Medical school guide · 2027 entry
Newcastle Medicine
School of Medicine, Newcastle University
An integrated, case-led MBBS with seven MMI stations, where academic screening and interview each make up half of the final ranking.
Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University
- Course
- A100 · 5 yearsMBBS
- Typical offer
- AAA
- Interview
- MMI
- Halls from
- £117/wk
- Local private rent
- £1,220/mo
- Location
- Newcastle upon Tyne
Preparing for Newcastle
What matters most at Newcastle.
- 01
The academic screen (UCAT and grades) counts for 50% of the final ranking, so UCAT matters again after interview.
- 02
Seven stations of seven minutes, with an unscored 'why medicine?' warm-up, make for a long assessment: practise stamina.
- 03
SJT points are added to the interview score.
Notes by Dr S Farooq, MBChB, BSc (Hons). Checked October 2026.
The interview
The Newcastle medicine interview.
MMI
Format
For 2027 entry, MMI for Home applicants; a two-selector virtual panel (about 25 minutes, 2026 interview guide) for international applicants.
Stations and timing
7 stations of 7 minutes each, with 2 minutes between stations (about 65 minutes), plus an unscored 2-minute warm-up ('why medicine?') (2026 interview guide).
In person or online
For 2027 entry, in person on campus for Home applicants; international applicants on Microsoft Teams (2026 interview guide).
Dates
For 2027 entry, generally December to February; invitations are sent by email.
How it counts
Each selector scores each criterion from 1 to 5 independently and the SJT points are added. The final ranking weights the academic screen score and interview score 50:50.
What Newcastle assesses
- Communication, empathy and self-awareness
- Compatibility with the MBBS programme
- Motivation and commitment
- Teamworking including leadership
- Personal organisation
- Persistence and resilience
- Integrity
What the tasks involve
- Role play
- Interview questions
- 'Tell me about a time when' prompts with follow-up
Preparation advice from Newcastle
Official interview preparation handbook (PDF), optional Teams workshops with students and staff, and Medical Schools Council resources. Newcastle advises understanding its programme and ethos and avoiding scripted answers.
Six complimentary mock MMIs with reading time, timed answers and marking points, written by a doctor.
Entry and UCAT
Getting an interview at Newcastle.
Typical requirements for school leavers. Always check the full requirements on the Newcastle website.
Typical A-level offer
AAA
Required subjects
Biology or Chemistry, plus one of Biology, Chemistry, Maths, Further Maths, Statistics or Physics. Science practicals must be passed.
How the UCAT is used
For 2027 entry, points-based. Home applicants receive up to 60 UCAT points (2400 or above = 60, 1810 or below = 1), added to up to 40 academic points for an academic screen score out of 100. Standard and contextual applicants are ranked separately. The academic screen score is also 50% of the final ranking.
Situational judgement (SJT)
For 2027 entry, Band 4 is not considered. The SJT band adds to the interview score, worth one MMI station (Band 1 = 5, Band 2 = 3, Band 3 = 1).
Published UCAT scores
Core A100 UCAT thresholds (old UCAT scale): 2820 (2021), 2800 (2022), 2820 (2023), 2490 (2024). For 2025 entry, the minimum total academic score was 50/100, with the lowest UCAT points equivalent to about 1900. Scores from 2026 entry onward use a new scale.
GCSEs
The best eight GCSEs (or Level 2 equivalents) are scored, up to 40 points, against published minimum requirements; the most recent (resit) grades count.
Other qualifications
IB 36; Access to HE is accepted from applicants who have been out of education for 3+ years.
Contextual offers
ABB for contextual applicants, assessed in a separate stream with possibly lower academic screen thresholds. PARTNERS (separate application plus Summer School) offers up to three grades below. Realising Opportunities and Pathways to Newcastle participants are also eligible for reduced offers. High Performance Athletes: AAB (PARTNERS takes precedence).
The course
Studying medicine at Newcastle.
At a glance
- Intake
- About 342 a year (A100)
- Teaching
- Integrated, case-led
- Anatomy
- Dissecting rooms (Anatomy and Clinical Skills Centres)
- Intercalation
- Optional BSc or master's
- Main campus
- Faculty of Medical Sciences, city-centre campus
League tables weight different things, so the same school can sit in different places. Use them as one input, alongside the course, the selection method and where you would like to live.
