Medical school guide · 2027 entry

Oxford Medicine

Medical Sciences Division, University of Oxford

A six-year traditional course with college-based academic interviews and shortlisting on GCSEs and UCAT equally.

The interview Compare all schools

Radcliffe Camera, Oxford

Course: A100 · 6 yearsBA (Medical Sciences) + BM BCh
Typical offer: A*AA
Interview: Panel
Halls from: See costs
Local private rent: £1,957/mo
Location: Oxford

Preparing for Oxford

What matters most at Oxford.

01
About 425 applicants are shortlisted on a combination of GCSEs and UCAT cognitive score, weighted equally.
02
Interviews are academic: expect to reason through scientific data and unfamiliar problems, thinking aloud.
03
You are interviewed at two colleges, and offers are allocated across the university, often by a different college.

Notes by Dr S Farooq, MBChB, BSc (Hons). Checked October 2026.

The interview

The Oxford medicine interview.

Panel

Format

College-based academic interviews (panel-style, not MMI); in the 2025 round (2026 entry) each applicant was interviewed by two colleges.

Stations and timing

For 2027 entry, the number and format of interviews vary by college.

In person or online

For 2027 entry: online.

Dates

For 2027 entry: online interviews in early to mid-December 2026; outcomes via UCAS on 12 January 2027.

How it counts

Each college ranks its interviewees. After seeing the second college's ranking and the UCAT score, colleges submit a final ranking and offers are allocated (often by a different college). GCSEs are used only at shortlisting. Interviewers are blind to college choice and UCAT.

What Oxford assesses

Empathy
Motivation
Communication
Honesty and integrity
Ethical awareness
Ability to work with others
Capacity for sustained and intense work
Alignment with NHS Constitution values
Problem-solving
Intellectual curiosity

What the tasks involve

Oxford does not publish task types. Interviews are conducted by at least two academics and at least one practising clinician per college.

Preparation advice from Oxford

See the University's interview pages (ox.ac.uk/admissions) and the Medical Sciences application-process page

Prepare for the Oxford panel interview.

The Interview Handbook covers every common question type, with a marking rubric and two full mock interviews.

See the Interview Handbook

Entry and UCAT

Getting an interview at Oxford.

Typical requirements for school leavers. Always check the full requirements on the Oxford website.

Typical A-level offer

A*AA (same academic year; excluding Critical Thinking/Thinking Skills)

Required subjects

Chemistry (at least A) plus at least one of Biology, Physics, Maths or Further Maths.

How the UCAT is used

Shortlisting ranks applicants on a combined GCSE measure and UCAT total cognitive score, equally weighted (UCAT is double-weighted if an applicant has 5 or fewer GCSEs or GCSEs sat in 2020-21) (latest published, undated). About 425 are shortlisted each year, and there is no published cut-off. In the 2025 round, the UCAT score was then disclosed to colleges after interviews when finalising rankings.

Situational judgement (SJT)

Not used at shortlisting (latest published, undated). The 2025-round admissions report (2026 entry) states that colleges saw the UCAT score, including the SJT band, when revising post-interview rankings.

Published UCAT scores

No cut-off is published. 2025 round (2026 entry): mean UCAT 2377.5 for shortlisted applicants and 2407.1 for offer-holders.

GCSEs

No formal requirement beyond basic Biology, Physics and Maths (for example grade 4/C), but the number and proportion of grade 8 and 9 results relative to the school is used in shortlisting.

Other qualifications

IB 39 points (including core) with Higher Level 766 including Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics or Maths; Advanced Highers AA plus Highers AAAAA.

Contextual offers

Grades are considered in context, and a school-level GCSE comparison is built into shortlisting. Applicants not automatically shortlisted are individually reviewed for circumstances.

The course

Studying medicine at Oxford.

