Many students at Kings proceed to the top ranked universities in the UK each year including Oxford, Cambridge, St Andrews, London School of Economics, Imperial College London, University College London, Durham, Bath and Warwick.
The best route for entry to these universities is a 2-year A-level course. Beyond that it is very important to choose the right subjects at A-Level, as well as to give consideration to the full application: what does a particular student bring to a university aside from top grades? Students will have started building a profile before even joining Kings.
When considering the subjects, consider:
- Subjects that students have the top grades in
- Subjects that students really enjoy studying
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Subjects that are relevant to the degree course they want to study or a balanced combination if the degree course is not known.
UK Universities give students conditional offers based on 3 subjects, but universities such as Oxford or Cambridge are looking for an ability to manage a wider workload, as well as a deeper knowledge and passion about the chosen course. To that end, Kings can accommodate starting with an EPQ. In addition to getting the top A-Level grades to enter these universities, many require additional examinations or tests to be taken. You will be advised of these by Kings.
Students also need to show additional attributes to their academic studies. This means getting involved in a variety of activities both at school and at home in holidays. Work experience is essential for Medicine but also a good idea for all these universities. Participating in school activities such as the Student Council, fund raising, debating, sporting and other aspects that show a contribution to the school by the student is highly recommended.
Students will have personal tutors and university application counsellors through the 2 years of study. The first year involves a build up of understanding of the time needed to spend on study, the research needed to consider all options for their degree course and the work experience and additional activities they should get involved in. These aspects are all built into the reference the school will write on behalf of the student in their university application form that they complete in the first term of their second year or by October 15th if Oxford and Cambridge are being applied to.
Students thinking about this preparation should talk to their agent about an online interview with the Kings Academic Consultant to go through all the aspects needed to make a success of preparing for and getting into a Top ranked UK university.
Preparation for entry to UK medical schools and medically-related degree courses
Many students at Kings proceed to UK Medical schools and universities offering Neuroscience, Biomedical Sciences, Pharmacy, Radiology each year.
Students do need to have very good grades in their high schools in Chemistry, Biology, Maths, Physics and other subjects to be able to have a good chance to achieve this. They should be studying a 2 year A Level course although it is possible through the 1 year Kings Medical Foundation. For the Kings Medical Foundation, students must enrol on the online pre-Medical Foundation in August.
Students for Medicine and medical-related courses must study Chemistry and then normally 2 more subjects from Biology, Maths, Physics or another subject if a student is particularly strong, for example Psychology.
UK Medical Schools and Universities give conditional offers on the 3 subjects but an interview is usually required first. In addition, most universities require students to do the UCAT test and some the BMAT test. Training and advice on these tests are given at Kings as are practice interviews.
Students need to show additional attributes which must include some work experience either in the UK during the course or back home for which references should ideally be obtained for their referee to write about in the school’s reference. Involvement and contribution to the school activities such as Student Council, fund raising, debating and sporting activities is also highly recommended.
Students will have personal tutors and university application counsellors through the 2 years of study. The first year involves a build up of understanding of the time needed to spend on study, the research needed to consider all options for their degree course and the work experience and additional activities they should get involved in. These aspects are all built into the reference the school will write on behalf of the student in their university application form that they must complete in the first term of their second year by October 15th.
Students thinking about this should talk to their agent about an online interview with the Kings Academic Consultant to go through all the aspects needed to make a success of preparing for and getting into a UK medical school.