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There are several reasons why you might be considering A-Level resits, such as:
However, if you’re thinking about resitting any of your A-Levels and reapplying for Medicine, there are some key things you need to be aware of.
For example, some Med Schools won’t accept applications from students who are resitting their A-Levels, or will only accept them in certain extenuating circumstances. Also, some of the Med Schools which do accept resits will have specific requirements for them, e.g. you can only resit one subject, or they might expect you to achieve a higher grade than what is stated in the standard entry requirements.
Here’s a guide to what Med Schools are currently saying about A-Level resits. This guide was updated in 2022, but still make sure you check university websites for specific details before you make any application decisions.
| Medical School | A-Level Resit Policy |
|---|---|
| Aberdeen | The majority of successful candidates achieve the minimum academic requirements at the first sitting. They do not normally consider applicants who have achieved less than our minimum academic requirements, or who are re-sitting their examinations to upgrade results, unless very serious personal difficulties at the time of the first sitting can be demonstrated. |
| Anglia Ruskin | A-Level resit grades at AAA will be accepted within two academic years prior to the time of application. At first sitting, applicants should have achieved AAB or BBB for a Widening Access to Medicine (WAMS) application. |
| Aston | Applicants who have resat or are resitting A-Levels, with or without repeating an academic year, will be considered. The referee must provide a brief explanation of the reason(s) for the resit in the UCAS reference. |
| Barts | Barts only considers applications from students who are resitting their A-levels if they are protected under the Equality and Diversity Act 2010. |
| Birmingham | Resit grades are not considered except in extenuating circumstances. |
| Brighton & Sussex | They will consider resit applicants. However, due to the large number of applications, Brighton & Sussex will ordinarily only consider resit applicants who slipped a grade in one subject and obtained a grade B in the first sitting. |
| Bristol | The Medicine department will consider applicants who resit their qualifications. A maximum of one resit is allowed. |
| Buckingham | Applicants who attain BBB at their first A-Level attempt can apply with a resit. Applicants with lower grades at their first attempt and significant mitigation can apply after they have attained the required grades of ABB. Predicted grades will not be considered for such applicants. |
| Cambridge | Cambridge would be concerned about an applicant who is retaking large numbers of exams, unless this number of retakes was justified by circumstances beyond the applicant’s control and explained in their UCAS reference and/or Extenuating Circumstances Form. |
| Cardiff | They only consider A-Level resits in exceptional circumstances. |
| Dundee | A-Levels should be completed in the same sitting i.e. in the same year, two years after GCSE. |
| Edge Hill | Edge Hill accepts applications from those who have resat A-Levels, either with or without mitigation. They will not accept mitigating circumstances in lieu of appropriate entry requirements. All applicants must meet minimum entry requirements. |
| Edinburgh | All examination grades must be obtained at the first attempt of each subject. Those applying with resit qualifications will not be entered into the selection system, unless under exceptional circumstances. |
| Exeter | Exeter does not discriminate against applicants who have re-taken part or all of a qualification, and will treat an achieved or predicted qualification grade in the same way irrespective of whether or not re-takes are involved. |
| Glasgow | They do not normally accept resits or additional time to sit qualifications. Resits are only considered in exceptional circumstances. |
| Hull York | A-Levels should normally be completed within a two-year period of study – however, applications are welcome if you achieved at least BBB at first sitting and are taking one additional year to achieve AAA. Resit applications from students who achieved below BBB at the first sitting of A-Levels are not accepted. |
| Imperial | Only with mitigating circumstances – unforeseen, unpreventable circumstances that significantly disrupt your academic performance, such as an illness or bereavement. |
| Keele | If you are resitting your A-Levels, or have taken more than two years to complete them, you must wait until you have your final grades before applying. |
| Kent and Medway | KMMS does not accept A-Level resits, except through their extenuating circumstances policy. |
| King’s College London | KCL is able to consider applicants who have retaken their qualifications, but you should bear in mind that your application will be reviewed alongside other strong applicants who might be viewed more favourably if they achieved the required grades within a standard timeframe. |
