Medical Sciences 医学

UK University Facts:

Degree length: 6 years (UG); 1 year (PG)  Tuition fees: 20-25,000 GBP/year (no scholarships). IELTS: 7.0

There are 27 universities with Medical schools in the UK. An undergraduate degree takes 5 years plus one extra year, called the Pre-registration House Officer in which you must work in a Hospital. The study of Medicine at undergraduate level will allow you to become a qualified doctor. As there is a shortage of Doctors in Britain, it is possible for International students who have trained in Britain to work here. The average salary is very high.

However, the government limits the number of International students, allowed to study medicine at undergraduate level in the UK to just 7.5%. Therefore competition for entry is fierce and preference is often given to candidates from countries that cannot train Doctors. Also you need to have studied British A-levels (or the International Baccalaureate) to be admitted directly to an undergraduate degree. If you do study A-levels you will need A-grades in 3 science subjects (including Chemistry). The deadline for application is 15 October and, as with all undergraduate courses, you must apply through UCAS.

If you have studied at High School in China you can apply for a place on the one-year, ‘Access to Medicine’ course. After this course you can study Medicine at university. This course is offered at:

1. City College, Norwich

2. Manchester College of Arts & Technology must be at least 19 years old, have IELTS 5.5 and have good Science scores from High School

3. The College of West Anglia, King’s Lynn must be at least 19 years old. The course is recognised by the following medical schools: Aberdeen; Brighton and Sussex, Bristol, Cambridge, Wales, East Anglia, Edinburgh, Kings, Hull York, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Oxford, Royal Free and University College, Sheffield, Southampton, St Andrews, St Georges.

A list of all 27 medical schools can be found at www.chms.ac.uk

At postgraduate level there is no limit to the numbers of International students allowed and therefore application is easier. Courses take one year. There are no conversion courses; you must be a medical graduate to take a Masters in Medicine. Medical students from China who have studied TCM will not be able to study most Masters courses and those who have studied Western medicine in China may still not be able to study all courses as the teaching systems between the 2 countries is quite different. Basically you can only study a Masters course if you have studied this major at some time during your undergraduate degree. There are 2 types of Masters course: (1) Clinical and (2) Academic. Any course requiring a Clinical component requires you to register with the General Medical Council in Britain up to 9 months before coming to the UK.

Careers

Medical students become a Doctor after the 6 years undergraduate programme. In Britain most decide to become a General Practitioner (GP). GP’s do not work in hospitals; they have their own surgeries. People will visit a GP for most complaints. However if you wish to work in a hospital and specialise in a certain, advanced area you must take a series of professional exams (not a Masters degree) after your undergraduate study. These exams are very difficult. The main specialisations they lead to are:

Surgeon
Paediatrician
OBG

Related Subjects

There are many related fields in which study/entry may be less demanding or less costly. You may want to consider:

Nursing
Dentistry
Pharmacy
Physiotherapy
Bioscience

The top universities in this field are:

1.Oxford
2.Cambridge
3.Southampton
3.Liverpool
5.Manchester
6.Glasgow
7.Newcastle
8.Edinburgh
9.Dundee
10.Imperial College

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