Not as far as I'm aware. It's basically has some similarities to both the Foundation course at Georges and WAMP at Soton. People studying for the certificate do 1 year at Lincoln and then start their professional degree at Nottingham. In total they will take 30 students onto the certificate for the 6 possible professions (medicine, pharmacy, dietetics, physiotherapy,nursing, midwifery). Nottingham university has guaranteed 12 places for students to study medicine in 2006 provided students get an overall pass of 60% in the certificate studies at Lincoln in 2005. Lincoln will take only 12 students to do medicine in this, which is their first year. This is to ensure that if all 12 pass the certificate with a grade of 60% or more they will ALL go on to Nottingham to study medicine.
I was informed the Lincoln will not take any more than the quota set by Nottingham and find that all students who get the required 60% and have to wait before they can take up their place at Nottingham.
In order to be considered you have to fulfil academic and non-academic criteria set by both universities:
Academic:
- Applicants must achieve at least 200 points (or equivalent) on the UCAS tariff. If your qualification is outside the tariff - as are Access, advanced GNVQ and the ‘old’ BTEC - you may be asked to produce written work or sit a test to support your application. You don’t need to have studied a science subject at this level.
- Applicants must have achieved a C grade or above in GCSE Mathematics and English. You must have also achieved a C grade or above in GCSE Biology or Chemistry or double science.
and...
- To be considered for admission to the Certificate, applicants must be able to show special circumstances. These include:
- being a first generation entrant to Higher Education.
- being eligible to receive the Education Maintenance Award (EMA) or equivalent, or (if over 18) being in receipt of a means-tested benefit
- family, cultural or financial reasons for needing to study in Lincolnshire or Nottinghamshire
- attending a school or college without a strong tradition of progression to Higher Education
Like Soton, there is an extra form that you have to fill out to say you meet the above, as well as additional questions to judge suitability to Medicine. If selected, you are interviewed by a panel of two admissions staff, one from Lincoln and the other from Nottingham. The interview is anywhere from 25-40 mins long.
Like Soton, they will be giving students a bursery, however as the course is new, they have not finalised the actual amount.