read
Improve Reading Speed
• Read regularly
• Practise pseudo-skimming
• Practise chunk reading
• Write summaries after reading Work Experience
• Begin applying for healthcare-related work experience or volunteering (care homes, hospitals, GP practices, charities, Observe GP, Medic mentor)
Year 11
September – December (Autumn Term)
Work Experience and Reflection:
• Attend virtual work experience from medic mentor (information will be sent to you on Teams)
• If you haven’t already completed healthcare related in-person work experience, continue to apply for this
• Reflect in a journal on experiences you have had with themes such as communication, empathy, teamwork, and responsibility
Clinical Skills and UCAT Development:
• Attend advanced clinical skills club and write reflections on skills and terminology learned
• Work through the UCAT mathematics checklist, practising mathematics under pressure (online resource: free mental math trainer)
Reading Speed Work:
• Record reading speed again using Swift Read
• Continue improving reading speed (pseudo-skimming, chunk reading, summarising)
UCAT Check-in - attend the UCAT Progress Meeting in November
January – March (Spring Term)
Ongoing Work Experience - continue volunteering or work experience as previously explained
University Research:
• Compare university entry requirements, GCSE/A level expectations, and UCAT scores
• Create a list of potential university choices
UCAT Familiarisation:
Explore UCAT question types using Official UCAT website
Medify UCAT
Medic Mind UCAT
Attend UCAT Training Sessions:
• 4 - Verbal Reasoning
• 5 - Decision Making.
• 6 - Quantitative Reasoning
Lower Sixth
April – June (Summer Term)
University Choices - finalise your university shortlist (four medicine choices and one backup)
Personal Statement:
• Attend LVI sessions on UCAS and writing a personal statement
• Start drafting a personal statement including:
Academic interests
Motivation for medicine
Reflections from work experience
Co-curricular activities
UCAT Preparation:
• Begin serious UCAT preparation
• Book the UCAT test slot (registration opens May); booking opens 17 June
• Review UCAT test rules (tests can only be taken once a year)
Attend UCAT Training Sessions:
• 7 - Situational Judgement training
• 8 - Booking-the-test support session
• 9 - Practice questions and techniques session
Summer Open Days:
• Research and book university summer open days which usually include tours of medical schools and talks from admission tutors
Practice Materials:
• Complete UCAT official mock tests and question banks online at UCAT
• Optional resources: Medify, UCAT Ninja, Score Higher on UCAT
Summer Holidays
(between Lower and Upper Sixth)
Sit the UCAT:
• Access results 24 hours later via Pearson VUE account
• Tests can begin from 7 July
Personal Statement:
• Finalise your personal statement –adding any work experience/wider reading from the summer
• Get feedback from subject teachers, Mrs May and Mrs Sutton
Additional Preparation:
• Continue wider reading and reflection on healthcare topics
• Continue practicing interview techniques and answers to common questions
• Continue volunteering where possible
Summer Open Days - attend university summer open days
September – October
UCAS Application
• Use your UCAT score to choose appropriate courses to apply for
• Finalise your UCAS application
• Submit by the 15 October medicine deadline
Medics Group (September to December):
• Discussion group covering topics that might come up at interview, eg ethical issues, scenarios, graph interpretation and data analysis, sample interview questions
• What to do to enhance personal statement, relevant general knowledge (often covered in summer term of Lower Sixth)
• MMI interview practice
Reading and Interview Preparation:
• Begin wider reading (medical news, NHS articles, This Is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay)
• Attend PSHEE interview/UCAS guidance session
• Practise UCAS interview questions using the STAR model
• Attend interview practice evening
UCAT:
• Final UCAT test day: 26 September
• Mid-September - review the preliminary UCAT mean scores
• UCAT results are delivered to universities in early November
November – March (Interview Season):
• Attend medical school interviews (most occur between NovemberMarch)
• Stay updated on NHS topics, medical ethics, and current affairs
Upper Sixth
