A-levels is better than Access to Medicine Courses

[josh19_2005]

Hi i am a mature student too currently doing my final year of A-Level. predicted to get AAA in biology, chemistry and maths. i think mature students should really try doing A-Levels instead of access courses as its gives you the same chances of getting into medicine with younger A-Level students. i have just done interviews for Cambridge, Manchester, Imperial College and University of London. I got all 4 offers and will hopefully be picking Cambridge university. So i really strongly recommend Mature students to try doing A-Levels. i have a friend who is currently doing access to medicine and has been rejected by all universities. hope this information helps.



Cambridge University- Conditional Offer (AAB)
Manchester University- Conditional Offer (ABB)
Imperial College- Conditional Offer (AAA)
UCL- Conditional Offer (ABB)

[racheljane]

Glad it's worked out for you - that's great. Don't forget it really depends on lots of things as to which one (A levels or Access) suits you best. How mature you are (access can be much better for older students as it's 1 year not 2 - we haven't got as much time left you know!); whether you will enjoy studying A Levels with a group of 16/17 year olds; which unis you are intending to apply to (some are actually MORE likely to accept access from a mature than A levels especially if they are 'linked' like UEA and BSMS); and probably lots of other geographical and personal reasons for choosing.

I think Access is a good choice for matures who are ABSOLUTELY dedicated to applying to medicine - it's an intensive year and will leave you with no doubts about how hard med school is going to be and if you can hack it. It's completely geared towards med school - every subject is tailored to suit entry to the next level (year 1 med school), and the whole group is focused on one aim together so there is major support and extra-curricular things like interview practise and presentations from med related people.

Your example compared to your friend's are extremes - getting 4 offers after A level is not the norm, nor is getting no offers after access. I'm not sure what the success rates are statistically for either, but from the a2m I'm on at Lewes this year about 85% of students have offers.

[bn37]

Well said Racheljane!

[Miss M.]

Hmm, I agree with Josh. A-lelvels put you on the same level as us bright young things. Access courses kinda scream out "less than A-levels"

Opinion.
Emma.

[racheljane]

I'm not too worried that other students feel the access courses are 'less than A levels' as it's the opinions of the unis that count and they are more than aware of the contents of the courses. The main Access courses accepted, i.e. Kings Lynn and Sussex Downs, are deemed equivalent to about 3.5 A levels taken in 1 year. That would make us 'equal' not 'less' in worth to A Levels... but in half the time. I can fully understand though that many of you bright young things would not want to cope with that sort of intensive workload, and why should you have to, you have youth on your side and plenty of time. There's pros and cons to both and it's good that there's a choice.

[bonkors]

Well said Rachel Jane, as mentioned in your earlier post, everything is geared towards medicine.

[josh19_2005]

well i know once of the admission tutor at liverpool, i have been told that they favor A-level student more than Access students. they want to see you are more than capable of studying. with access course you are just not accessed enough compare to A-Levels. Well there are lots of things that Access student doesnt study or go in depth compare to A-Level. iam glad this route worked out for me. im definitely choosing Cambridge University. i got love their medical school. Well universities have only limited numbers of seats for Access students compare to A-Levels. so i think its sensible to do A-Levels if you think you are capable to do it. i am currently 25 years old. im suprised i got all 4 offers! i thought i would be rejected especially by Cambridge which is known to reject students.


well hope this info helps.




Cambridge University- Conditional Offer
Manchester University- Conditional Offer
Imperial College- Conditional Offer
UCL- Conditional Offer

[rabbitboy68]

Don't knock it until you try it. Of course, I'm biased towards the A2M courses as I'm going to be on one next year, but anyone who thinks that cramming that much science and maths into a year puts us below an A level student should come and have a go. Surely this would prepare us for the high standards and high workload? Many of the people on the A2M courses are healthcare professionals such as Nurses and Paramedics, you'd think that they have more healthcare experience in their little fingers than the "bright young things"?

Thats my 2 cents

PS - I hear that you can pass A levels without using correct spelling and grammar, maybe the title of the post "A levels is....." is proof of this. Shouldn't it be "A levels are..."? - Just saying.

[josh19_2005]

well im not saying the Access to Medicine courses are not better than A-Levels. I am just saying universities prefer more A-levels students than Access Students. If you were to go into a medical school, in a particular class, you will see most of the students do have A-Level background and there are only handful of them who are Access students. How can i be so sure, well my brother is a consultant in Oxford and he also teaches 3rd year medical students. Both of my parents are doctors as well. so hopefully now i will be one of them. At the end of the day i think its up to people to decide what they want to do and which route they want to apply through and both of these route are good ways to get into medicine. So i dont doubt any of that. i also remember one of the Access To Medicine student was there when i had my interview with Cambridge University. I vaguely remember which college he was from but he was quite excited about it too. i really hope he did get a offer for it. anyways those of you who are going in this year to do Access course, i wish you all the best and hope you all get into University to do medicine!!



Cambridge University- Conditional offer
Manchester University- Conditional Offer
Imperial College- Conditional Offer
UCL- Conditional Offer

[racheljane]

Slightly flawed logic there I'm afraid Josh. Indeed most of the students are from A Level backgrounds, but this is not necessarily because all the unis prefer them, it is because there are only about 120 places available in total each year on all the most accepted access courses combined. Therefore, even if every access student was accepted into medicine the number of A Level students at med school would still far outweigh the number of access students. So, as we have an imbalance of each type of student applying, it would be fairer to use percentages gaining places from each group as your data rather than sheer numbers. As I said before, I don't know the statistics for the A Level group but I think it's something like 7,000 places for 30,000 applicants (someone please correct those figures if they are way out) which would suggest that around 23% of applicants get in. For access to med, I only know the statistics for the course I'm on this year, which have constantly been around 85% of students gaining places from each year's intake over the last 4 years. At med school you will find yourself studying statistics, data analysis and reasoned argument a lot more over the next few years and hopefully this is good practise!