| Lancaster | Lancaster will consider applicants who have taken longer than two years to achieve the required grades at A-Level, if the applicant otherwise meets the GCSE criteria and the non-academic entry requirements. In the absence of mitigating circumstances, you must have achieved ABB in your A-Levels at the first attempt. |
| Leeds | Applications from applicants resitting exams are only likely to be successful in exceptional circumstances. Well-supported documentary evidence of any extenuating circumstances is required. |
| Leicester | Candidates who for significant health or social reasons have taken 3 years to sit their A levels for the first time will be considered, but this will have to have been formally agreed by the admissions tutors ahead of application. |
| Lincoln | They will consider resits for no more than two A-Levels as long as you have already obtained at least ABB, with at least one A in biology or chemistry. You must achieve at least AAA after taking your resits. |
| Liverpool | Resitting candidates may be considered if the applicant otherwise meets the GSCE criteria. If applying to Liverpool for the first time, resit applicants must usually have achieved a minimum of ABB at first sitting. If an offer is made, resit applicants might expect it to be higher than typical (i.e. minimum of A*AA). |
| Manchester | Manchester welcomes applications from those resitting their A-Levels, though applicants may only resit one of either Year 12 or Year 13. For A-levels, applicants are expected to have obtained a minimum of grade ABB at first sitting for the resit grades to be considered. All resitting applicants are required to achieve grades A*A*A. |
| Newcastle | Applicants ideally should have achieved the necessary A-Level grades at the first attempt as an indicator that they will be able to manage the intensity of the course. However, Newcastle recognises that sometimes circumstances mean that students underperform. As a result, they allow a subject to be repeated once. |
| Norwich (UEA) | A-Level resits can only be considered for applicants providing they achieved ABB/AAC at the first sitting. Resit applicants will usually be expected to achieve at least one A* to compensate for the additional time spent studying. |
| Nottingham | They will consider resits for no more than two A-Levels, as long as you have already obtained at least ABB, with at least one A in biology or chemistry. You must achieve at least AAA after taking your resits. |
| Oxford | Oxford recognises that students sometimes fail to achieve their potential on first attempt at school because of extreme circumstances beyond their control. Examples would include disruption caused by change of school or system, severe discontinuity of teachers, bereavement or one-off debilitating illness. Under these sorts of extenuating circumstances, an applicant resitting A-Levels might be considered. |
| Plymouth | Resit applicants are considered with the following requirements: If you are applying with predicted grades, a minimum of ABB must have been achieved on first sitting. Where ABB was not achieved on first sitting, applicants must resit the required qualifications and apply once suitable grades have been achieved. |
| Queen’s Belfast | Due to the competition for places, the number of offers made to students resitting A-Levels has to be restricted. Normally only those who applied to study Medicine at Queen’s at the first attempt and held an offer (if made) as their Conditional Firm choice are considered. In addition they must have achieved A*AB/AAA at A-level or AAB at A-level plus A in a fourth AS-level at first attempt. |
| Sheffield | They accept A-Level resits. Any and all A-Level resits must be taken in the same sitting and only one resit per A-Level is permitted. |
| Southampton | Applicants who are retaking their A-Levels will be considered for their programmes. However, if applicants have retaken the same subjects more than once, these applications will be considered on a case by case basis. |
| St Andrews | Applicants who resit their A-Level studies to meet the entry requirements for Medicine will not normally be considered. However, applicants with extenuating circumstances may be considered if they achieved grades that were ‘borderline’ for meeting the entry requirements. |
| St George’s | A-Levels must be completed within one sitting across a maximum of two years. St George’s does not accept resits which require a third year of study. |
| Sunderland | A Level grades must be achieved in one sitting. |
| University of Central Lancashire | UCLan only has a very limited number of places available for UK students. |
| UCL | The examinations for your three A-Levels must be sat at the same time. UCL does not accept qualification resits. |
Before you decide to resit A-Levels, you should think about:
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