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Undergraduate medical school Australia

You will find in the article below, necessary information on undergraduate medical school australia, what undergraduate degree is best for medical school australia
& studying medicine in australia for international students fees. All you just have to do is read on.

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You will also find related posts on studying medicine in australia for international students fees, graduate entry medicine australia & medical school in australia for u.s. students on collegelearners.

Interested in studying undergraduate medicine in Australia? This page will guide you through the process to study Medicine in Australia for international students, from A-Level entry requirements to different aptitude tests required.

Are you an aspiring medic living in Australia? Visit our brand new site, The Medic Portal Australia, to help you with your UCAT preparation.

Study Medicine in Australia for International Students
Undergraduate Medicine (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery – 6 years)
Students applying for an undergraduate medical degree in Australia will have their applications assessed against three criteria:

Academic merit (as demonstrated by grades in A-Levels, International Baccalaureate or equivalent. BTEC Diplomas are not accepted by Australian medical schools as being suitable for entry)
Aptitude test score
Interview (the format of this will vary depending on the school. Some interviews are formal and have to be attended in person, others are more relaxed discussions held over Skype or phone)
In order to be eligible to apply, students must have completed their school leaving qualification (or be in the final year of study for that qualification) with strong grades in the required subjects and have achieved a minimum score on an aptitude test.

Provided academic and aptitude test score requirements are met, applicants are invited to interview for a place on the course.

Study Medicine in Australia for International Students: What subjects should I study?
There is some variation in subject prerequisite requirements but almost all medical schools will require you to have a strong pass in Chemistry (at A2 or Higher Level in IB). Most will also require Maths, and Physics or Biology is also recommended.

Study Medicine in Australia for International Students: What grades will I need?
Grade requirements vary between universities between ABB and AAA, or between 35 and 43 in the IB. Please note that achieving (or being predicted) the minimum grades required makes you eligible to apply; it does not guarantee you a place.

Study Medicine in Australia for International Students: What aptitude test do I need?
All but one of the Australian universities that require aptitude test results as part of your application require the International Student Admissions Test (ISAT). The exception to this is the University of Adelaide, which runs its own aptitude test, the PQA.

ISAT is administered by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). It is a 3-hour computer-based multiple choice test. There are no set dates for testing and you can choose to sit the test at a date and time that suits you within an 11-month window.

ISAT is designed to test skills including the ability to reason, make logical deductions and form judgements. It does not examine any particular subject knowledge and is therefore not something that can be revised for. Having some familiarity with the type of questions asked can certainly be an advantage, however, and you can access practice tests on the ACER website. However, you can only take ISAT once within a 12-month period.

Undergraduate Medicine: Key Facts
When are the intake dates?

Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery programmes (and all undergraduate pathway options to the Doctor of Medicine) have one intake each year, in Semester 1 (February). Students are required to be on campus early to mid-February in order to attend international student orientation and enrolment. Teaching usually commences on the first Monday of March.

When should I apply?

Applications usually open at the beginning of March the year before the intake. Application deadlines range from June to the end of September, depending on the university.

How much does it cost?

International tuition fees range from A$55,000 to A$71,000 per year.

Medical degrees in Australia and New Zealand
Australian and New Zealand medical schools have excellent international reputations for quality training and research. Eleven Australian and New Zealand universities are ranked in the world’s top 150 for medicine, according to the latest QS World University Rankings by Subject, with four of them (the University of Melbourne, University of Sydney, Monash University and the University of Queensland) placed in the world’s top 50.

Medical degrees in Australia and New Zealand are available as graduate entry OR undergraduate courses. This means that there are some courses you can apply to during, or immediately after, your final year of school, while for other courses you must have a bachelor degree in order to apply.

There are as many places available on graduate entry programmes as there are at undergraduate level.

This page provides information for school leaving applicants and graduate entry students hoping to apply to study medicine in Australia and New Zealand.

How do I make an application to study medicine in either country from the UK?
Are you a domestic or an international student? A domestic student is someone who holds citizenship or permanent residency of Australia or New Zealand, as confirmed by passport at the point of application. An international student is a citizen of any country other than Australia or New Zealand!

