Hi, I’m a senior from a Texas American high school looking to apply to Oxford and other UK schools for medicine.
I have 8 AP tests so far with 5s on all of them: 9th grade - Bio; 10th grade - Chem, Macro, World; 11th grade - Physics 1, BC Calc, Stats, APUSH. Undecided for 12th grade since my school doesn’t have AP classes, I can self-study for whichever.
Also got 1550 SAT first try and 1560 second try, 2450/2700 SJT Band 2 on the UCAT.
Does anyone have any advice as to which APs I should take this year, and if my scores so far are competitive to get an interview at Oxford as an international? I technically meet the minimum AP requirements and was thinking of taking some humanities/language APs, but there’s a chance I won’t get 5s on all of them, would they make an offer conditional on those 5s down the line?
Unless you have a British passport and intend to practice medicine in the UK, it would be very unwise to apply for a degree in medicine in the UK. These places are for British doctors, not foreigners. It is not the equivalent of a US “pre-med” degree, in the UK you start training right away during your undergrad years.
If you intend to come back to the US afterwards then you should just apply for a science degree in biology, biochemistry etc. But note that this may not satisfy US pre-med requirements.
To your question about APs, Phys C is probably the most useful, as Calc-based physics is part of the UK A-level subject. Given these are self-study, there’s no need to take APs in non-science subjects, assuming you are doing regular courses through your school.
Do you want more information about which courses taken abroad will “count” if you decide to apply to medical school here? If so, a number of us can answer that question for you.
I guess I wonder why you are applying to medical school in the UK.
Competition for places on the Medicine course at Oxford University for international students is very strong as the Medical School is required by the government to restrict the number of studentswho are classified as international students for fees purposes to a maximum of fourteen each year, across both the standard (A100) and Graduate Entry (A101) courses.
Emphasize again, that 14 is across both undergrad and graduate entry.
Regarding the question about interviewing:
Short-listing is conducted in line with the quota imposed on the Medical School by the UK Government for the available international places i.e. the number shortlisted for interview is restricted to approximately 32 for the standard A100 course.
the only logical conclusion is that getting an interview for medicine as an international is going to be exceedingly difficult, and one has to assume the majority of applicants will be very strong, making it harder to stand out.
For the reasons enunciated, medicine is typically as hard to get into at probably any UK university whose name you are familiar with. I seem to recall that was one the mid ranked universities where it is somewhat easier to get a place as an international for medicine, but if you are Oxford calibre it’s probably unlikely you’d pay the international fee cost of a British medical degree for that?
The tuition fees for medicine for internationals by the way are a shade under £50k a year for years 1-3, and a little over £62k a year for years 4-6 (these will obviously rise each year). Then you have living costs and college fees on top of that for Oxford. Fees tend to be quite similar across universities in the UK regardless of ranking so do check individual Uni pages but that’s probably a decent ballpark for you to budget on.
Some more context: last year the admit rate for internationals was around 3%, following around 12.5% being invited for interview:
RELEVANT 2024 STATISTICS FOR INTERNATIONAL APPLICANTS
Upwards of 260 applicants identified as international for fee-paying purposes submitted complete applications for 2024 entry. Following shortlisting, which is conducted in line with the quota imposed on the Medical School by the UK Government for the available international places, 33 of these applicants were shortlisted and 8 applicants received an offer for 2025.
Huh, I guess maybe it’s been downgraded in the last 30 years. We did calculus-based mechanics at A-level. That perhaps explains why there’s now a non-examinable introductory mechanics course in the first term for new Cambridge math undergrads who didn’t do this in high school. But it’s optional, implying that some students have already covered this material.
Replying to this and your previous comments (thanks for the info btw!), I don’t have American or British citizenship so if I get into med school in the UK I’ll happily practice there in the future. I have some family there as well so that’s also why.
I realize my chances to UK med are insanely low but tbh as an international it’s just as hard to get into an US med school down the road sooo figured might as well try
Thanks for the comprehensive info! I’m also applying to US schools because I’m aware that realistically I won’t be shortlisted by Oxford or any other top UK unis…but just to maximize my chances I’m wondering if there are AP tests I should be signing up for?
Since I already took Physics 1, should I only take Physics C E&M or also Mechanics, or do I not really need to do either (if the A-level content has changed to not include calc-based physics)?
Is there a typo here? How will you stay and practice? Graduate visa is a possibility but it lasts maximum 3 years, have you looked into if any medical institutions would hire you with that? What happens after that visa expires- it can’t be extended?
You really are in a pickle. As you noted, it’s going to be hard to get accepted to medical school in the U.S. as an international…but not really any easier in the UK.
Is your country where you are a citizen an option?
Also, you might want to look at some of these other health care professions…perhaps being international wouldn’t impact you doing something else health related:
Replying to this and SJ2727 - don’t want to put too much private info but the country where I’m citizen is not really an option; the goal is obviously practicing with a sponsored visa in the UK (or US) but will def keep my options open to switching professions, thanks for the info! I guess I’m focused more on getting in first and then going from there haha
Most colleges do not use AP scores on the AP tests as part of their admissions decisions. Taking AP courses is fine, but just self studying and taking the AP exams likely won’t move the needle for admissions.
Also, FYI…you are a HS senior. Any AP tests you take during your senior year will be taken in the spring, and you won’t even have the results until summer…LONG after your applications are due.
