The Medical and Dental Schools Councils are inviting tenders for market research into effective communications with teachers and young people.
We want to ensure our communications to teachers/advisers and young people have the maximum impact by using the right tools, language, and are communicated at the most appropriate time.
We want our communications to:
- Raise awareness and aspirations to medicine and dentistry for those from disadvantaged backgrounds
- Support students (and their teachers/advisers) to navigate their application to medicine and dentistry.
The full specification can be downloaded here: Invitation to tender – 2425-001
All queries and responses will be posted on this page. Please note the deadline for receipt of tenders is 21 October 2024 at 16:00 (UK time).
Interviews with shortlisted candidates will be held on the 29 or 30 October 2024, rather than the dates advertised in the brief.
Queries, responses and updates
Q. Is the work to be UK wide or just England?
A. Due to our funding this market research is focused on England only.
Q. Are there additional areas/locations to those identified through IMD that are poorly represented in Medicine and Dentistry applicants?
A. We do consider IMD areas. We also have a list of areas in which there are a low number of applicants to medicine by proportion of the 18-year-old population. The ones with less than 12 applicants per 1000 population are listed below.
We would not expect you to look at all areas but rather representative samples.
- Redditch
- North Norfolk
- Cannock Chase
- Tamworth
- Rutland
- Great Yarmouth
- Isle of Wight
- Harlow
- Wigan
- Canterbury
- Bath and North East Somerset
- Exeter
- Hastings
- Torbay
- Eastbourne
- Halton
- Chesterfield
- Havant
- Crawley
- Fenland
- North Kesteven
- Norwich
- Kingston upon Hull, City of
- Breckland
- York
- Lancaster
- Ashfield
- Cumberland
- Rushmoor
- South Holland
- Mansfield
Q. The budget is listed as £15,000 to £20,000 (including VAT). Is there any flexibility beyond these figures?
A. We are happy for you to suggest the approach so that we get the most information in support of the questions we have. Within this invitation to tender there is no further flexibility of the budget. Any reconsideration of the budget would be if we needed to retender following this process.
Q. On page 6 you detail the Tender Requirements. Do we need to respond directly to each of these?
A. We will be looking at the requirements as part of our initial review and scoring. It would be easier for those reviewing if the proposal had these areas covered clearly.
Q. You have requested delivery of the findings by 31st January. Is there any flexibility in terms of the required end date?
A. There is flexibility on the end date. If you want to look at an alternative timeframe then please include proposed new dates, and an explanation of why.
Q. What type of topics are you covering in the quantitative survey you are already conducting?
A. The survey is being conducted with young people in Scotland. It covers
- Highers subject choice
- What factors will influence career choice
- What do they think about going to university
- What do they think about the NHS and medicine
- Has anyone ever discouraged them from medicine
- What do they think about the application process
Q. Would you be open to an entirely qualitative approach for this project?
A. Yes, we are open to any approach that will provide the outcomes we are looking for. Do note that the survey we are conduction at the moment is targeted at young people in Scotland.
Q. Considering the budget available we would be keen to focus on the most important audiences i.e. Year 11-13. Would you be open to a proposal that did not include Year 7-10 students?
A. Yes, but please include an explanation of why.