Medicine (BMBS) Undergraduate - September 2025/26* Entry

• We appreciate that starting a Medicine programme is a major step for our new students, and acknowledge that it is the longest and one of the most demanding academic programmes.
• The University places a high priority on caring for and supporting students so that they can thrive in all aspects of their time at Bangor, so from Welcome Week onwards, you'll be given as much help and support as needed over health and welfare as well as your academic work.
• Services offered include money advice, health and welfare support, advice on private housing, dyslexia support and counselling and study skills.
• We pride ourselves on providing personalised support for our students, and from Day 1 you will be allocated a Personal Tutor, an academic staff member from the school who will act as your mentor and guide throughout the entire programme.
• The University has a peer-guide scheme and the School’s own senior medical students are linked to more junior students so that they can share their experience.

• Our learner-centred approach includes small group teaching and learning so you’ll benefit from more contact time with your lecturers.
• The Year 1 & 2 curriculum is based on small group teaching, including Case Based learning which links your scientific learning to real-life patient stories and places the patient at the centre of your studies.
• Case Based Learning takes in groups of 10 to 12 students with a trained academic facilitator who guides students through each case.
• We employ a large variety of teaching methods but have very few traditional lectures although we do hold ‘plenaries’ (interactive sessions where students receive information from expert scientists or clinicians).
• There are also specialist seminars, interactive tutorials and workshops, practical skills and simulation and VR training.
• We encourage supported self-directed learning to help you to develop your own problem solving and communication skills, both essential for a future doctor.
• The use of varied methods of teaching, learning and assessment helps you to widen your own learning style and promotes lifelong learning, a vital part of your career as a future doctor.

• Anatomy teaching takes advantage of modern technology, including the ‘Anatomage’ electronic dissecting table, glassless 3D Video screens and mobile apps.
• There is a dedicated Anatomy teaching room with high-fidelity plastic models of all body components.
• Practical clinical skills and interventions can be practised electronically and in simulators including a VR room.
• Refresher Anatomy and Self-Directed Learning sessions are available at the start of Year 4 & 5 speciality placements.

• We provide interprofessional education opportunities to mirror the world of clinical work, where a wide range of healthcare professionals work together for the benefit of patients within clinical teams.
• "Interprofessional Education (IPE) occurs when two or more professionals learn, from and about each other to improve collaboration and the quality of care” Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education (CAIPE), 2002.
• We are passionate about promoting and delivering IPE and there will be multiple opportunities for this throughout your time at Bangor.

• There are many opportunities during the Year 3 LIC and across Year 4 and 5 placements to gain experience of remote, rural and mountain medicine in the stunningly beautiful North Wales geographic setting.
• The programme includes a unique Rural Health simulation day ‘in the field’, delivered in partnership with voluntary services including Mountain Rescue, Welsh Ambulance Service, North Wales Fire & Rescue Service, RNLI and specialist University and Health Board staff.

• We prepare you for Early Patient Contact sessions by teaching basic clinical skills in our state-of-the-art Simulation and Skills Training and VR Centre.
• You will also learn to listen intensively and speak to patients using professional actors and expert patient volunteers, with teaching delivered bilingually.

• Early patient contact sessions help to inspire your medical science learning in the early stages of the programme.
• They are preceded by preparation sessions and take place in carefully chosen medical facilities, so our students are not overwhelmed by their first clinical experience.
• Early patient contact builds over the first two years of the programme, exposing our students to progressively more complex clinical environments.

• Our Simulation and Skills Centre is equipped with SIMman 3G simulators and SMOTS video recording and playback facilities.
• All students receive training and certification in Life Support techniques and patient safety prior to undertaking clinical training.
• A VR room provides immersive scenario training allowing students to become competent at dealing with clinical problems that occur rarely but require immediate recognition and action.
• Student midwives and Year 4 Obstetric students undertake interprofessional education training together.