Year by year
- Years 1–2Campus-based medical sciences, clinical skills, ethics and professionalism taught through 24 clinical cases, with regular hospital and GP visits. Optional semester at NUMed Malaysia in Year 2.
- Years 3–4Rotations and clerkships in clinical base units across the region, with student-selected components. Year 4 ends with an 8-week elective.
- Year 5Assistantships and placements preparing for foundation training, plus the Medical Licensing Assessment.
How it is taught
Integrated and case-led: 24 clinical cases in Years 1-2 link science to practice. Years 1-2 are mainly university-based and Years 3-5 are clinical.
Patient contact
Students meet patients and learn clinical skills from the start of the programme.
Intercalation
Optional: one year for a Biomedical Science BSc or a Master's.
Placements
Clinical base units across the North of England in Years 3-5; students may spend long periods at distant sites.
Distinctive features
- Anatomy and clinical skills centres with dissecting rooms
- Optional semester at NUMed Malaysia in Year 2
- Eight-week elective in Year 4
- Regional NHS partnership serving about 3.5 million patients
How you are assessed
Students sit the GMC Medical Licensing Assessment, made up of the Applied Knowledge Test and the Clinical and Professional Skills Assessment, alongside the school's own exams.
Elective
Eight weeks at the end of Year 4, in the UK or abroad.
Placements and travel
Years 3–5 are spent in clinical base units across the North of England, and students may spend long periods at distant sites.
Student life
Living in Newcastle upon Tyne as a medic.
Where you will live, the societies and sport on offer, and how you will get around. Prices and dates change, so check the linked pages.
The city
Newcastle is a compact regional capital with around 45,000 students, green spaces such as Jesmond Dene, and the coast a short Metro ride away.
Accommodation
First-year undergraduates are guaranteed a university or partner room if Newcastle is their firm choice and they apply by noon on 24 July (2026 cycle). Undergraduate halls cost £117.60–£242.55 a week (2026/27); many are within a 10–20 minute walk. Students often move to Jesmond, Heaton or Sandyford after first year.
Students' union
Sport and gyms
Newcastle University Sport runs a city-centre sport centre with a gym, eight-court sports hall, squash courts and studios, plus artificial pitches at Cochrane Park.
Getting around
The Tyne and Wear Metro links the centre, suburbs, coast and Newcastle International Airport, with discounted student passes. Newcastle Central Station has direct trains to London, Edinburgh and Manchester.
Cars and parking
University accommodation has resident parking only at Bowsden Court (limited permits, first come, first served), and campus car parks are open to the public only outside working hours. From Year 3 you rotate through three regional zones (one near campus, one commutable and one that may mean living away for up to a year), so ask the school about travel to the outlying sites.
Food and essentials
There is a Co-op on campus for basics, and the Grainger Market and Northumberland Street shops in the city centre are a few minutes' walk away.
Going out
The Students' Union has Luther's bar and Venue, a 1,400-capacity basement club; in town, the main nights out are on the Quayside and the Bigg Market, with Ouseburn for something more independent.
Costs and living
Newcastle medicine fees and living costs.
Fees, university accommodation and local private rents, from official sources.
University halls
From £117/wk£117.60–£242.55 per week (2026/27, undergraduate halls); fixed-term contracts e.g. 40 or 49 weeks
Accommodation pricesLocal rent, whole homes (ONS)
£1,220/mo£1,220 per month average private rent, Newcastle upon Tyne, ONS Price Index of Private Rents (Sept 2026 data, 21 Oct 2026 release)
Average for a whole home of any size; a room in a shared house costs much less.
Home tuition fee
£10,050 (2027/28, Year 1)
Bursaries and funding
English students can get the NHS Bursary from Year 5. Newcastle lists Opportunity Scholarships, the St Nicholas' Educational Trust Scholarship, sports scholarships and NU Sanctuary Scholarships for undergraduates.
Other routes in
Graduate, gateway and international routes.
