<p>This thread seems to have gone off topic but I think some questions need answering regarding studying medicine in the UK.</p>
<p>Medicine is a 5-6 year undergraduate course. You can only apply to 4 medical schools in one year. As 082349 says, most medicine applicants in the UK apply for 4 medical schools and one closely related subject (as you can apply to 5 unis maximum).</p>
<p>As far as I know, medicine is the only course in the UK which has a national quota. This means the universities have to fill all the expected vacancies in the British National Health Service (NHS) with UK/EU students, before they can accept any internationals. This accounts for the very small numbers of international admissions discussed above. Therefore, no matter how good a candidate you are, as a foreign applicant you are up against it to gain admission to a British medical school. Also, in my experience most foreign medical students come from countries with education systems more similar to the the UK eg India, Hong Kong, Singapore. It is very difficult for a US student to demonstrate they have reached the required level in maths in particular, as US high school is not as specialised as UK A-levels.</p>
<p>Most UK medical students have done lots of relevant work experience. I expect it will be very hard to gain admission without this. </p>
<p>If you search these boards I am sure you will find a couple of years ago a US student posted here who was admitted to Oxford for Medicine. I wish I could remember their name. So it’s clearly not impossible but very difficult. </p>
<p>I only recommend the UK for people who are sure of the subject they wish to study. As you probably know, you have to choose the subject you wish to study on application, and it is very difficult to change (usually you would have to drop out and start again). It is lightly easier in Scotland, but still in no way as flexible as the US.</p>
<p>For the student who is considering applying for medicine and engineering in the UK in the same year, I would very strongly advise against it. Look at the UCAS form ([UCAS</a> - Home](<a href=“http://www.ucas.com%5DUCAS”>http://www.ucas.com)). You have to write a personal statement of about 30 lines. This should be along the lines of “I want to study subject X because”. There is really know way to write about both medicine and engineering, and if you do you will almost certainly be rejected by all choices. If you cannot decide between such diverse subjects, then the UK is just not for you and I am sure you would be happier at a US school. </p>
<p>Even if you are admitted and graduate, you cannot then go and practice medicine in the US with a UK MD. There is a whole series of tests which you have to take (and pay for) before you will be allowed to work as a doctor in the US (though for nearly every other country in the world including Canada, this is not the case and your degree would be accepted straight away). I personally do not know the details of these tests, but they have been discussed on this board before. You need to do research into this before committing to UK medical school, as this could prove to be a very expensive and time consuming barrier to cross at the end of your studies.</p>
<p>You can only apply to one Oxford or Cambridge for undergraduate in the same year. You cannot apply to multiple courses at one of them either (though you can for all other UK unis as far as I know). The only exception is organ scholars. If you can’t play the organ, forget it. This rule does not apply for graduate study or a second undergraduate degree.</p>