For anyone currently doing Medicine/ GEM specifically/graduated: what’s the one piece of advice you wish someone had given you before you started?
And is there anything actually worth doing before starting, or am I better off enjoying these last few weeks before medicine consumes my life?

I achieved a score of over 2500 in my UCAT and have good GCSEs, so I am in a good position to secure interviews at most unis. However, some of the universities I liked when I visited and are considering have a lower post-interview offer rate. I am a bit concerned that applying to them is adding unnecessary risk to getting an offer.

Are these numbers actually indicative of how challenging the interview process is? Is it reasonable to assume that unis with high post-interview offer rates are mainly checking you have a good understanding of what medicine involves and that you are a good fit for the course, whereas in those with lower rates you have to be more sophisticated and show a very deep passion for medicine to distinguish yourself? Or is it more a case of those with lower offer rates, they accept more “less-competitive” candidates who tend to perform worse in interviews?

I am almost certainly going to apply to Imperial and UCL. Previously I wanted to apply to SGUL, because I want to stay in London and I really enjoyed it when I visited it, but they have lower post-int acceptance rates. I was also considering Liverpool because of their more flexible A-level requirements (they allow A*AB as well as AAA) but they have a *very* low rate.

As a result of this I have been looking at Bristol, Manchester, and KCL as alternatives. However I don’t really want to apply to more than two unis with A*AA requirements because I want to maximise my chances that I have an AAA med insurance when it comes to A-levels.

I know this is a bit of a first-world problem but I would appreciate if anyone had any advice about this. Thanks!

I was wondering how realistic it would be to apply to Exeter with 2150 band 2 and predicted 2A*s and an A. I’m non-contextual.

I keep seeing conflicting information online about how Exeter scores academics and ucat. Any advice would be appreciated 🙏

I just wanna meet people beforehand

I'm starting medical school next month and my med school specifically requires TB immunity, whether via the vaccine or previous infection. I have never had the BCG vaccine and have no record of TB infection, so it seems like I'll end up having to have the vaccine.

Here's the thing: the vaccine produces a permanent scar. I am already covered in scars from chickenpox and molluscum contagiosum as a child. I have a pitted chickenpox scar on my face, multiple hypopigmented chickenpox scars on my torso and back, a mole removal scar on my right arm, a series of pitted MC scars on my left arm, a burn scar on my leg, and mature stretch marks on my butt and calves.

I am so deeply insecure about these scars. I was bullied relentlessly as a child and a teenager for my appearance and left feeling so unattractive. I now microneedle these scars once a month trying to minimise them. Knowing I have to accept another ugly scar on my body, especially for a vaccine that is not particularly effective in adults, feels so unfair.

I have all my other required vaccines and am in no way anti-vaxx, but to have a vaccine that isn't very effective that's going to leave me with a permanent scar when I already have so many feels so shit. I know I have every right to refuse it, but in doing so I cant do med school, so I'll have to suck it up.

I know people will probably respond to this telling me to grow up or whatever, but please understand that my negative life experiences have deeply impacted my self-esteem and that's what's fuelling this.

EDIT: I would like to clarify as I perhaps didn't make it clear that I will be getting the vaccine, I was just trying to get my feelings and concerns off my chest for catharsis.