• In Year 3 you will undertake a Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (LIC), a yearlong first clinical placement.
• The LIC placement is primarily in a GP practice under the supervision of an expert GP Tutor, with the opportunity to follow your patients' journeys through primary and hospital care facilities for investigations and treatment.
• You will gain experience of the work of other members of the multidisciplinary primary health care team including Community Midwives, Community Psychiatric Nurses, Health Visitors, Social workers and others. Alongside this, you will also gain experience in Dermatology, ENT, Rheumatology and General Medicine.
• LICs are a relatively new model for medical education currently being evaluated around the world, whereby students follow a range of patients for longer periods and develop a close relationship with a mentor who closely guides their learning.
• Longitudinal placements have been shown to enhance students’ understanding of patient-centeredness, the importance of a whole of life perspective, family dynamics and the social context of a patient’s presentation.
• The LIC experience helps to develop a more holistic understanding of patient care, enhancing your clinical skills, communication abilities, and empathy.
• You will see a wide range of conditions, consulting directly with patients, and will receive 1:1 teaching from your GP tutor supplemented by a day of campus teaching each week supplemented by exposure to hospital practice.
• Spending your first clinical year mainly in the specialty of General Practice is an excellent preparation for hospital speciality placements that follow in Years 4 and 5.
• The School is a participating member of the international Consortium for Integrated Clerkships (CLIC).

• Hospital placements take place across the three acute hospitals of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board: Ysbyty Gwynedd (Bangor), Ysbyty Glan Clwyd (Rhyl) and Wrexham Maelor Hospital.
• This is supplemented by experience in 22 Community hospitals across North Wales, many of which serve small, remote communities.
• All major specialities required for undergraduate medical training are available within North Wales, but a Final Year elective can be carried out at any medical facility in the world that is approved for undergraduate medical training.

• Studying medicine in Wales, a bilingual country, helps you to develop valuable communications skills. The ability to feel confident to treat patients whose first language is not your own will equip you to work anywhere in the world, and you will frequently consult with interpreters working across the UK.
• As a Welsh speaker you can opt for a significant part of your course, and for some assessments, to be in Welsh and may be eligible to apply for a Coleg Cenedlaethol Cymraeg Scholarship. A Welsh speaking personal tutor will be made available to those electing to study part of their course in Welsh. As part of our widening access agenda, Welsh speakers are also eligible to secure a contextual offer.
• Bangor University is committed to supporting Welsh speakers and learners and bilingualism is embedded within all aspects of the student experience. There are many opportunities for absolute beginners to learn the language, existing speakers to build their confidence or for fluent Welsh speakers to access specialist resources.
• North Wales is home to a significant number of Welsh speakers, this provides many opportunities to use the language whilst on placement, be that as a learner or a fluent speaker.

The priority in Year 1 is to provide you with a strong foundation in basic sciences, clinical skills, communication, and professionalism.  

Here's a breakdown of the key components: 

First 12 Weeks (Introduction): 

• Your introductory weeks will focus on developing your core knowledge in anatomy, biochemistry, physiology, cell and molecular biology, immunology, microbiology, and pathology. 
• An emphasis is placed on developing fundamental communication, clinical skills, and the professionalism required of a doctor. 

Remainder of Year 1: 

The remainder of the year will integrate the basic sciences with common clinical conditions through a series of clinical scenarios. 

• Learning to address medical problems from first principles and developing scientific reasoning skills. 
• Small group sessions, lectures, and seminars will be supported by access to life science and clinical skills resources. 
• Regular patient interaction in hospitals, general practices, and other community-based services in North Wales 
• Early clinical experience opportunities to meet case-appropriate patients and NHS staff will complement your case-based learning. 
• Progression from normal structure and function to more complex clinical presentations focusing on abnormal structure and function. 

Overall, the curriculum aims to provide a comprehensive education that combines theoretical knowledge with practical clinical experience. You will learn the foundations of medical sciences and develop the skills necessary to become competent doctors. The programme also emphasizes early patient exposure to enhance learning and understanding of real-world medical scenarios. 

During Year 2, you will engage in various learning activities and experiences, including: 

1. Community-Based Learning: The Community Clinical Learning programme emphasises the importance of understanding patients within their own communities. This programme builds upon the Case Based Learning approach and involves task-oriented learning. You will have placements where you interact with patients, allowing you to develop a portfolio of clinical learning experiences. This program aims to help you connect with real people, develop professional attitudes, understand health service delivery, and foster leadership skills. One notable highlight is the Rural Health Simulation, which exposes you to the challenges of healthcare delivery in rural settings compared to urban areas. You will practice clinical and communication skills while responding to a simulated emergency alongside doctors and paramedics.  

