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Course overview

Already have a degree, but want to move into medicine and start your journey to become a doctor?

Graduate Entry Medicine is designed specifically for graduates to prepare you for a successful career in medicine. You'll learn from world-leading researchers and clinicians to achieve your goals.

The course is split into two phases:

  • the early years, where students learn the skills and knowledge required to become a doctor
  • the later years, called the Clinical Phase, where students put their learning into practice on placements at hospitals and GP surgeries

You'll be taught by experienced tutors in a modern purpose-built medical school with an excellent reputation for teaching and research. 

Medical students at Nottingham join a great student community, with a student-led society that is always putting on events throughout the year and provides support in the form of peer mentoring and more.

With us you'll get the clinical skills you need for a successful career in medicine and still have time to enjoy your university experience.

Advice on applying to medicine

Medical Schools Council advice on applying to study Medicine

Medical School admissions updates from the Medical School Council during the COVID-19 pandemic

UCAS

All applications must be made in UCAS by 15 October.

If you wish to make a change from another medicine course to a University of Nottingham medicine course on UCAS within 14 days of submitting your choices, please ensure the change is made before 15 October or your application will be unsuccessful.

Application Timeline

If you meet our entry requirements we will check your work experience and education questionnaires before we invite you to interview.

If you make it to the next stage you will be invited for Multiple Mini Interviews which usually take place before or after Christmas or during the Easter holidays.

We aim to issue offers no later than 2 weeks after the last set of interviews.

Access and support

If you have a disability or any ongoing health issues, please seek advice from the School of Medicine before applying. We welcome students who have a disability but we also have a responsibility to ensure all students will be eligible for registration by the General Medical Council on graduation.

Find out more about the available School of Medicine support

Clearing

Due to the popularity of this course, we do not usually go into Clearing.

Previous medicine applicants

Previous unsuccessful applicants can re-apply for the course as many times as they wish and will be considered against other current applicants, however you can only be interviewed on a maximum of two occasions.   Applicants will not be eligible for a second interview if significant reservations occurred during the previous selection process or if performance in the first interview was poor.

We do not accept applications from those who have previously been studying on a medicine course at this, or another medical school. We also don't allow students to transfer onto our medical courses.

Deferred Entry

Deferred entry will only be granted under exceptional circumstances and the reason must serve to further prepare the candidate for a future career in medicine, for example working with Voluntary Service Overseas or International Health charities.

Excluded students database

When offering places to students we check the MSC Excluded Students Database as part of our commitment to professionalism and fitness to practise. We will also ask if you have encountered professionalism issues with other professional bodies such as the Pharmacy Council or the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.

If either we or another medical school have terminated your studies, your details are shared with regulatory bodies and other medical schools through this database.

Why choose this course?

  • Open to people with a degree in any subject
  • Learn in purpose-built facilities and be part of a small group of students in the early years of the course at our modern medical school at the Royal Derby Hospital
  • Work with patients through regular visits to GPs from as early as your first term in your first year
  • Experience placements across a range of NHS trusts and general practices in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire

Entry requirements

All candidates are considered on an individual basis and we accept a broad range of qualifications. The entrance requirements below apply to 2021 entry.

UK entry requirements
A level offer N/A
IB score N/A

Degree

Minimum of a 2:2 degree in any discipline

You must be in your final year or have already completed your degree before applying.

If you were unsuccessful when applying for a Medicine course but went on to complete an alternate non-medical degree, we will still consider your application.

English Language

If English is not your first language, you will need to have proof of your fluency with one of the following:

  • IELTS 7.5 (no less than 7.0 in any element)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) 73 (minimum 67)
  • Cambridge Proficiency/Advanced test (from January 2015) 191 with no element below 185

Work Experience

Applicants should complete regular work experience when applying for medicine. 

This can be:

  • Volunteering in a care related setting
  • Volunteering with disadvantaged groups
  • Paid employment in a job working with the general public

Please note, we are not expecting any work experience to have taken place or be ongoing after March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Your application for 2021 entry will not be negatively affected if you’ve been unable to complete work experience you had planned.