Graduate entry
MBBS Medicine and Surgery (Accelerated Programme) · A101 · 4 years. 2:1 or above in any degree (or integrated master's); or a practising healthcare professional with post-registration qualifications and 5+ years' experience. Graduates of more than 5 years ago must show continued education. Test: UCAT (sole basis for ranking to interview). Places: 25 places (2026 entry information). The A101 UCAT interview threshold was 2740 for 2025 entry (old UCAT scale).
Gateway or foundation
No foundation-year route to medicine is offered. Widening access is through PARTNERS, Realising Opportunities and Pathways to Newcastle reduced offers. There is a small internal transfer route from Newcastle BSc courses (Year 1 average of at least 70%, UCAT required) and a route from the NUMed Malaysia Foundation (average of at least 75%).
International applicants
Accepts international applicants. International places: Up to 26 international students per cycle (2026 entry information). International applicants are ranked on UCAT alone after an academic screen; the international interview threshold was 2980 for 2025 entry (old UCAT scale, before the 2026 change) (2027 entry).
International applicants are processed separately and usually interviewed by a two-person panel, on campus or remotely. UCAT ANZ is accepted from international applicants.
Places
367 places in total (2026 entry information): about 342 on A100 and 25 on the graduate A101 course, with up to 26 international students per cycle.
Applications, interviews and offers
For 2023 entry, almost 1,100 applicants were interviewed.
FAQs
Newcastle medicine FAQs.
What are the entry requirements for Newcastle medicine?
For 2027 entry, the typical offer is AAA with Biology or Chemistry plus one of Biology, Chemistry, Maths, Further Maths, Statistics or Physics. The best eight GCSEs are scored, up to 40 points.
What UCAT score do you need for Newcastle medicine?
For 2027 entry, Home applicants receive up to 60 UCAT points (2400 or above scores 60, 1810 or below scores 1), added to up to 40 academic points for a screen score out of 100. For 2025 entry the minimum total was 50/100, with the lowest UCAT points equivalent to about 1900.
What is the Newcastle MMI like?
Newcastle runs 7 MMI stations of 7 minutes each with 2 minutes between them, about 65 minutes, plus an unscored 2-minute 'why medicine?' warm-up (2026 interview guide). It is in person for home applicants and on Microsoft Teams for international applicants.
How does Newcastle decide medicine offers?
For 2027 entry, the final ranking weights the academic screen score and the interview score 50:50. The SJT band adds to the interview score, worth one MMI station, and Band 4 is not considered.
When are Newcastle medicine interviews for 2027 entry?
For 2027 entry, interviews generally run from December to February, and invitations are sent by email.
How many places does Newcastle medicine have?
About 342 places a year on A100, plus 25 on the graduate-entry A101 course (latest published, undated).
Sources
Official sources.
Checked in October 2026 for 2027 entry. Requirements and dates change each cycle, so always confirm on the Newcastle website before applying.
Official links
Open days: On-campus and virtual undergraduate open days run through the year (9:00–16:00); book via the open day page. Check dates
Show 15 sources
- ncl.ac.uk/undergraduate/degrees/a100
- pdf.ncl.ac.uk/ug/2026/a100.pdf
- ncl.ac.uk/mediav8/fms/files/2027%20Admissions%20Policy%20FINAL.pdf
- ncl.ac.uk/mediav8/study-with-us/general-documents/mbbs/UCAT%20Thresholds%202025.
- ncl.ac.uk/medicine/study/undergraduate/apply-medicine
- belong.ncl.ac.uk/hubfs/Interview%20information%20for%20Medicine%20applicants%202
- belong.ncl.ac.uk/medicine_interviews
- ncl.ac.uk/mediav8/study-with-us/general-documents/mbbs/UCAT%20Thresholds%202025.
- ncl.ac.uk/medicine/study/undergraduate/apply-medicine
- ncl.ac.uk/accommodation/university
- ncl.ac.uk/study/meet/undergraduate-open-day
- ucas.com/study-in/study-newcastle
- ncl.ac.uk/accommodation/university
- ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/datasets/priceindexofprivaterentsukm
- ncl.ac.uk/undergraduate/degrees/a100
Photo: Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Ultra7, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Vetta Education is independent and not affiliated with Newcastle or any university. No offer, interview or admission outcome is guaranteed.
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