At a glance

Intake: About 155 a year (A100, 2023–25 average)
Teaching: Traditional: 3 pre-clinical, 3 clinical years
Anatomy: Prosection (no cadaveric dissection)
Intercalation: Compulsory: BA Medical Sciences in Years 1–3
Main campus: Colleges, central Oxford; clinical at John Radcliffe

Complete University Guide 2027

2nd

of 40 for Medicine · table

Guardian University Guide 2027

3rd

of 40 for Medicine · table

National Student Survey 2025

93.8%

positive about teaching on the course (88 responses) · OfS

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

Year 1First BM Part I: organisation of the body, physiology and pharmacology, biochemistry and medical genetics, medical sociology, and Learning with Patients.
Year 2First BM Part II: applied physiology and pharmacology, the nervous system, pathology and psychology for medicine.
Year 3Final Honour School (BA Medical Sciences): advanced options, an extended essay and a research project.
Year 4Clinical stage begins: GP placement, laboratory medicine, and core medicine, surgery and medical specialty blocks, including district hospital placements.
Year 5Specialty rotations: neurosciences, ENT and ophthalmology, community medicine, orthopaedics and emergency medicine, paediatrics, psychiatry, women's health.
Year 6Senior medicine and surgery rotations, clinical options, assistantship and a 10-week elective.

How it is taught

Traditional: three pre-clinical years (lectures, practicals and weekly college tutorials) followed by three clinical years.

Patient contact

Regular visits to GP tutors and 'Learning with Patients' modules in Years 1-3.

Intercalation

Built in and compulsory: a BA Honours in Medical Sciences is completed in Years 1-3, including an experimental research project.

Placements

Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and local primary care.

Distinctive features

College tutorial system with groups as small as two
Science-heavy three-year pre-clinical stage
Compulsory research project within the BA
10-week elective in Year 6

How you are assessed

First BM exams in Years 1 and 2 must be passed to progress, and the BA is assessed by exams, submitted work and a research presentation. Final-year summative assessments run in January and in March or May.

Elective

10 weeks in Year 6, in the UK or abroad; most students go overseas.

Main teaching hospitals

John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford
Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, Oxford
Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading
Great Western Hospital, Swindon
Milton Keynes University Hospital
Northampton General Hospital

Placements and travel

The pre-clinical years are in central Oxford. From Year 4, placements include district hospitals in Reading, Swindon, Milton Keynes, Northampton, Buckinghamshire (Wycombe, Stoke Mandeville) and Slough.

Student life

Living in Oxford 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.

Accommodation

All first-years are guaranteed college accommodation on the main site or a nearby annexe, and every college offers at least one further year. Clinical years run up to 48 weeks, so living costs are higher.

Medical society

Osler House Club (clinical students)

Students' union

Oxford SU

Medic societies and clubs

Osler House Club (clinical students' common room, John Radcliffe site)
Osler football club
Osler netball club
Tingewick Society
Osler student choir and orchestra
College medical societies (pre-clinical)

Sport and gyms

Oxford University Sport runs the main gym, Rosenblatt Swimming Pool and Sir Roger Bannister track. Student Active Fitness membership £140 a year (2026/27 listing), plus college sport; Osler House has its own gym for clinical students.

Support for medics

Pre-clinical teaching uses weekly college tutorials with a college tutor. Osler House has a student welfare officer for clinical students.

Cars and parking

Colleges generally do not offer students parking (St Hugh's, for example, allows it only for Blue Badge holders or remote placements that public transport cannot reach), so plan on cycling and buses. The John Radcliffe has limited visitor parking with no on-street parking nearby (from £2.20 an hour), and the trust points visitors to Park & Ride; some clinical placements are at network hospitals in Northampton, Swindon, Buckingham and Reading.

Food and essentials

Most students eat in college; for groceries there is a Tesco on Magdalen Street and a Sainsbury's in the Westgate centre, a Lidl at Templars Square in Cowley and an Aldi at Botley.

Going out

Nights out are mainly in the city centre (ATIK on Park End Street, Bridge, Plush) and on Cowley Road, home to the O2 Academy and The Bullingdon.

Costs and living

Oxford medicine fees and living costs.

Fees, university accommodation and local private rents, from official sources.

University halls

See the university

All first-years are guaranteed college accommodation, on the main site or in a nearby annexe; rents are set by each college. Every college offers at least one further year. Estimated living costs £1,475–£2,175 per month (2027/28).

Accommodation prices

Local rent, whole homes (ONS)

£1,957/mo

£1,957 per month average private rent, Oxford, 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 per year (2027/28). From Year 5, eligible students can apply for NHS Bursary funding.

