Medical & Dental School Admissions: Teachers’ Guide

Are your students dreaming of becoming a doctor or a dentist? 

It can be difficult to know exactly how best to support students during the admissions process for medical or dental school.

To help with this, we've packed all of the essential information you need into this handy guide.

Table of contents

How do I prepare students for the admissions process?

Medical and dental school requirements

How can I help my students with:

• UCAT (a must for all standard entry medical school applicants!)
• Academic requirements
• Work experience
• UCAS application process
• Personal statement
• Teacher’s reference
• Medical/dental school interview

What happens if my student doesn’t get accepted into medical/dental school?

How do I prepare students for the admissions process?

Before students begin their journey, they should gain a deep understanding of the medical/dental admissions process. 

Below are some helpful resources which you can share with your students (and also look through to improve your own understanding if needed):

• Free Admissions Guide ‍
• UCAS’ guidance on submitting an undergraduate application
• Timeline for applying to medicine or dentistry:

Medical and dental school requirements (in a nutshell)

UCAT

A skills-based test that is used by the majority of medical and dental schools in the UK. It takes place in July–September each year.

Academic requirements

GCSEs (English, Maths and Sciences at 6 or higher) and A-levels (typically AAA including Chemistry/Biology).

Work experience

Either paid or voluntary, usually in a healthcare setting, although non-healthcare experience is still valued.

UCAS application

Applicants will need to submit an application for up to five courses via the UCAS platform, four of which can be for medicine or dentistry.

Personal statement

Students are expected to demonstrate experiences and skills that make them well-suited for medicine or dentistry.

Teacher’s reference

Should include information about the student’s educational or social disadvantages, academic potential, plus motivation, commitment, and suitability for medicine/dentistry. 

Medical/dental school interview

Traditional interview with panels, or multiple mini-interviews that consist of shorter interviews (~8 minutes) at 6–8 stations.

UCAT

After learning about the admissions process, students should start thinking about how to prepare for their admissions test. The admissions test for standard entry medicine and dentistry is the UCAT (University Clinical Aptitude Test).

It’s a computer-based exam consisting entirely of multiple choice questions that test a range of aptitudes:

• Verbal Reasoning
• Abstract Reasoning
• Decision Making
• Quantitative Reasoning
• Situational Judgement

Which universities use the UCAT exam? How do they use it?

The UCAT is used by the majority of medical and dental schools in the UK but each university is different in the way they use UCAT scores. This list of UCAT requirements will help you advise students on their best chances of acceptance. 

For example, if some of your students have a stellar academic record but didn’t do so well in the UCAT, you might advise them to apply for medical or dental schools that have a lower UCAT score threshold. 

How can I help my students to prepare for the UCAT?

Here are top five ways to get your class ready for the UCAT: ‍

1. Introduce the UCAT early

This should happen at the beginning of the year. Before your students even start to study, they should familiarise themselves with the exam to improve their understanding and minimise any anxiety. To help with this, you can share articles such as our UCAT FAQ and UCAT revision roadmap.

You should also advise students to book their UCAT exam early. The sooner the test is booked, the sooner preparation can start. Booking the test early also means a greater choice of dates and exam centres. 

2. Explore sections in more depth

Once students have a better understanding of the test, they can explore more in-depth guidance such as UCAT tips and tricks. They can also explore some free UCAT practice questions to get an idea of what they’ll face in the real exam.

3. Emphasise how they should prepare

Studying for the UCAT will be different from A-levels because it doesn't require students to memorise facts. Therefore, students should ideally spend at least 2–3 months preparing in the most optimal way possible (we break this down in our recommended approach to UCAT preparation). 

For example, simulating the testing conditions is critical for success. Students will need to sit the exam in a Pearson VUE exam centre, so make sure they’re comfortable with the UCAT computer exam client. This will provide a reassuring familiarity on test day.

4. Assess early and often 

Give your students some practice tests earlier in the year so they can identify their stronger and weaker areas. This way, they can adjust their schedule to focus on their weaknesses early on, and then brush up on their strengths closer to the exam.