2. The Student Selected Components (SSC) provides four distinct learning opportunities: 

• Two Experience Projects: These projects expose you to a wide range of settings and topics. You will have the chance to develop research skills at an advanced level. Some projects will also allow you to explore areas beyond traditional medicine, such as social work, complementary medicine, and professions allied to medicine. 
• Journalistic Article: The journalistic article component enables you to demonstrate critical academic skills, including literature searching and appraisal of complex scientific evidence-based material. You will be challenged to convey your message in an engaging and stimulating manner. 
• Year 2/Year 5 Conference: This unique conference brings together Year 2 and Year 5 students. It includes plenary sessions with invited keynote speakers covering various themes related to thriving and surviving in medical school and medical ethics. Small groups of Year 2 students will prepare poster presentations based on their first SSC experience project, and Year 5 students will provide feedback and serve as judges for the posters. This conference offers a valuable opportunity to attend and present at a scientific/medical conference and engage with older peers. 

In Year 3 of your course you will undertake a Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (LIC). During this clinical placement you will be embedded within a local community and its GP practice for an entire year. This will enable you to follow the full patient journey both in primary and  secondary care, observing the impact that medical conditions and the treatment of these conditions have on patients.  

More than 90% of healthcare is managed in primary care, which means that this experience provides a sound preparation for hospital specialities and for a further final year GP attachment. 

Largely based in primary care, this placement is valuable to both those who see their future in General practice, and to those who wish to follow a career in other specialities. It allows students to see patients presenting with a wide range of conditions, and so allows them to have a broader knowledge base than possibly the traditional modular courses allow preparing them well for their F1 and F2 years.  

It is generally accepted that students who follow an LIC have a higher clinical thinking by the end of this attachment, due to the one to one relationship with the tutor for the whole academic year-something they will not gain at any other time on a medical course. 

Their academic results in progress tests and exams in those following an LIC are as good as those who have followed the traditional courses. 

LICs promote a more patient centred approach, encouraging you to become an advocate for the patients. It also allows you to experience a range of primary and secondary clinical settings and treatments, providing you with a better awareness of the healthcare system. 

The LIC placement will take place in North Wales. Based in a GP surgery you will become part of a multidisciplinary healthcare team, developing valuable teambuilding skills which will serve you well in your future career.  

In Year 4 of the program, you will focus on increasingly specialist cases and apply the core skills you learned in Year 3 in different clinical settings. The year is divided into multiple learning opportunities, including specialist clinical placements and a Student Selected Component. 

Women, Children, and Family Placement

This placement aims to develop your skills in assessing and caring for women, children, and families. You will spend time with obstetricians and paediatricians throughout Wales, gaining insight into multidisciplinary collaboration in community and secondary care settings. The focus will be on the patient, and you will have the chance to interact with women, children, and parents accessing the healthcare system.

Psychiatry, Clinical Neuroscience and Ophthalmology  

You will experience more specialized practice in clinical neuroscience and understand how a strong foundation in generic skills supports clinical and diagnostic reasoning. You will also have the opportunity to observe patients with psychiatric illnesses and gain an understanding of the prevalence of psychiatric disorders in the population. Additionally, you will spend a dedicated week in ophthalmology, expanding your knowledge of eye-related pathology, examination skills, and patient management. 

Hospital Front Door

This placement will allow students to be based in the Emergency Department in one of the three District General Hospitals in North Wales. It will allow them to experience dealing with acute emergency presentations, trauma (road accidents/mountain accidents etc) as well as follow the patient through the various stages of their investigations and onwards treatment in the hospital eg Surgical and Medical Assessment Unit, ITU and Anaesthetic Department. 

