UKCAT and UCAS

So I took the UKCAT, I predicted a score of 650 band 1 or 2. I was wrong...I got 697.5 and Band 2. I'm really happy with it even though it meant I couldn't apply for GEM courses it did mean I could apply to 5 year courses. I got 710 on the year the UKCAT was inflated. I was in the 9th centile this time so I can't complain! 

The exam was horrible, absolutely awful, in fact the least stressful section was QR (I HATE maths so this should tell you something). I had predicted I would score from highest to lowest:
1. DA
2. VR
3. AR
4. QR

It ended up being:
1. DA
2. QR (I know!!!!!)
3. AR
4. VR

I have no idea what went wrong with the VR I felt it was ambiguous, but I've never had a problem with that before at all so its a bit of a shame as had that been a little higher I would have made the 700 mark for Warwick. I literally managed to finish just in time on each of the sections apart from DA and SJT where I had time to spare. But hey, its done now! 

I submitted my UCAS and right up until I pressed send I still wasn't sure where I was going to apply as I really liked 7 courses! But I finally managed to make my decisions! Like I said all 5 year courses, and I'm not going to reveal where as I would like to stay anon for as long as possible! 

But yes, so now we wait....and I get working on Chem A level and GAMSAT in case I don't get any offers this time around!!! 

Thank you to everyone who has supported me through this! You're all amazing....now for the next 6 months if you could all keep your fingers permanently crossed for me that would be perfect! 

Didn't quite make it

Firstly my apologies for going awol. After deciding to give medicine another go, things went upside down health wise which prompted me to rethink. But I'm back on track now, still trying to get into medical school. 

I am taking the UKCAT soon, however I am not anticipating a good score, I've been using online practice materials (not official ones yet they're for closer to exam day) and frustratingly my scores seem lower than the last time I attempted it. I still have some time so you never know. However, some may know I have children and they are in the middle of exams etc so it won't be the end of the world if I have to wait until 2017 despite how much I just want to get on with it now! 

I am going to be doing my A level Chemistry as a private student to broaden my options too and I am volunteering at the local hospital. Everything is ticking over slowly, I just don't seem to be getting anywhere! Stuck in eternal limbo between being a graduate and medical student. Still hoping I will make it, not being entirely sure if I am capable anymore, but still praying for my break. 

But yes, I'm still here. Still trying to balance my family and life commitments around trying to realise my ambitions! Hope you're all well! Sorry again for the absence - going to get this blog going again!!! <3 

Not every dream has a fairytale ending

I was feeling rather optimistic post UKCAT that I would at least get an interview at one of the 5 year courses I applied to.  Sadly I had to focus my choices in London due to family circumstances, which initially I had thought would give me a fighting chance of success, but it turns out not so much. I was rejected from the Uni I thought I had the best chance at (I'm not going to name it I'm afraid) for both the 4 year and the 5 year courses almost immediately.  I have since been rejected from another 4 year course which leaves one 5 year course left, I'm 100% sure that will too be a rejection as ironically that was what I considered my "long shot".  I was disappointed, but not heartbroken.  I think I've realised that medicine wants different things from its students than it did years ago, even only 4 years later the entrance requirements are so ridiculously high now for the UKCAT for certain, if not most, Universities.  I am feeling rather defeated by it all.

I have worked really hard for the last 4 years to get to a point where I have a strong application, I have the first, I have (what I thought was) a pretty good UKCAT score, I have extra curricula awards and achievements, the voluntary work, work experience, yet still it isn't enough.  Those 3 little numbers on the UKCAT mean that someone didn't even read about the rest of it.  I'm a mature student and yes I could apply again, but those 3 little numbers mean that there is a strong possibility I would end up right back here again, having spent another year chasing a dream that deep down I think I know can't happen for me.

I believe I would have had a really enjoyable and successful career and that I would have loved being a doctor so much, but I think perhaps after 2 attempts at the UKCAT which haven't resulted in even an interview or my personal statement even being looked at, that I should call it a day and accept that it isn't meant to be.  I still have my UKCAT books and my GAMSAT books if I change my mind in the new year, but right now…I think that it is the end of my medicine journey.

