Ulster
Ulster University launched its four-year Graduate Entry Medicine programme in 2021 as part of a government initiative to enrol more medical students in the UK. 70 new students are now being admitted each year into Ulster’s medical programme.
Due to being a new course in which the first cohort of students has not yet graduated, there is no current data regarding Ulster’s ranking in UK medical schools.
About The Course
Based in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, Ulster Medical School offers their accelerated, four-year course in partnership with St George’s University of London to ensure the new programme meets the standards to develop competent doctors with sufficient professional knowledge, skills, values and behaviours.
Highlights of studying medicine at Ulster include very early patient contact, state-of-the-art anatomy teaching and opportunities to undertake student-selected components in which students can further explore areas of interest.
Structure Of The Course
Year 1
The first year at Ulster Medical School focuses on the clinical sciences underlying medicine. This knowledge facilitates the skills necessary to recognise signs & symptoms in patients and which differential diagnoses these are relevant for. Year one also introduces students to the clinical and communication skills needed throughout their medical degree and career.
Year 2
The second year introduces students to Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in a 17-week programme which links learning about the underlying science from year one with primary and secondary care management. Additionally, this year facilitates the transition into clinical practice with three 5-week placements in General Practice, Medicine and Surgery followed by a three-week student-selected placement in which topics of interest can be further explored.
Year 3
The penultimate year involves the vast majority of students’ time spent in clinical placement gaining further experience in medical and surgical specialties. Students also further develop their diagnostic and management planning skills in addition to their clinical procedure skills.
Year 4
The final year of the programme aims to prepare students for their roles as foundation doctors through a final Student Selective Component, an elective in which students can gain placement experience in a different culture and finally an apprenticeship with a foundation doctor to understand what to expect as they move into their first jobs.
Academic Requirements
GCSEs: GCSEs must include English language and Mathematics at grade C/4 or above.
A-levels: A-levels are not considered due to being a graduate entry-only programme.
IELTs (International applicants only): Applicants from non-English speaking countries are required to achieve IELTS grade 7.5 with no individual mark below 7.0
Bachelor's Degree (Graduates only): an Undergraduate degree at a minimum of 2:1 honours in any subject or a Master’s qualification in any subject at a minimum of 60% overall.
Mitigating Circumstances
Resits policy: Ulster’s policy on examinations that have been re-sat is unclear. You can contact Ulster Medical School using the contact information at the bottom of the page if you wish to find out more. Note: Ulster has set no limit on the amount of times you can apply to the programme, however, you are only allowed a maximum of two attempts at the Multiple Mini Interview stage.
Extenuating circumstances: Students who have previously been enrolled at another medical school are not usually considered. However, if you have experienced extenuating circumstances, you should make this clear in your personal statement and will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Deferred entry: Ulster is not currently accepting applications for deferred entry.
Transfers: Transfers from other medical courses are not accepted at Ulster.
Further Entry Requirements
Work experience: Ulster does not require a set amount of work experience to apply, however, work experience is always useful for medical applications, especially for the interview stage as it demonstrates insight into the career.
Personal statement: Personal statements are looked at during the application process, however, it is unclear whether they contribute to the selection process.
Admissions Process
Application to Ulster Medical School must be done via the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). Deadlines for submission are earlier for medical courses, typically mid-October. This application will include all of your academic history as well as your personal statement and other qualifications/achievements.
Admissions Tests:
UCAT ❌
Ulster Medical School requires students to sit the Graduate Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT) as part of their application which is a full-day examination designed specifically for graduate students. You can find out more about the GAMSAT in our guide. Unlike other admissions tests, you can sit the GAMSAT up to twice in one admissions cycle and Ulster accepts a GAMSAT score from within the past four years.
Ulster set a threshold for the GAMSAT score required for an interview offer based on the cohort’s performance. For the past few years, this has been a score of around 61.14. Candidates who meet this threshold in addition to the above-outlined academic requirements will then be sent an offer to interview.
Interview Type: MMI
Interview Topics: Interviews at Ulster use a Multiple Mini Interview (MMI’s) format in which applicants work through around eight stations, each designed to assess different qualities in their candidates, for example, communication skills, resilience, insight and empathy. You can find out more about interviews at Ulster on our school-by-school guide.
Interviews at Ulster typically run from December to February of the application cycle, and those successful can expect an offer usually around a month after their interview date.
Admissions Statistics
| Total number of applicants: | TBC |
| Total number of places: | 44 |
| Total number of entrants: | 70 |
| Acceptance rate: | TBC |
Fees
| Home students: | £4750 pa |
| Rest of UK: | £9250 pa |
| International students: | £36999 pa |
Teaching Methods
Teaching style: Ulster uses a Problem-Based Learning model in their medical programme in which small groups of students work through a medical case study and use problem-solving skills to formulate differentials and discuss investigation and management plans, pooling together everyone’s individual knowledge.
Underlying PBL are three main themes; ‘Basic and Clinical Sciences’, ‘Patients, Population and Society’ and ‘Professional Skills’. Additionally, after the first year, most teaching takes place through clinical placements where students learn from clinicians and a variety of healthcare professionals.
Graduate Prospects
Due to being a relatively new course where the first cohort of students has not yet graduated, there is no available information regarding graduate prospects for Ulster.
FAQs
Does Ulster Medical School Accept School Leavers?
No, Ulster Medical School is a graduate-only programme, thus all applicants are required to have at the minimum an undergraduate degree in order to be considered.
How many Medical Schools are there in Northern Ireland?
There are two medical schools in Northern Ireland, Queen’s Belfast Medical School and more recently, as of 2021, Ulster Medical School. Queen’s Belfast accepts both graduate and undergraduate students for their medical programmes whereas Ulster is a graduate-only course.
What qualifications do I need for Ulster Medical School?
All applicants are required to have either an Undergraduate degree of a minimum of 2:1 or a Master’s degree of at least 60%. These, however, can be in any discipline and do not need to be related to medicine. Additionally, candidates must meet the minimum required GCSE/ILC grades in English Language and Mathematics as outlined above in ‘Academic Requirements’.
What admissions test does Ulster Medical School Use?
Unlike most UK medical schools which use the UCAT as their admissions test, Ulster requires their applicants to sit the GAMSAT which is an admissions test specifically designed for graduate students.