As part of your application we usually ask candidates to complete a short form about their voluntary or paid work experience. 

We usually request a brief description of the experience, dates of when it took place and a reference contact.

If possible, we'd advise that you speak to someone working in the NHS to ensure you are making an informed choice about your career in medicine.

Interview and Test

You will be required to have an interview. This will take the form of Multiple Mini Interviews. 

We will not consider applicants who have already been interviewed twice at Nottingham before but have not received an offer.

You must also complete the Graduate Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT). This is to ensure you have the knowledge and reasoning skills needed to study medicine. You can sit the GAMSAT as many times as you wish, but we will only use your highest results obtained during the last two years. You must have taken the GAMSAT before you apply. The test results are valid for two years.

Find out more about the GAMSAT

To be considered for interview, you must achieve a minimum score of:

  • 55 in Section 2
  • 55 in either Section 1 or 3
  • 50 in the remaining section

Interviews are offered to those who achieve the highest total score in the GAMSAT. 

Fitness to practise

We must be confident in your conduct, health and ability to be professional and interact safely with patients.

As part of your application you will be required to have an occupational health assessment and a disclosure and barring service (DBS) check.

If we have any serious concerns we will not offer you a place, and reserve the right to revoke offers should serious concerns arise before starting the course.

Find out more about fitness to practise

Offers

All offers are made subject to being successful at interview, and having a satisfactory occupational health assessment, DBS clearance, and no fitness to practise issues.

If you are still studying for the required qualifications, offers will be conditional on you achieving the required grades for entry.

If you have already met the entry requirements, offers will be unconditional subject to having a satisfactory occupational health assessment, DBS clearance, and no fitness to practise issues.

Find out more about the Graduate Entry Medicine selection process

Learning and assessment

How you will learn

Teaching methods

  • Anatomy sessions
  • Clinical relevance sessions
  • Clinical skills sessions
  • eLearning
  • Lab sessions
  • Lectures
  • Placements
  • Practical classes
  • Problem-based learning
  • Prosection
  • Self-study
  • Seminars
  • Small group learning
  • Tutorials
  • Workshops

How you will be assessed

Assessment methods

  • Case studies
  • Clinical exams
  • Coursework
  • Examinations
  • Formative assessments
  • Logbooks
  • Objective structured clinical exams
  • Portfolio (written/digital)
  • Poster presentation
  • Practical exams
  • Presentation
  • Short project
  • Workplace-based assessment

Contact time and study hours

During your first 18 months you will have approximately 14 to 15 hours of teaching contact time with around eight hours of independent study per week. You will also spend around four hours on placement every five weeks.

During your time on the Clinical Phase you will spend between 35 – 40 hours across five days every week studying and on placements. You’ll spend around two to three days on ward, clinic or GP placement visits per week with one day of independent study and one to two days of teaching contact time. This will include some time on call and some out of hours work.

Study abroad

During the final few years of your course, you'll have the opportunity to study abroad on exchanges with other medical students from across the globe. Past destinations have included Croatia, Germany, Malaysia, Norway, Slovakia, and Spain.

Students are also given a six-week elective placement at the end of their final year which they can also spend abroad.

Placements

The course includes 15 main placements over the clinical phase, with each lasting up to six weeks. There are also 10 weeks of student selected modules and a six-week elective placement.

You will experience a range of settings including medical, surgical, specialty skills, mental health and community-based medicine. Placements are located within four large NHS trusts in the region, as well as with general practices.

During placements, you will be supported by experienced clinical mentors.

Placements can take place in:

  • Nottingham at the Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham City Hospital, and Highbury Hospital
  • Derby at Royal Derby Hospital
  • Mansfield at King's Mill Hospital
  • Chesterfield at Chesterfield Royal Hospital
  • GP practices across the region

Find out more about where clinical placements take place

Modules

Building on the intellectual skills of your previous degree, your first 18 months will see you work in small groups to examine clinical scenarios using case studies, and study the various different systems of the body. 

In the final months of your second year, you'll begin the Clinical Phase which will see you rotate through a series of placements at major teaching hospitals and within primary care across the region.