International tuition fee

£52,360 per year for pre-clinical Years 1–3 (2027 entry). Clinical Years 4–6 are higher: £69,160 per year is the indicative figure for students entering the clinical stage in 2027 (later years not yet confirmed).

Fees source

Bursaries and funding

UK students with household income of £32,500 or less get a Crankstart Scholarship of up to £6,500 a year; others under £50,000 get an Oxford Bursary of £1,120–£4,480 (2027 entry). Eligible students can apply for the NHS Bursary from Year 5.

Other routes in

Graduate, gateway and international routes.

Graduate entry

BM BCh Medicine (Graduate-entry / Accelerated) · A101 · 4 years. 2:1 or above (or GPA above 3.5) in an applied or experimental science on Oxford's approved list; A-levels AAB including Chemistry A/A* (waived for Chemistry/Biochemistry graduates). Test: UCAT (combined with application score for shortlisting). Places: approximately 30 (2025-entry page).

Gateway or foundation

No foundation-year route to medicine is offered; the Astrophoria Foundation Year does not include a Medicine pathway.

International applicants

Accepts international applicants. International places: Maximum 14 per year across A100 and A101 combined (2027 entry).

A100 intake about 155 (3-year average 2023–25); UCAT required.

Places

Approximately 155 (3-year average 2023-25), with a maximum of 14 international places across A100/A101.

Applications, interviews and offers

2024 round (2025 entry): 1,164 applications, 1,006 eligible, about 425 interviewed and 173 offers. Across a 3-year average, 29% of applicants were interviewed and 11% were successful.

FAQs

Oxford medicine FAQs.

What are the entry requirements for Oxford medicine?

The typical offer is A*AA with at least an A in Chemistry plus at least one of Biology, Physics, Maths or Further Maths (latest published, undated). GCSEs are used in shortlisting: the number and proportion of grade 8 and 9 results are compared with others at your school.

What UCAT score do you need for Oxford medicine?

Oxford publishes no cut-off. Shortlisting ranks applicants on a combined GCSE measure and UCAT total, equally weighted, and about 425 are shortlisted each year (latest published, undated).

What is the Oxford medicine interview like?

For 2027 entry, Oxford holds college-based interviews online in early to mid-December 2026, and the number and format vary by college. Outcomes are released on 12 January 2027.

How does Oxford decide medicine offers?

In the 2025 round (2026 entry), each college ranked its interviewees, then finalised its ranking after seeing a second college's ranking and the UCAT score. 44.8% of offers were made by a college other than the one applied to.

How competitive is Oxford medicine?

In the 2025 round (2026 entry) there were 1,156 applications, about 425 interviewed and 175 offers.

How long is the Oxford medicine course?

Six years: a BA in Medical Sciences followed by the BM BCh.

Sources

Official sources.

Checked in October 2026 for 2027 entry. Requirements and dates change each cycle, so always confirm on the Oxford website before applying.

Official links

Open days: 2026 University open days were 1–2 July and 18 September 2026; 2027 dates are not yet published. Check dates

Show 18 sources

Photo: Radcliffe Camera, Oxford, Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Vetta Education is independent and not affiliated with Oxford or any university. No offer, interview or admission outcome is guaranteed.

Personal statement review

Applying to Oxford? Have a doctor read your statement.

Upload your draft and receive structured comments by email: what already works, where reflection is thin, and what to strengthen before you submit. Your words stay yours. We comment and challenge, but never rewrite.

Structure, reflection and evidence, section by section
Clear priorities for your next draft
Word, PDF or pasted text, returned as written comments

£65per application cycle · included with every Applicant Diagnostic

Book a statement review How it works

Compare

Similar schools to compare.

Nearby

Cambridge

Panel · Cambridge

Nearby

Southampton

Panel · Southampton

Similar selection

Barts (Queen Mary)

Panel · London

Similar selection

Glasgow

Panel · Glasgow

See all UK medical schools

Choosing your four

Is Oxford right for you?

In the Applicant Diagnostic, a doctor weighs your chosen universities against your profile and shows how to make the strongest case for each.

About the Applicant Diagnostic Or practise a timed mock MMI Personal statement review by a doctor, £65

Questions

How can we help?

Send your admissions or programme enquiry and we'll reply by email.