missbrokensmile Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 (edited) Hey everyone!Since I'm new, I'll introduce myself a little. I'm taking the IB exams in 2010, and I'm from Australia. I'm hoping to study medicine, in (if I can) Oxford or Cambridge... Hah, those usual two universities...Like I said in the title, I was wondering if anyone could help me out with my subjects. Can I study medicine with these subjects?English A1Mandarin B HLModern HistoryMathematics SLChemistry HLVisual ArtsSo far, I've only chosen two subjects as my HL, I'm not sure about the third. Any suggestions, tips, words of wisdom?I know in Australia, I could enter Uni of NSW or Uni of Sydney with the subjects I have, as chemistry is really the only prequisite (though they do recommend a high level of English, maths and a second science). However, in Oxford and Cambridge, I'm not so sure. I've looked around, and they seem to require: two of the sciences (or one, I'm not sure), maths, and at least two of them taken at HL... I could possibly take maths at HL, but it'd be pretty hard to change art to physics or biology (though not impossible).I heard that there were two ways to enter? First, through the undergraduate course, and second, through taking any science course and then taking the med? Correct me if I'm wrong...So, if I were to complete the IB with the subjects I had, would I have to go through route two? Or I could just take medicine in Australia Any thoughts?Thanks so much, it's much appreciated, and I've been browsing around this forum... it looks great! So much of it has helped me already Edited June 18, 2009 by missbrokensmile Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
__inthemaking Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 I think you're going to need biology, or it would at least be very beneficial to take biology. I'm not sure about the policies in UK/Australian unis though.I'm in pre-med in Canada and we go through "route two", first we get a Bachelor's undergraduate degree (3-4 years) and then we go to med school (another 4 years + couple years residency). Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vvi Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 (edited) From what I read there are two routes to Oxbridge courses; the other one is for graduates only and I believe that means that you need to have completed a science course previously (like you said), and that graduate course of medicine lasts 4 years. However, I don't think it's a good alternative because completing first one degree (3 years) and then a 4 year medical degree means you have to pay a year's extra fees. And since you would be an international student, the fees would be over £20,000 a year. Medical courses are more expensive than other courses in the UK, so it's probably closer to £25,000.I looked at the requirements for entry to Cambridge and Oxford's medicine courses (which both last 6 years by the way), and neither had any subject specific requirements which is strange (Cambridge didn't even say how many points were needed from IB). However, I would think that you would need 2 sciences at HL, and Maths at SL if you wanted to study there. I looked at several medicine courses offered by other good UK universities, and many of them require Biology and Chemistry at HL (and English and Maths can be at SL level). None of them had Physics as a requirement, but it could be taken as one of the sciences. However, those that stated specific requirements for subjects most often said "Biology ___ points at HL" or "Chemistry ____ points at HL", so taking those two would be your best bet. That means you would most likely have to switch from Visual Arts to Biology HL. If you want to check out all the medicine courses on offer in the UK, go to www.ucas.com, then click "Search by subject", "M", "Medicine", "Medicine as a subject on its own" and you can click on the various courses offered at different universities (and then on "Entry Requirements"+"Other tariff qualifications" to see how many points they want from the IB and whether that includes TOK+EE points, and which subjects are required at HL, etc.). If the courses you are currently taking would be fine to study medicine in Australia, then it may be easier for you to stay there rather than change subjects. Edited May 21, 2009 by Vvi Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashika Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 Take biology... definitely.IB biology introduces you to a lot of the human systems, so it's no doubt a good idea to take it. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
avrila Posted May 21, 2009 Report Share Posted May 21, 2009 I agree with Ashika... I think you should take Biology HL. It's good so that you can learn the basic of medicine at least. Many knowledge related to medicine is taught in Biology. For example, you'll learn about cell,nerve, human physiology and a lot more... At least if you have learn it during IB, you will not have problem when learning medicine in the future..I also planning to take medicine in the future and I took Bio, Chem and Math for my HL. I got to know from my shoolmates who applied for Cambridge that the university required 7 in all HL subjects. I'm not sure if they specify what subject the HL should be..Go for Biology... you are in the right path... Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
missbrokensmile Posted May 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2009 Great! Thanks for all the replies everyone. I really appreciate them. I think I am going to change to Biology... Except it means catching up on so much work. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.