This is available for students studying on BSc Biomedical Science and the MPharm degrees, who decide that they would like the opportunity to change courses to study medicine at Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS). It was developed in the context of the significant numbers of graduates from these courses who chose to go on to study medicine. The scheme offers a guaranteed interview for a place to enter year one of the medical degree for up to 10 students if the required criteria are met.
The scheme is available to first and third year students. The year one scheme is effectively for students who have already demonstrated the required academic performance (e.g. at ‘A’ level). The year 3 scheme takes more account of subsequent good academic performance at University. The conditions for a guaranteed interview are:
Year 1 applicants:
Academic
- GCSE grade B or equivalent in Maths & English If offering IELTS, an overall score of 7.5 will be required, with scores of at least 7.0 in all subtests
- AAA or A*AB at A-level , all obtained in one sitting, plus one AS level . Both Chemistry and Biology are to be passed at A-level with grade A; neither General Studies nor Critical Thinking is acceptable as a A or AS level subject .
- If offering the IB, the required level is 38/18 with Grade 6 in each of Higher Level Chemistry and Biology
- Excellent semester 1 class attendance record
- A 70% (weighted by module credit) average (overall) for terms 1 courses or, if not available;
- evidence of high levels of attainment on all assessed work to date in Year 1 ( typically for the first six months), or:
- a strongly supportive statement from the personal tutor or the PABS medical school liaison officer, indicating that the applicant has demonstrated a high level of academic achievement.
Other
- Taken UKCAT in the previous summer.
- Made a UCAS application to BSMS (A100) Medicine by October 15th.
- Specified level of professional experience within the previous 12 months and completed by February of year 1*
Year 3 applicants
Academic
- GCSE grade B or equivalent in Maths & English If IELTS is being offered, an overall average of 7.5 is required, with scores of at least 7.0 in all subtests.
- A 70% (weighted by module credit) average across year 2.
Other
- Taken UKCAT in the previous summer.
- Made a UCAS application to BSMS (A100) Medicine by October 15th.
- Specified level of professional experience within the previous 12 months and completed by October of Year 3*
- Excellent record for class attendance & assignment submission by deadline
*Professional experience requirements
You will be expected to have undertaken a prolonged period of work in one or more healthcare settings (typically a minimum of once a week over 6 month period, 3 of which should have been in the last year) This could well be a paid post or volunteer work in a hospital, a care home , the St Johns Ambulance Brigade, etc. It will be expected that you can demonstrate learning from these experiences and also that you will have had some experience of delivering care.
The application process
Applications must be initiated and driven by the students, although school staff will assist and contribute to this process as needed.
First year application form (word doc 24kb)
Third year application form (word doc 24kb)
UCAS applications must be made in the normal way; the application forms for the Guaranteed Interview Scheme are available on ‘Studentcentral’ (the university virtual learning centre), the school web pages or the school office. This needs to be submitted, with the student section completed along with all the required evidence, to the school office by October 31st of each year. As an intending applicant, it is your responsibility to do this by the deadline; failure to do so will mean that you will not be entered into the scheme that year. Guaranteed interviews are likely to be offered in February of each year.
Please note that your are only allowed to apply once for a guaranteed interview, either in year 1 or year 3, but this does not stop you applying via the normal medical school entry route. For academic year 2010/11 the scheme is restricted to 10 applications, and this may be changed in subsequent year. Although this is not anticipated, if there are more than 10 applications from PABS then the top 10 will be selected on academic merit and goodness of fit to the criteria: any remainder will be put forward for the normal BSMS application procedure. The scheme guarantees an interview, not a place at BSMS, and if a place is subsequently offered this is likely to be conditional and require evidence of the maintenance of academic performance. You will also have to satisfy the fitness to practise requirements as specified at:
www.bsms.ac.uk/undergraduate/5-year/applying/fitness.php
