Continuing your course online
MSC is aware that medical schools in conflict zones or areas experiencing natural disasters may wish to continue educating their medical students online where the delivery of face to face education is not possible. MSC may be able to support your medical school by providing access to our online resource Speaking Clinically which contains videos of patients talking about their experiences of having a wide variety of medical conditions. Please encourage your medical school to get in touch to discuss access to this platform via admin[at]medschools.ac.uk
Transfers to a UK medical school
Unfortunately, it is not possible for medical students to join existing Government-funded medical and dental courses in England. The number of places available to study medicine and dentistry is regulated by the Government and controlled through intake targets operated by the Office for Students in England. In addition, there are also complex issues surrounding transferring students whose prior learning has taken place overseas directly onto medical places here in the UK; this includes issues around certifying prior learning, matching curriculums and the diversity of study needs of students.
Applying to medical school in the UK
If you are in the UK and wish to continue your studies you will have to apply to join the first year of a medical degree. MSC provides comprehensive advice and guidance on applying to UK medical schools through the Studying Healthcare website.
There are also many opportunities to study related subjects within the UK and UCAS is ready to support anyone who would like to know more about their options. All courses can be found on the UCAS website, and there’s guidance for every step of applying.
If you need to get in touch with UCAS about anything, you can reach them on Facebook and Twitter. You should speak with any prospective provider you are considering applying to about how your previous and current study can contribute to starting this course. It is likely that a prospective university will want further proof and information about the course, which they will likely request as a follow up to the application being submitted.
You may also wish to have a look at Access to Medicine courses. Please note that access courses are run by further education colleges and not by universities. This means there are many different Access courses on offer and are designed for mature learners who may not have A levels or equivalent. More information on Access courses can be found in MSC’s entry requirements document.
Financial aid
You can find information about how to finance your studies in the UK on the Studying Healthcare website.
The situation is more complicated if you are an asylum seeker. Asylum seekers are not able to access government supported loans for higher education and are normally classed as overseas students for the purpose of fees meaning they have to pay more to go to university. Refugees are able to access student loans and they pay the same fees as home students. There is a wealth of helpful advice for refugees and asylum seekers wishing to go to university available on the Refugee Education UK website.
The Schwab Westheimer Trust provides two scholarships a year to asylum seekers studying healthcare subjects, and covers both Home fees and maintenance for the full course Educational Grants and Scholarships.
Some universities do waive fees for refugees and asylum seekers but some may be unable to do this for medicine courses. The best way to find out if a university offers waived fees for medicine is to contact each institution on this list.