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The last two years saw a record number of people applying to study Medicine, with 29,710 applicants for 2022 entry and 28,690 applicants for 2021 entry. This year, there are slightly fewer applicants for 2023 entry Medicine in comparison: 26,820.
However, although this is a lower number than the last two years, it is still notably higher than the number of Medical School applicants that we saw before the pandemic. There are now over 6,000 more applicants for Medicine than there were five years ago – an increase of around 29%.
The number of people reapplying for Medical School this year is 5,010 – only slightly less than the 5,720 reapplicants we saw last year, which was a record high.
Like the number of applications overall, the number of reapplications is still significantly higher than it was before the pandemic. In fact, there are now double the amount of reapplicants for Medicine than there were five years ago!
This means that if you’re a first-time applicant for Medicine, you’re competing against a lot of reapplicants nowadays. These reapplicants might have taken measures to boost their application during their year out, e.g. by doing extra work experience, improving their Personal Statement and resitting the UCAT or BMAT.
While there are some changes to application numbers at the margin, an important difference this year is the reduction in the number of Medical School places available. During the pandemic, the cap on places was lifted, so there were around 10,500 places available to study Medicine across the UK.
The cap has now been reimposed, so there are around 7,100 Medicine places available for home applicants and 500 for international applicants. This reduction in the number of places will have a far larger impact on the overall competition for places than marginal reductions in applications.
For future Medicine applicants, there is no suggestion that the cap will be raised again in the coming years by the current government.
With the number of applications and reapplications remaining at a high level, plus the cap on the number of places, competition for 2023 entry Medicine is going to be fierce.
At this point in the application cycle, you should be doing everything you can to prepare for Medical School interviews. To make sure you stand out, get to grips with the interview format of your chosen university, try lots of practice questions, and make sure you understand NHS hot topics and medical ethics.
If you’re feeling worried about interviews, you might want to attend an interview course, take part in an MMI Circuit, or arrange a mock interview.
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