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Year 12 is the most important time to begin preparing seriously for medical school. This is when you start building the core components of your application.
You should aim to complete at least one work experience or volunteering placement in a healthcare or caring environment. While requirements were relaxed during COVID-19, expectations are returning to normal, and admissions tutors increasingly expect evidence of exposure to care settings.
Valuable options include:
If in-person experience is difficult to arrange, virtual alternatives can still be useful. For example, the BSMS Virtual Work Experience Programme is widely recognised and can act as a strong supplement – or, in some cases, a last resort. However, wherever possible, try to gain real-world experience, as it provides richer insight and reflection opportunities.
The key is not just doing the experience but reflecting on it. Make a note of what you learned about patient care, teamwork, communication, and the realities of medicine.
Supercurriculars are activities that go beyond your school curriculum and demonstrate genuine interest in medicine.
Strong examples include:
The goal here is to show intellectual curiosity and a willingness to explore medicine beyond the classroom.
While medicine is an academic and vocational course, universities are also looking for well-rounded individuals. To show this, continue with hobbies and extracurriculars you genuinely enjoy, such as sports, music, and other creative pursuits.
These activities demonstrate balance, resilience, and time management – and they also give you something personal to talk about in your application and interviews.
By around April or May of Year 12, your focus should shift more heavily towards academics.
Mock exams and internal assessments often determine your predicted grades, which are crucial for UCAS applications. Even the strongest portfolio of experiences cannot compensate for grades below typical medical school requirements. Make sure that you revise consistently, identify and improve weak areas, and seek support from teachers where needed. Strong predicted grades keep your options open across a wider range of universities.
This is also a useful time to familiarise yourself with key UCAS and UCAT deadlines. The UCAT (University Clinical Aptitude Test) is a multiple-choice exam required by most medical schools in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. Booking opens in June and test dates fill quickly, so be sure to plan accordingly.
Once your summer holiday begins, you should start structured UCAT preparation.
A good rule of thumb is to prepare for 8–10 weeks before your test date, which can be any time between July and September. While the date of your exam shouldn’t affect your score, earlier dates are often preferable in case you need to reschedule due to illness, and to get the exam ‘out of the way’. During this time:
Consistency is more important than intensity – daily practice is far more effective than occasional cramming. The Medic Portal offers an array of UCAT tutoring, guides, and courses.
When you’ve sat the UCAT and ensured that your score is competitive for your chosen universities, enjoy the rest of your summer, it’s very important to have a break!
Once you’ve sat the UCAT, your focus should shift to finalising your UCAS application.
This includes:
Your personal statement should bring together everything you’ve done so far, except the UCAT, which is sent directly to universities by the exam board.
Avoid simply listing activities, focus on reflection and insight. Admissions tutors are looking for evidence that you understand what a career in medicine involves and that you are prepared for its challenges.
If your application is successful, the next stage is interviews, which often take the form of Multiple Mini Interviews (MMIs) or Panel Interviews, depending on the University, and can take place between December and May. After they’re done, universities will let you know the outcome of your application, whatever the outcome!
Preparation for these is essential. You should:
The Medic Portal has a lot of detailed information on NHS Hot Topics, covering a large part of everything you need to know for interviews.
Preparing for medical school applications is a gradual process that begins in Year 12 and continues through to Year 13. The most successful applicants are those who start early, stay consistent, and focus on both academic and personal development.
To summarise:
By approaching the process step-by-step and making the most of each stage, you’ll put yourself in the strongest possible position to secure a place at medical school.
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