5. Ensure they’re using trusted resources

We recommend that every student goes through the official UCAT practice tests and question banks. However, as this is a limited resource, students should strongly consider using a trusted UCAT preparation course too.

Keep in mind that a common challenge for students is going through enough practice questions to actually increase their score. By having access to a large bank of practice questions, students are more likely to improve their timing, find strategies that work best for them, and overcome their weaknesses.

Academic requirements

What subjects and grades are needed for medicine/dentistry?

GCSE: Medical and dental schools typically require English, Maths, and Sciences with a grade of 6 or higher. However, the exact GCSEs vary significantly between universities, so it’s advisable to refer to the full entry requirements.

A-level: Typically AAA–A*AA in relevant subjects (usually science based subjects such as Biology and Chemistry).

How can I help my students meet their grade requirements?

Our #1 tip is to encourage students to prepare early. This helps them spread out different commitments and provides more time to focus on A-level assessments.

Starting preparation early also means students won’t miss out on medical or dental school places due to not selecting the required subjects, or not having certain grades.

Work experience

Why is work experience so important for admissions?

Many universities require or strongly encourage applicants to have work experience in a healthcare or related field. This is to: 

• Help students understand what a medical/dental career involves
• Allow them to reflect on their suitability for medicine or dentistry
• Encourage them to develop leadership, communication, and teamwork skills

Even when work experience is not a compulsory requirement, students should reflect on their experience within their personal statement and provide examples which demonstrate relevant skills (e.g. building empathy). They may also be asked to draw upon their work experience during a medical or dental school interview. 

Therefore, it’s important to encourage your students to reflect on their work experience, rather than approaching it as a box-ticking exercise.

How can I help my students find work experience?

We understand that securing work experience can be difficult for some students. To make this process easier, you can recommend that they do the following:

• Use our handy free work experience map to locate nearby work experience opportunities. 
• Tap into their network e.g. ask friends and family, check with relevant staff at the school, reach out to GP/dental practices.
• Consider other opportunities such as volunteering abroad or virtual (online) work experience.

We offer more guidance in our article on work experience for medical and dental schools.

UCAS application process

What is the application process for medicine/dentistry?

Students can apply to up to five courses via UCAS, but only four can be medicine or dentistry. The fifth choice of university can be for anything except medicine or dentistry. 

Keep in mind that the UCAS application deadline for 2025 entry is October 15 2024, which is earlier than most other university courses.

Which universities should my student apply to?

Choosing a medical school or dental school depends on a range of factors, including the location, teaching style, rankings, student to staff ratio, research options, and cohort size.

Remember that once the UCAS application has been received, admissions tutors use specific selection criteria to decide who to invite to an interview. This is why applying tactically is important.

For example, while it’s worth applying to a ‘dream’ university if your student meets the minimum requirements, they should also apply to places that give more realistic chances of admission.

Personal statement

The personal statement is an opportunity for students to show admissions tutors who they are, and why they deserve to study medicine or dentistry. It may be used for interview selection and to aid discussion during the medical or dental school interview.

There is a maximum of 47 lines of text or 4,000 characters, so every word needs to count.

Note that the personal statement is changing to a series of free text questions for 2026 entry onwards.

How can I help students with their personal statement?

Here are Medify’s top three tips to help your students write a compelling personal statement:

1. Encourage them to start early

Encourage students to start preparing their personal statement early, ideally in the summer after year 12. This gives them enough time to write their statement and have it reviewed multiple times. 

2. Avoid using generic templates

Students should avoid blatantly copying other examples and using clichés (e.g. ‘I just want to help people’). Instead, their personal statement should show specific and personal reflection of their experiences and its relevance to medicine or dentistry.

For instance, reflecting on work experience and linking this to medicine/dentistry is a highly effective way of creating personalisation and adding depth to a personal statement.