I'm sorry to those who have been following me for the last few years that my story doesn't have a happier ending.  I'll still update the blog when I've made my final decision in time. Thank you for sharing my experiences with me, I've appreciated everyone's support a great deal. xxx

UKCAT

So after not being well for the GAMSAT (again!) I was starting to lose hope of being able to apply for med school this year, but I decided to bite the bullet and take the UKCAT this week.

I was so scared, I literally was feeling petrified! Had to take two trains to get there and then walk for about 20 mins to find the centre, when I got there it wasn't open as they were closed for lunch so I spent ages praying I was in the right place surrounded by people who were incredibly calm waiting to go for their driving theory tests. So after getting all signed in I sat down and took a few deep breaths for a moment and then started the test!  I found the VR section rather stressful and the QR section incredibly stressful, in fact I didn't manage to put anything at all for the last question as I ran out of time and had to guess about 10 questions as I just wasn't quick enough!  Abstract reasoning started to make me feel slightly better about it all as to be honest after QR I was starting to feel a little hopeless, and DA went really well.  The SJT was completely fine and about 30 questions from the end of the section I started to really look forward to the whole thing being over...and then panicked that I wouldn't have done very well in it.

I finally finished and went to collect my stuff from the locker whilst waiting for the results. My heart was pounding and I was over the moon when I saw I had 710 overall and SJT band 1!

I was thrilled as I genuinely was just praying for 650 so as you can imagine I feel very very lucky.  Now comes the hard part....choosing where to apply and writing my personal statement (I didn't want to start it before I took the UKCAT as I felt as if I was jinxing myself).  So here we go....fingers crossed my luck continues!

Been here a month already!

So time really does fly!  We've been here a month already, we're still absolutely in love with it all, sofa arrived and we have new bookcases being delivered in the morning (after a 3 week wait grr!).  It really feels like home now and we can't believe we didn't move years ago! 

So what have I been up to?  Mainly trying to figure out the UKCAT, I'm not too bad at it, but unfortunately I'm just not quite speedy enough which is very frustrating but I'm a lot calmer about it than last year.  I'm concerned that its going to be the QR and AR which will be my stumbling blocks, but I'm trying to get my head around them!  Time will tell.  

  I'm taking the GAMSAT next week, however I haven't prepared enough for section 3 for it to be a successful attempt, I'm hoping it will give me a good idea of where I'm lacking in knowledge ready for March though (for 2015 entry if I'm unsuccessful this year).  Just started redrafting my personal statement too which shouldn't take too long at least.  

I'll be happy once my GAMSAT is over and my UKCAT the following week too!  I'm rather dreading them both if I'm honest, I don't have a lot of confidence in them but we shall see!  In the interim, I'm trying to enjoy what is left of the summer, I have a feeling the next 12 months are going to be very busy indeed! 

Not as straightforward as it seemed

If you've been following my blog at all then you'll be aware that I'm not going to medical school next year.  I was pretty annoyed about the UKCAT, but I dealt with that and started looking at Postgraduate plans.  However, what I didn't account for is my friends applying for medicine this year, although I don't think some of them meet the cutoffs for the Universities they've applied for, I'm still finding it pretty tough the idea of them all starting their medicine journeys in 2013 and me being left behind.  This isn't the first time this is happening for me, I chose not to go into medicine straight from school and due to my age I'm now seeing my friends become specialists whereas I'm still trying to get my foot in the door.  I don't regret the path I've taken, I think now is the right time for me to consider medicine and I'm grateful I have other life experience behind me and I think it will stand me in good stead with appreciating just how lucky I would be to have a career in medicine.  I'm not doubting that medicine is a really difficult career, I can tell that just from my work experience placements, but the benefits certainly seem to outweigh the negatives and I think some of my friends who are my age don't appreciate it in the same way I will if I finally get there.

