Would this allow me to get into medicine? (1 Viewer)

[jane bubble]

I didn't sit for the UMAT in 2012, as i intended on taking 2 years off of uni
But things have changed, so now I am working around the situation
I got an atar of 99.40 and want to get into medicine
Since i got the UNSW AAA scholarship, I want to apply to Adv sci at unsw, and study this part time for 1 year
And during the year, I will have done my UMAT and went through the process of applying to medicine
Will I be able to transfer into medicine (not necessarily in UNSW, any uni is fine) if i meet all the requirements?
And will the gpa of my part time study be of more value then, as compared to the atar?

i have to send in a late application asap, so please give your advices!

 

[Dylanamali]

I don't think many students on here would be familiar with part time study.
In my opinion, you should contact UNSW and ask them if they consider GPA if a student completes 1 year of part time university.
I know that normally, if you were to complete 1 full year of university, UNSW would definitely consider ATAR:GPA 50/50.

But in saying that - I'd say that your current ATAR is very competitive.
It would likely need a UMAT score of around 60 raw / 85%ile or so to obtain an interview.. which isn't too bad.

If you were to enter university and UNSW did consider ATAR:GPA 50/50, just to maintain your current "Academic rank / ATAR" you'd need to obtain a GPA of 6.2125.
So just keep that in mind. If you do happen to HD all your subjects, e.g. achieve a GPA of 7.0, you could also potentially increase your academic rank to 99.675 which would require a lower UMAT score to get an interview.


But to answer your questions -
Yes you will be able to apply to most medical schools in Australia provided you do the UMAT and get a competitive score which meets the 2014 cut-off.
e.g. UWS, UNCLE/JMP, UNSW, UTAS, UAdel

 

[Survivor39]

It's likely that they won't consider your GPA because you haven't completed a full year of university studies.

 

[Riproot]

You need to complete 48CP for your GPA to count.

Because I only completed 45 (I failed a 3CP subject) my ATAR was the only thing considered for all the courses I applied for this year (quite ironic that if I got 50 in that subject I wouldn't have gotten into my main round offer).

But 99.4 is definitely a good score and you should aim for a 90%+ UMAT (I would aim for 95%+) if you want to get into UNSW.

 

[jane bubble]

I know that if I complete under 75% of a course, my GPA won't be considered
So I was thinking: complete half of the year, then withdraw. This would allow only my ATAR to be considered, and I won't have to work as hard for another year. (yes, i know this sounds lazy)

Also, if a course is full time (like sci adv), can I drop subjects (like 2 a sem) to kinda make it part time?

I just need to do less than 1 year of university in any course, as this would allow me to use my scholarship, continue with my intended gap year, and then try for medicine

 

[jane bubble]

Or should i simply defer for 2 years, and do 1 full year of university afterwards, and then try for medicine

 

[Dylanamali]

I recommend just taking a gap year, repeating UMAT this year and then applying for 2014.

If your only entering university for the AAA scholarship... you should be aware that enrolling into the units will add more debt to your HECS then what you would receive as the scholarship.
Science is around 8k/year..

 

[fatboi]

I don't recommend a gap year. However, have you considered Medsci @ UNSW with their lateral entry? Might be worth checking out. Or the UWS adv sci entry scheme. It generally makes it easier to get into the program, so have a look. DOn't waste a year on gap.

 

[Dr_Fresh]

if you do some study at university, you are pretty much eliminating a few of the top universities from your list of options for undergrad study and potential back ups if you dont make it in at a NSW university. i know the UQ and monash definitely only take school leavers and i think adelaide (90% sure) as well. if i were u, i would not go to uni to study as it doesnt do you any favours whatsoever. work, travel, study for umat etc. all much better options.

 

[Dylanamali]

Normally I wouldn't recommend taking a GAP year, but it definitely appears as if the OP is keen on it and I can definitely see the value of having one - gaining a better appreciation of the world, travelling, volunteering, working, focusing on UMAT etc. You cannot definitively state that a GAP year is a wasted year. Furthermore, the OP has quite competitive ATAR which could be utilised in enrolling as a standard applicant to UQ, CDU, Monash, UAdel.
As you have stated - if OP was to enter a university degree, UNSW's Medical Science or UWS's Adv Sci / Adv Med Sci would be the best option in my opinion.

 

[fatboi]

in regards to the actual debate of gap vs non gap, that's a personal choice you make, but imo, gap years are wasted, no matter what the conceited douches who travel to albania and help goat farmers say. It does elimate a few schools, but none in NSW. Additionally, if you fail to make it in again, you're in the same position as last year and have effectively done nothing with yourself.

 

[townie]

Keep the personal jibes out of this thread, first and only warning

 

[Dylanamali]

All in all, a gap year could significantly increase your knowledge of the medical field, reaffirm your desire to enter it and give you a solid foundational to express yourself and your experiences in the interview.

Btw, where and what year of Medicine are you in?

 

[fatboi]

All in all, a gap year could significantly increase your knowledge of the medical field, reaffirm your desire to enter it and give you a solid foundational to express yourself and your experiences in the interview.

Btw, where and what year of Medicine are you in?

and it could also be a huge waste of time, effort and money which could have been better spent elsewhere.