3. Review their statement

When reading, use the list below as a checklist to see if everything is covered:

• Does it explain why they want to study medicine or dentistry?
• Is work experience mentioned? Do they say what they learned from it?
• Have they expanded on the skills which make them suitable for the course, with examples?
• Do they clearly explain why the skills and qualities they evidence prove they can make a good doctor or dentist?

Teacher’s reference

The teacher’s reference includes information about your student’s educational or social disadvantages, academic potential, motivation, commitment, and suitability for medicine/dentistry, as well as any additional information. 

Some universities don’t refer to this at all, but others consider them before offering an interview, and sometimes even for final selection. 

The reference is limited to a maximum of 4,000 characters, so much like the personal statement, it needs to be as concise as possible while remaining impactful. 

Remember that your student has the right to request a copy of your reference under the Data Protection Act 2018.

Not sure what to include? View UCAS’ guidance on how to write a teacher’s reference.

Medical/dental school interview

Medical and dental school interviews usually take place between November–April and generally take the form of a traditional panel interview or multiple mini-interview (MMI).

It’s the final stage before offers are released and can be a stressful and challenging experience for a lot of applicants. Therefore, it’s important that your students feel supported throughout the interview stage.

How can I help my students prepare for their interviews?

Here are our three top tips to help your students prepare for their interview: 

1. Encourage them to gain wider knowledge

In the early stages of interview preparation, students should be expanding their knowledge. For instance, medical school applicants should have a basic understanding of the common diseases and conditions, as well as the 'Good medical practice'. 

You can help your students identify what they need to learn. For example, you could brainstorm together to come up with a list of topics that they’ll need to research before their interview.

2. Ensure they stay updated on current affairs

‍Encourage students to keep up-to-date on current affairs as this forms an important part of interview preparation. For instance, you can advise students to watch/read the news on a regular basis, and stay updated with newsworthy items in the fields of medicine/dentistry and healthcare.

3. Simulate mock interviews

Play ‍the role of interviewer to help them get comfortable with topics and interview techniques. This can also help them to calm their nerves, get used to the interview style/format, and identify their weaknesses. 

You can also help them with other aspects such as advising on their presentation, including their dress code, eye contact, body language, and tone of voice.

Explore common medical school and dental school interview questions that you can ask during practice.

What happens if my student doesn’t get a place at medical or dental school?

It can be disheartening if your student doesn’t secure an offer, but it doesn’t mean it’s the end of their journey. 

First of all, reassure them not to give up on their dream as there are many routes into medicine/dentistry.

Next, encourage them to explore the following plan B options:

Reapplying

Your student (with your guidance) should evaluate the reasons behind the unsuccessful application and use this insight to strengthen their next application. 

For example, they may benefit from gaining further work experience, improving their UCAT score, or refining their interview techniques. 

Explore Medify’s recommended approach to reapplying for medicine or dentistry.

Alternative pathways

Not all of your students will get into medicine/dentistry, but there are alternative pathways for those who are not ready to give up, such as graduate entry and foundation and access courses.

Applying abroad

While this won’t be feasible or desirable for everyone, studying medicine or dentistry abroad is an option, such as in:

• Eastern Europe
• Ireland
• Australia and New Zealand

How can Medify help your student become a doctor?

Here’s how we can support your students throughout their admissions journey:

• UCAT Online Course – 2 in 3 UCAT test takers in the UK use Medify to prepare for their exams. We provide 20,000+ questions, 24 full mocks, 40+ mini-mocks, and 50+ hours of video tutorials with subscriptions starting from just £15.

• Interviews Online Course – 300+ authentic answers from real medical students, extensive video guides, and a Knowledge Bank written by a team of experts helps applicants to thrive in their interview for just £25.

Widening access to medicine and dentistry

We’re proud to work with over 200 schools globally to provide school group discounts and school-nominated bursaries. 

At Medify, we strive to create an inclusive and supportive learning environment to achieve our mission of empowering students from all backgrounds to pursue their dream of becoming doctors.

Find out more about our school group discounts and bursaries.