  • Alimentary
  • Cardiovascular
  • Endocrine System
  • Integrative
  • Limbs and Back
  • Neuroscience
  • Personal and Professional Development
  • Problem-Based Learning Course
  • Respiratory Sciences
  • Structure, Function and Defence
  • The Treatment and Prevention of Infection
  • Urogential System

Your final two years form the majority of the Clinical Phase. You'll rotate through a series of six-week placements at major teaching hospitals and within primary care across the region. These years will provide you with the professional knowledge, skills, values, and behaviours to succeed through direct experience.

During both years you will have the option of student selected modules which can be at home or abroad and will end with a six-week placement of your choice and a medical assistantship to prepare you for the UK Foundation Programme.

Clinical Phase 1: Foundations for practice

This phase provides students with the opportunity to acquire and develop professional knowledge, skills, values and behaviours through experiential learning in primary care settings, outpatient clinics, operating theatres, the emergency room and patients’ homes. This is combined with seminars and simulation-based learning.

This phase will comprise of an introductory week followed by five sets of six-week placements in medicine, surgery, specialty skills, mental health and community-based medicine.

Placements are integrated to allow students to maximise their learning in each setting. After two placements there will be a formative assessment week, and at the end of the five placements students will have summative assessments. Students will progress to a 12-week block involving a two-week junior assistantship and 10 weeks of two or four-week Student Selected Modules (SSMs). Students will choose from a wide variety of SSMs from across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Lincolnshire.

Clinical Phase 2: Advanced Practice

This final phase of the course is divided into two components: Advanced Practice 1 and Advanced Practice 2.

This part of the course is intended to prepare students for the transition to working as a Foundation doctor and enable appropriate preparation for the GMC Medical Licensing Assessment.

Advanced Practice will consist of an introductory week followed by a series of clinical placements including a formative assessment mid-way through between Advanced Practice 1 and 2. Topics covered will include: Health Care of Later Life; Leadership and Management training; Intermediate Medicine including Rheumatology; Cancer and Palliative Care; Child Health, Obstetrics and Gynaecology; Advanced Primary Care; Critical Illness; Advanced Medicine and Surgery. Upon completion of these clinical placements, a revision week will be held followed by the final summative examinations.

Transition to Practice

The Transition to Practice programme is embedded in within the Advanced Practice phase. This is completed with a final 12-week period incorporating a six-week elective and a six-week senior medical assistantship.

The elective period is an opportunity for you to gain insight into medical practice in a different setting within the UK or anywhere in the world. The elective holds an exciting opportunity that will provide you with a chance to expand your skill set and overcome new challenges.

During the medical assistantship you will apply previous learning to the practical assessment and management of patients by workplace based learning. You will be expected to attain the level of practice of an FY1 doctor at the start of their employment being assessed by portfolio and logbook review. It will include shadowing a Foundation Year 1 doctor, and provides an excellent preparation for your own Foundation Year training.  

The above is a sample of the typical modules we offer but is not intended to be construed and/or relied upon as a definitive list of the modules that will be available in any given year. Modules may change or be updated over the duration of the course due to a number of reasons such as curriculum developments or staffing changes. Please refer to the module catalogue for the latest information on available modules.
Royal Derby Hospital

Where you will learn

Royal Derby Hospital

Royal Derby Hospital is based in the city of Derby, around 15 miles from Nottingham. This modern, purpose-built building offers you all the facilities you need to study.

You will have access to laboratories and anatomy, clinical skills and computer suites. The NHS library is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

You can travel to University Park Campus in around 45 minutes on our free hopper bus. Derby city centre is 15 minutes away by public bus.

Medical School – Queen's Medical Centre

Where you will learn

Medical School – Queen's Medical Centre

Our Medical School is based in Queen’s Medical Centre, one of the UK’s largest hospitals.

There are dedicated clinical skills facilities including a dissection suite and teaching laboratories for medicine and healthcare students.

The hospital is located opposite University Park Campus and connected by a footbridge for easy access. Nottingham city centre is 15 minutes away by public bus or tram.

