The first three years encompass the science underlying the practice of medicine, while the last three years are spent in hospital learning to apply this science and work with patients.
Here are some general resources related to Medicine.
Overview 🔗 This page provides a good overview of the course at Oxford, including entry requirements and the application process.
Course summary 🔗 🌟 This page also gives a good overview of the course structure, with a case study of a current student as well.
Course overview from St Edmund Hall 🔗 🌟 This college specific overview of medicine gives more of an idea of what it is like to study medicine in the collegiate system at Oxford, as well as having some research videos which may be interesting to watch for super-curricular research.
Alternative Prospectus 🔗 This is an unofficial prospectus put together by the Oxford Student Union; it’s written based on students’ perspectives and gives a better sense of what the day-to-day experience as a Medicine student is like, compared to official materials.
The first three years encompass the science underlying the practice of medicine - neuroscience, psychology, immunology, anatomy, biochemistry, genetics, sociology, physiology and pharmacology. The third year offers the opportunity to do a research project in a field of your choice and achieve a BA degree in Medical Sciences as well as your medical degree.
The Queens' Access Podcast: Medicine 🔗 🌟 A brilliant podcast episode produced by current undergraduates at Queens' College, Oxford, all about the ways in which Medicine is taught differently at Oxford.
Student profile 🔗 This is a student profile of an Oxford medic; it answers some questions about how medicine is taught and gives application advice.
Course overview video 🔗 This video by the university outlines what medicine at Oxford is like.
Q&A with an Oxford medic 🔗 🌟 This video explains what medicine at Oxford is like, as well as answering some common questions about the course and giving some application advice.
Medicine OxVlog 🔗 This video is three medics discussing what Medicine at Oxford is like. Also check out this video 🔗 for a week in the life of a first year medical student.
First year day in the life 🔗 This video shows a day in the life of a first-year medic at St Edmund Hall. There is also an Instagram version of this on @sehaccess.
Medicine applicants are usually expected to get some work experience to get an idea of what medicine is like as a career because you don’t study it in school. It doesn’t matter how much work experience you have, you might only have one volunteering placement or a day or two in a hospital, what matters is what you learnt from it!
A good personal statement for an Oxford applicant is about 80-90% academic content - this is usually known as ‘super-curricular content’ and can be anything you’ve done to learn above and beyond your A-Level or school curriculum. This may include books you’ve read, research papers you’re interested in, YouTube videos, podcasts, talks, online courses and lectures etc.
Medicine personal statement tips 🔗 Personal statement tips from Oxford admissions tutors.
Application tips from a first year medic 🔗 This video talks about standing out in admissions tests, personal statements and interviews.
Reading List 🔗 🌟 This reading list is for first-year students, but provides a good starting point for super-curricular resources.
Everyone applying for Medicine at Oxford has to sit an entrance exam - the BioMedical Admissions Test. It’s also used by some other universities. It has three papers, a multiple-choice critical thinking/problem-solving paper, a multiple-choice science and maths paper, and a short ¾ page-length essay. The best way to prepare for the BMAT is to use the resources below to practise! You should also dig out your old GCSE level science notes and use them to check you know enough physics and maths if you’re not taking those subjects to a higher level.
The official BMAT page 🔗 Find a summary of the test format and example questions here.
Official BMAT resources 🔗 The syllabus and past papers are all available freely on this website.
Videos on BMAT advice 🔗 🌟 These videos are very helpful in explaining how best to revise for the Oxford medicine entrance exam.
Everyone interviewing at Oxford for medicine has four interviews, two at one college (usually the one you applied to) where you stay overnight, and then two at another college. These are typically a mixture of science problems and ethical questions as well as some background questions about your work experience, motivation to do medicine and why you chose Oxford.
The Medic Collective: interview resources 🔗 🌟 A page dedicated to preparing for an Oxbridge Medicine interview, including YouTube videos and advice from current students.
Interview tips from a first year medic 🔗 This video talks about one student's experience at their interviews.
General interview information 🔗 This page includes key dates and selection criteria.
Interview tips from the Medic Portal 🔗 Some excellent advice for preparing for Medicine interviews.
InsideUni Medicine 🔗 🌟 Our new website contains lots of information about applying to medical school.
InsideUni Medicine interview experiences 🔗 🌟 Current students talk about their interview experience, as well as sharing some tips. We’re biased, but we think they’re useful!