The fact of the matter is unless you have done absolutely nothing ever with yourself and lack the IQ to think of a way to spin it, med schools interviews do not favour gap year takers. There are plenty of things which can be done locally which would match any gap year "sensational" story for much less invested time.

The only time I would suggest a gap year is 1) you cannot afford uni and must work or 2) you have no clue what you want to do in uni.

 

[Dr_Fresh]

yeah m8 keep telling urself that one

thats why you started a thread for people to ask you entrance questions

with yourself

as self appointed expert numero uno. gg


in regards to the actual debate of gap vs non gap, that's a personal choice you make, but imo, gap years are wasted, no matter what the conceited douches who travel to albania and help goat farmers say. It does elimate a few schools, but none in NSW. Additionally, if you fail to make it in again, you're in the same position as last year and have effectively done nothing with yourself.

the scenario can play out a number of ways:
1. start undergrad degree, ace umat: get into med in NSW or miss out altogether
2. start undergrad degree, fk up umat: year wasted, HECs debt
3. gap year, ace umat: get into med in NSW with guaranteed place at UQ as backup
4. gap year, fk up umat: make money from work, no HECs debt

the fact that you get to be 1 year into science a degree is irrelevant coz its a useless anyway. do you hit or stand on a soft 17 against the dealers 8. you stand coz the better calculated play, but sometimes you lose.

 

[fatboi]

the scenario can play out a number of ways:
1. start undergrad degree, ace umat: get into med in NSW or miss out altogether
2. start undergrad degree, fk up umat: year wasted, HECs debt
3. gap year, ace umat: get into med in NSW with guaranteed place at UQ as backup
4. gap year, fk up umat: make money from work, no HECs debt

the fact that you get to be 1 year into science a degree is irrelevant coz its a useless anyway. do you hit or stand on a soft 17 against the dealers 8. you stand coz the better calculated play, but sometimes you lose.

do an engineering degree/commerce/anything else then

the great part of this is you can line a back up, try twice for undergrad and still sit gamsat...

 

[Dylanamali]

Primary benefit of doing 1 year of an undergraduate degree would be that you are one step closer to postgraduate entry.
Instead of having to do a 3yr degree if you took a GAP year, you'd already have completed 1.
That's the way I saw it.

I would have only taken a GAP year if I knew I had a busy year lined up. e.g. made travel plans, had a job lined up etc.

 

[jane bubble]

I am taking a gap year for religious studies, which are quite intensive. So no, the issue of whether the gap year is a waste is irrelevant

Would I be able to do this? Take gap year (after being enrolled in a course), and do umat. If i can get into med, can I just cancel the other course that I was enrolled in and took a gap year? And apply to medicine from fresh? So right now, i already applied to adv sci at unsw, and i'll be taking 2 years off. If within the two years, i am able to get into med, can i cancel the adv sci thing, and apply to med?

Also, if i don't like the course that im doing, can't i just transfer into something else and continue on with that? That way, there would be no HECs debt

 

[Dr_Fresh]

I am taking a gap year for religious studies, which are quite intensive. So no, the issue of whether the gap year is a waste is irrelevant

Would I be able to do this? Take gap year (after being enrolled in a course), and do umat. If i can get into med, can I just cancel the other course that I was enrolled in and took a gap year? And apply to medicine from fresh? So right now, i already applied to adv sci at unsw, and i'll be taking 2 years off. If within the two years, i am able to get into med, can i cancel the adv sci thing, and apply to med?

Also, if i don't like the course that im doing, can't i just transfer into something else and continue on with that? That way, there would be no HECs debt

no, you cant just try out a course for 6 months, decide you dont like it and transfer. you can only do that if un-enrol before census date (march 31st).

 

[RishadM]

Hi, I'll talk about UNSW since I know more of what Im talking about in that case, and that's your preferable uni to study medicine as you said.
Anyways, I am nearly 100% positive (I have called student admin/central about this, but you should re check for yourself), that UNSW will NOT consider your WAM/GPA (UNSW uses WAM) if you do not have 48uoc (1 full time year) completed. They will only look at your ATAR (which is definitely up there to get into medicine, but obv. depends on your UMAT). Call student admin and re confirm this though. You would have to apply for medicine through the UAC to have your ATAR considered. For people who have done more than 48uoc and transfer into UNSW Medicine, I hear a WAM of 85 is the safety net - but this shouldn't be relevant in your case.
What do you mean you'll be taking two years off - are you going to defer your offer?
I have heard of people taking a gap year purely to do the UMAT. A gap year means a defered course for next year, right? So you have a position secured?
If you want to just start medicine fresh, maybe don't enroll into any tertiary courses. Your ATAR is still valid up to a certain amount of time (not sure how long, but definitely at least 1 year). And while you are not enrolled at any university, you could sit the UMAT in that year and have all that time to prepare, right? The only problem I can think of this method is that bonus points for universities do not apply if you are not enrolling STRAIGHT out of highschool. But from your ATAR, it doesn't seem you need bonus marks.
Or another option would be to enroll into something like medical science, this is a short program (3yrs), so you could try for postgrad med through the GAMSAT soon-ish. Medical Science at UNSW also has a fast track into the Medicine program for like the best 10ish students in the program for that year.