If you are an international student, you will submit your applications via Study Options. Study Options is the official representative of Australian and New Zealand universities in the UK and Ireland. We are a free application support service for students, funded directly by our university partners to help students through the application process on their behalf. Applications made through Study Options are fast-tracked through university assessments and are exempt from application fees.

If you are a domestic applicant, please contact the university you wish to study your medical degree at directly to check exactly how, and when, you should make your application. Please click here for more information.

Where can I study medicine in Australia or New Zealand?
Undergraduate (school leaver) entry only:
University of Adelaide, South Australia
James Cook University, Queensland
University of Tasmania, Tasmania
UNSW Sydney, New South Wales
Undergraduate and postgraduate entry available:
Monash University, Victoria
Macquarie University, New South Wales
Griffith University, Queensland
Flinders University, Adelaide
University of Western Australia, Western Australia
University of Sydney, New South Wales*
University of Auckland, New Zealand
*Please note undergraduate places at the University of Sydney are extremely limited; this is predominantly a postgraduate programme

Postgraduate entry only:
University of Queensland, Queensland
Deakin University, Victoria
University of Melbourne, Victoria
ANU, Australian Capital Territory
The following Australian universities have medical programmes but do not currently accept international students, so these are only open to domestic applicants: Bond University; Curtin University and the University of Newcastle.

Undergraduate medicine and health courses

Our bachelor degrees will kick-start your career in healthShareAs one of the Asia-Pacific region’s most highly rated education and research institutions, the University of Sydney will prepare you to play a leading role in health fields in Australia and around the world.

Undergraduate degree options

Dentistry 

Bachelor of Oral Health
Bachelor of Science/Doctor of Dental Medicine (BSc/DMD)
Health Sciences and allied health
Bachelor of Applied Science (Diagnostic Radiography)*
Bachelor of Applied Science (Exercise and Sport Science)*
Bachelor of Applied Science/ Bachelor of Advanced Studies (Exercise and Sport Science)*
Bachelor of Applied Science (Exercise Physiology)*
Bachelor of Applied Science (Occupational Therapy)*
Bachelor of Applied Science (Physiotherapy)*
Bachelor of Applied Science (Speech Pathology)*
Medicine
Bachelor of Arts/Doctor of Medicine (BArts/MD)
Bachelor of Science/Doctor of Medicine (BSc/MD)
Nursing
Bachelor of Nursing (Advanced Studies)
Bachelor of Arts and Master of Nursing
Bachelor of Science (Health) and Master of Nursing
Bachelor of Science and Master of Nursing
Pharmacy
Bachelor of Pharmacy
Bachelor of Pharmacy and Management
Science
Bachelor of Science (Health)*
Bachelor of Science (Medical Science)**

  • This course is offered by the Sydney School of Health Sciences.
    ** This course is offered by the Faculty of Science.

Becoming a doctor or a dentist
The Doctor of Medicine and the Doctor of Dental Medicine are graduate entry courses. This means you must complete a bachelor’s degree before commencing your medicine studies. You can enrol straight from high school into a combined science and medicine degree program as listed above, however entry into these programs is extremely competitive.

The majority of students undertake an undergraduate degree first and then apply for either of the below graduate courses.

Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD)
Doctor of Medicine (MD)

How to Get into Medical School in Australia

A career as a medical doctor is highly sought after, and thousands of students and professionals across Australia aspire to study medicine every year. There is no doubt that it is an exciting, challenging, and multi-faceted career, however many can be put off by the equally challenging and multi-stage application process.

Whether you’re in high school, studying an undergraduate degree, or already working in another field, you may need to start preparing early if you’re considering a career in medicine.

In this article, we’ll take a look at the requirements for both undergraduate and graduate medicine applications in Australia.

Please note: this article in no way intends to substitute official information from the universities and other relevant organisations so always ensure you check with your desired university for their specific entry requirements.