1. Increased Responsibility for Patient Care: Throughout the final year of study, students' integration within clinical teams and responsibility for patient care will progressively increase.  
2. Assessment and Management of Clinical Presentations: The focus of the final year is on the assessment and management of both acute and chronic clinical presentations. Students will gain increasing responsibility in this regard as they progress through the year. 
3. Clinical Placements: There will be an eight-week clinical placement in a hospital setting. Under supervision, students are expected to contribute to patient care during these placements. 
4. Workplace-based Learning: Most of the learning during the final year will take place in the workplace, allowing students to gain practical experience. Additionally, there will be sessions in a simulation skills centre and small group sessions to refine clinical thinking and decision-making skills. 
5. There will be a unique 8 week university based medical education and leadership block to provide you with additional skills that will support you in your transition to Foundation training.
6. Student Elective: Following the clinical placements, students will have an eight-week elective period where they can choose to study aspects of Medicine that capture their interest. This can take place almost anywhere in the world.  
7. Senior Student Assistantship: A seven-week Senior Student Assistantship, where students work as part of a clinical team and directly manage patients under supervision. This experience takes place in the hospital where students undertake their first foundation job, if in Wales or in North Wales if the foundation job is elsewhere. 

Please note:

• we do not currently accept international students for this programme
• we do not accept deferred applications

A Levels

A Levels - grades AAA (or equivalent) required. This must include Biology and an additional science from the list below:  

• Chemistry  
• Physics  
• Economics  
• Maths / Further Maths / Statistics  

You will need to pass the science practical element of the A-Level if this is part of your programme of study.  

Where grades AAA (or equivalent at A Level are required, compulsory sciences must be at grade A or above. General Studies and Key Skills not accepted. Other non-standard subjects are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and may not be accepted.

A contextual offer of AAB may be made to first language Welsh speakers or those who meet our contextual offer requirements. Please note: (1) compulsory A Level sciences as specified above must be at grade A or higher; (2) if you are a first language Welsh speaker, your application must demonstrate having gained a Welsh (First Language) GCSE.

International Baccalaureate 

36 overall (excluding Theory of Knowledge and the Extended Essay) including 19 at Higher Level. Must include grade 6 in Biology and Chemistry. Grade 7 in SL Biology or Chemistry can be taken in place of Higher Level Biology or Chemistry if you also have grade 6 in HL Maths, Physics or Statistics.  

Graduates with Bachelor/MSc/PhD: 2.1 degree or higher and 32 overall with Grade 5s including Biology and Chemistry.

Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales (Level 3)  

This qualification will be accepted in lieu of one A-Level, at the grades listed above and excluding any specified subjects. 

Irish Highers and School Leaving Certificates

• H1 in Biology, H1 in Chemistry and H2 in four other subjects. Plus, 8 Junior Certificates including Maths, English and Science at minimum grade B and grade O3 in English and Maths in the Leaving Certificate.  
• Graduates with a 2:1 degree or higher: H2 in Biology and Chemistry, H2 in 4 others. Plus, 8 Junior Certificates including Maths, English and Science at grade B and grade O3 in English and Maths in the Leaving Certificate.  
• Graduates with MSc/PhD: 2:1 degree or higher and H2 in Biology and Chemistry, H2 in 2 others, H3 in 2 others. Plus, 8 Junior Certificates including Maths, English and Science at grade B and grade O3 in English and Maths in the Leaving Certificate.  

Scottish Highers and School Leaving Certificates

• Grades AAB at Advanced Higher including Biology and Chemistry.
• Graduate with 2.1 degree or higher:  grades BBC – two compulsory sciences must be grade B. 
• Graduates with MSc/PhD: 2.1 degree or higher and grades BCC – grade B in Biology.

National 5s and Highers will be accepted in lieu of GCSE. Equivalent level, grade, and subject requirements must be met. Duplicate subjects will not be counted twice.

Graduate Entry

If you are a graduate applicant, you must have or be working towards a 2.1 (Hons) in your degree. You must also have BBB/ABC at A-level (or equivalent) including subject requirements and in the instance of ABC, compulsory sciences cannot be at grade C. You must also meet the minimum GCSE requirements.

If you have completed an MSc / PhD, the minimum A-Level requirement is BBC (or equivalent) including specified subject requirements with compulsory sciences at grade B or above.

Additional Entry Requirements  

GCSEs:

• English Language or Welsh Language at grade B/6 and, 
• Double Science at grades BB/66 (or grades B/6 in both Biology and Chemistry) and,  
• Maths grade B/6 and,  
• Four other GCSEs at grade B/6  

You must also demonstrate an awareness of the healthcare system in the UK and the nature of the medical training in your personal statement. If you are a first language Welsh speaker then please make this clear within your personal statement.  