So onto my new plan A, my Masters.  What I didn't factor into the equation is that my other half is also planning on becoming a full time student next year, which sounds great, we've chosen locations which mean that I can apply for medicine the year after etc, but we forgot one key issue....money.  I won't be getting any funding for a taught masters, and nor will I be getting a maintenance loan for the year.  So not only will I be spending the few months applying for masters degrees, selling our house and hopefully finding somewhere really nice to live, we'll also be looking for part time jobs for both of us once we've moved! We hadn't planned on having to work part time whilst we studied and it is very very likely that I'm going to be having my ankle surgery during my summer break after I graduate so I'm really hoping that will be fixed before I start my course and job.  

I've planned for 3 years for what would happen at the end of it, and although my plan A/B is a perfectly good plan B, deep down it wasn't what I was hoping would happen I don't think. I'm sort of sad coming to terms with the whole waiting at least another year to start medicine.  However, I need to tell myself to stop moping and to get on with my uni work and GAMSAT revision ready for March!  I'm reading lots, but it doesn't feel like my "work mode" has truly kicked back in since I messed up the UKCAT!  I'll snap out of it, everyone has to fail something in their life I guess, its just never happened to me before - silly I know.  I just really really want a future in medicine, I won't give up, but I am still sulking a little bit I'm afraid to admit!  

Anyway, I'm going to get on with some uni work and write my personal statement for my MSc application!  Onwards and upwards as they say!

Enter Plan B

So this month didn't go to plan at all.  As you all know I was due to take the dreaded GAMSAT. I knew it wouldn't go well, I was incredibly unprepared and it was always going to just be a trial run.  However, the morning of the exam I woke up at about 4:00am sneezing my head off. Constantly.  Until about 6:30am when I got up, had a bath, got ready to leave, when suddenly I realised that I was being a little silly.  Not only was I feeling like death warmed up (I'm really really not a fan of colds!), my throat felt like I was swallowing razorblades, but I STILL couldn't stop sneezing. I'd taken piriton, tried hot lemon water, but nothing was working, but I realised that if I went and sneezed my way through the entire day, I would distract everyone else in the room, the people who were not there for a trial run, would be utterly aggravated by my incessant AAAACHOOOing.  I didn't want to ruin anyone else's chances of getting a med school place by being a distraction, so I went back to bed for the day.  Plus I told myself, I was only going to put George's down if I felt the day went well (which I was almost 100% sure it would not) plus I still had my UKCAT to do, excellent, right decision.

My UKCAT was a couple of days ago. I was quietly confident, I had been getting high marks in all sections aside from QR which was a touch on the low side in all of the mock questions I was answering from books and a website I subscribed to.  More importantly I completed the UKCAT mocks and they went really well, in fact in DA I was only 2 questions off 100%.  When I sat down in the actual test and started doing the VR questions I was pleased that they felt significantly easier than the practice questions I had completed, and although I was concerned that my QR may have dragged my average down a touch, I was quite calm throughout.  When I got my results however, they shocked me, I was no where near the cutoffs for any of the Unis I wanted to apply to. I smiled at the lady at reception, put on my coat, and left quickly.  I was still ok, no tears, until I spoke to my other half (who was tremendously supportive) and realised that my medicine dream was over for this year at least.  What is even more ridiculous is that DA was my lowest score, QR my highest?!  I have absolutely no idea how the UKCAT is marked, I truly can't even begin to understand it if they really believed QR was my highest section, but they seemed to! 

I was pretty angry with myself for the rest of the day, kept forgetting and then remembering and I felt horrible messaging my dad to tell him I'd messed up (even though he was very sympathetic). But after lunch with one of my best friends at Uni, I realised that my plan B was a pretty fantastic one, I now get to choose a Masters at a new Uni and do something really interesting for a year whilst increasing my medicine application portfolio.  So I've spent the last couple of days researching exactly what kind of thing I want to do an MSc in and I'm sorting out referees etc.  I now actually feel quite excited. It does come in waves however, one minute I'm really excited the next I feel a tad sad, but I believe there is a reason for everything! 

Bring on Plan B....its the new Plan A now folks!