Fees and funding

UK students

£9,250
Per year

International students

Confirmed July 2020*
Per year
*For full details including fees for part-time students and reduced fees during your time studying abroad or on placement (where applicable), see our fees page.

EU tuition fees and funding options for courses starting in 2021/22 have not yet been confirmed by the UK government. For further guidance, check our Brexit information for future students.

Additional costs

As a student on this course, you should factor some additional costs into your budget, alongside your tuition fees and living expenses such as travel and accommodation.

  • £40 for an enhanced DBS check, and you may wish to subscribe to the DBS update service for £13 per year.
  • £65+ for a stethoscope

You may need to buy some smart clothes to wear for clinical work settings.

You should be able to access the books and resources you need for the course through our libraries, however you may wish to purchase your own copies or buy specific books which may cost up to £80 each.

Scholarships and bursaries

The School of Medicine covers costs for:

  • A laboratory coat
  • A travel bursary (provided for students on placement in the clinical years of the programme)
  • Printer credit to the value of £200

From your second year until your final year, students who live in the UK are eligible for NHS bursary funding which can help cover living costs and tuition fees.

Find out more about the NHS Bursary

The University of Nottingham offers a wide range of bursaries and scholarships. These funds can provide you with an additional source of non-repayable financial help. For up to date information regarding tuition fees, visit our fees and finance pages.

Home students*

Over one third of our UK students receive our means-tested core bursary, worth up to £1,000 a year. Full details can be found on our financial support pages.

* A 'home' student is one who meets certain UK residence criteria. These are the same criteria as apply to eligibility for home funding from Student Finance.

International/EU students

We offer a range of Undergraduate Excellence Awards for high-achieving international and EU scholars from countries around the world, who can put their Nottingham degree to great use in their careers. This includes our European Union Undergraduate Excellence Award for EU students and our UK International Undergraduate Excellence Award for international students based in the UK.

These scholarships cover a contribution towards tuition fees in the first year of your course. Candidates must apply for an undergraduate degree course and receive an offer before applying for scholarships. Check the links above for full scholarship details, application deadlines and how to apply.

Careers

On graduating, you'll be able to provisionally register with the General Medical Council (GMC) for a licence to practice medicine in the UK.

To fully register with the GMC and be able to practice medicine unsupervised in the NHS or as part of a private practice, you will need to complete a Medical Licensing Assessment and complete the UK Foundation Programme.

Find out more about the GMC registration process

While most students continue in a traditional medical career to become doctors, a medicine degree can lead to careers in research, sales, journalism, illustration, communications, and economics and more.

Average starting salary and career progression

A doctor on the UK Foundation Programme can expect to start at £27,689 to £32,050.

As you gain experience as a doctor and develop your professional skills, you may progress on to senior clinical posts and earn up to £107,688 depending on your role and years of service.

Studying for a degree at the University of Nottingham will provide you with the type of skills and experiences that will prove invaluable in any career, whichever direction you decide to take.

Throughout your time with us, our Careers and Employability Service can work with you to improve your employability skills even further; assisting with job or course applications, searching for appropriate work experience placements and hosting events to bring you closer to a wide range of prospective employers.

Have a look at our careers page for an overview of all the employability support and opportunities that we provide to current students.

The University of Nottingham is consistently named as one of the most targeted universities by Britain’s leading graduate employers (Ranked in the top ten in The Graduate Market in 2013-2020, High Fliers Research).

General Medical Council (GMC)

This course is accredited by the General Medical Council (GMC). Upon graduation, you will be able to register provisionally with the GMC and begin the UK Foundation Programme. 

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" We develop exceptional knowledge and skills in Derby. The support we receive provides a great foundation for a fulfilling career in medicine. "
Joshua Valverde, Graduate Entry Medicine BMBS

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Disclaimer

This online prospectus has been drafted in advance of the academic year to which it applies. Every effort has been made to ensure that the information is accurate at the time of publishing, but changes (for example to course content) are likely to occur given the interval between publishing and commencement of the course. It is therefore very important to check this website for any updates before you apply for the course where there has been an interval between you reading this website and applying.