Please note: We do not accept BTEC or T Levels for this programme.  

We also do not accept Critical Thinking, General Studies, Citizenship Studies, or other similar equivalent subjects.  

Qualification resits 

We will only accept Level 2 (e.g. GCSE) resits completed within 12 months of the original sitting. These must be completed prior to application. The exception to this is English Language which has no time limit for resit but must be included as achieved or pending on the application form.
 
We do not accept Level 3 (e.g. A Level) resits. However, it should be noted that we do not consider exams taken after centre assessed grades to be re-sits.
 
Re-sits of A Level module units will be considered provided that the final exam has not already taken place and a grade awarded.

Contextual admissions  

We carefully consider your contextual data (the circumstances in which you've been studying) upon application. We will be considering this in the offers that are made, which may be lower than advertised. Further details about contextual offers can be found here.  

Applying 

A complete application must be submitted to UCAS by the deadline. We may not consider supplementary information received by the University after this deadline.

Admissions test

You must achieve UCAT prior to submitting your application. You must sit the UCAT in the year of application. We do not have a minimum threshold score; however, we will use UCAT scores as part of our selection process.  

Interviews

Should you be selected, you will be invited to attend an interview. We use the multiple mini interview (MMI) format, which is a series of short, carefully timed interview stations that you will rotate around in turn. All applicants must attend for interview if invited.

Where an applicant has been successful and invited to interview, a dummy date will be issued through UCAS. This is a requirement of UCAS and is NOT your interview date. The offer will state that you must disregard the date provided and that you will be contacted by email shortly.
Applicants should receive an email the following day directly from Bangor inviting them to select their own interview slot. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that they check their inbox, including their junk mail, regularly and book their interview slot. If you have not received an email within 48 hours of the invite via UCAS, applicants must email medicineadmissions@bangor.ac.uk. If you do not follow up and/or book your slot before the booking closing date, we cannot make alternative arrangements.

Enrolment conditions  

Before starting the course, all successful applicants will be required to undergo a health check, including screening for blood-borne viruses and tuberculosis, by our Occupational Health Service. If you are non-immune to Hepatitis B, you will need to complete a full immunisation programme before taking part in clinical procedures. Having a blood-borne virus or other infectious diseases won’t prevent you from completing this course and obtaining General Medical Council registration, but some specialities won’t be open to you during training or in your career. If you have a health issue that you think might have an impact on your ability to study or practise, please contact us before applying.  

While it is not mandatory, we would encourage all applicants to be vaccinated against Covid-19 for their own protection and that of colleagues and patients.

Criminal convictions

If your application is successful, you will be required to complete a DBS (Disclosure Barring Service) before admission to the course.  

If you have a relevant criminal conviction, this will be stated in the check and may affect your ability to enrol on the course. Applicants who are on the barred list should be aware that applying to this course is likely to be considered a criminal offence.  Those with criminal convictions who are not on the barred list should contact medicineadmissions@bangor.ac.uk prior to application.

Previous study of medicine

Those who have previously studied medicine or other professional health programmes are required to notify us prior to application. If you did not complete your course due to criminal convictions or academic failure you should email us prior to application. If you did not complete your course for health reasons you should contact medicineconfidential@bangor.ac.uk prior to application.

Important information

• Entry requirements are subject to change year by year.
• All applicants should be permanent UK residents on the day of application. We will not consider those who are awaiting approval of permanent UK residency.
• All applicants must be 18 years old at the start of the course.
• Applicants can only apply to Bangor University for a maximum of two cycles.
• Applicant’s level 3 entry qualifications should not be more than five years old at the start of the course. This will be the case unless the applicant has been continuing in education in a relevant health-related subject area or working within a healthcare-related role. These should have been continuous from leaving level 3 education with limited or no gaps. Gaps between two different A Level (or equivalent) science subjects listed on our website should not be more than three years. Please email medicineadmissions@bangor.ac.uk for further clarification before applying.
• International qualifications will be considered on an individual basis. Please email medicineadmissions@bangor.ac.uk with copies of your qualifications before applying.

If you have any further questions about entry requirements, please email medicineadmissions@bangor.ac.uk.