Applying for Undergraduate Medical Studies in Australia
For those applying to undergraduate medicine in Australia, eligibility is generally based on a combination of your high school and UCAT ANZ exam results, and (if offered) performance in an interview. Aspiring medical students should also pay attention to what subjects to study in high school. Of course, studying subjects that provide a solid science foundation would be advantageous, however is not necessarily required by the universities. The University of Sydney have mathematics as a prerequisite subject. Generally, universities that do not have prerequisite subjects recommend that students take Year 12 Chemistry (or equivalent).

The minimum Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR) requirements differ between universities, and between students from different backgrounds such as rural or remote. However, students who do not achieve a high enough ATAR should not give up on their medical career, as there are many options for the graduate medical pathway.

Applying for Postgraduate Medical Studies in Australia
For graduate medicine, eligibility depends on many factors. Firstly, applicants must have completed at least a Bachelor’s degree. This does not need to be in an area related to medicine, so students from any undergraduate background may apply. There are also no benefits awarded to applicants from a related background, however Deakin University will award bonus points for prior clinical experience.

Importantly, most universities do not require prerequisite medical studies. The University of Melbourne will be phasing out their current prior knowledge requirements, and the University of Queensland will be implementing prerequisite studies from the 2022 intake onwards.

Many aspiring medical students may therefore choose to take their undergraduate studies as an opportunity to broaden their horizons, however many will decide on a Bachelor’s in Biomedical Science (or similar) to provide a solid foundation before starting medical school. There are of course pros and cons to each approach, and what works best will depend on the individual.

Arguably the most important consideration is how prepared you would like to be for your first few months as a postgraduate medical student. Given that there seems to be an increasing focus throughout medical programs to get students out of the lecture theatre and into the hospitals as soon as possible, having any background in chemistry and biology is highly beneficial.

The sheer amount of content that medical students are expected to learn and retain in such a short amount of time can be extremely challenging, but a background in the medical sciences can help with this. On the other hand, this approach generally requires a high GPA so may not be the best option for every students. If studying chemistry will drag down your GPA and harm your competitiveness, perhaps considering an alternative way to prepare yourself for medicine would be more strategic.

The results you get during your Bachelor’s degree are also important considerations when applying for a postgraduate medicine program. Offers for interviews will be based on an applicant’s GPA, which can either be weighted or unweighted and will vary depending on completion of any postgraduate studies, combined with the GAMSAT score.

The GAMSAT exam
The GAMSAT exam is the admissions test for graduate medicine. This test is feared as a great hurdle for many, as it involves a gruelling 5.5 hours of MCQs and essay-writing covering topics across both the humanities and the sciences. Generally (however it does vary greatly), graduate medical schools have a minimum GPA around 5.0 and GAMSAT score around 50. Competitive scores are often much higher than this.

Some medical programs in Australia will require a portfolio
In addition to GPA and GAMSAT results, the University of Wollongong and Notre Dame require applicants to complete a portfolio outlining experiences that demonstrate specific desired qualities for a career in medicine, for example leadership. Applying to these universities can therefore be a strategic move for anyone with a diverse background of formative experiences, such as volunteering, musical, and sporting achievements.

Consider your university based on your GPA vs GAMSAT scores
Universities weigh admissions criteria differently for both interview and final place offers, so being familiar with which a university weights higher can be advantageous to applicants. For example, if you have a low GPA and a high GAMSAT score, you may consider applying to universities that attribute great weight to GAMSAT than GPA in their ranking process.

Every year, GEMSAS, the organisation who facilitate the admissions process for the majority of graduate medical schools in Australia, release a Medicine Applications Guide detailing these criteria. Applicants should carefully read and understand this document. Furthermore, the University of Sydney, Flinders University and Monash University all have individual application systems.

Interviewing is the last step to applying for medical school
Of course, lastly, final offers for a place in a graduate medical school will depend on your performance in an interview. Similarly, to the other aspects of the medical admissions process, each university has a unique approach to interviews, and the University of Wollongong even include an additional aptitude test that students must complete.

Final thoughts
Whilst it can seem daunting reading about the necessary preparation and hurdles that students must overcome when applying for medicine, the multi-faceted nature of the applications process is designed to assess applicants’ suitability for a career in medicine. These hurdles are only the beginning of a lifelong of learning and facing great challenges in what may be considered one of the most dynamic, demanding, and rewarding career paths one can take.

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