Medicine

Why Aberdeen?

• Over 500 years of medical tradition with a new, thoroughly modern medical programme, systems-based and fully integrated

• Much of the MBChB is now delivered from two new state-of-the-art Teaching and Learning Centres with unrivalled educational, simulation and social facilities on the Medical School/Hospital campus in Aberdeen and later in the curriculum in Inverness when students are on rotation there.

• Ideal surroundings and one of the largest combined teaching and clinical campuses in Europe. As a Centre of Excellence, Aberdeen offers superb clinical opportunities and facilities for students

• Clinical teaching and patient contact from Year 1

• Excellent student support schemes

• Major opportunity to experience remote & rural medicine, explore medical humanities and carry out an elective project in a centre of your own choice worldwide
   

Outstanding Clinical Facilities

You will find an exciting range of clinical attachments on offer at Aberdeen, both locally and across the Highlands and Islands. Most clinical teaching takes place at the Medical School and its main teaching hospitals (Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Aberdeen Maternity Hospital, Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital, Royal Cornhill Hospital and Woodend Hospital), all situated on or near the magnificent Foresterhill site, which is one of the largest clinical and teaching hospital campuses in Europe. The hospitals incorporate the full range of clinical facilities required for the population of the North-east of Scotland. The Medical School has very close links with other clinical units in Grampian and the Highlands and Islands, in particular Dr Gray's Hospital, Elgin and Raigmore Hospital, Inverness, and all students undertake hospital-based clinical placements outside Aberdeen. The Inverness campus at Raigmore Hospital is the gateway to healthcare delivery in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland where our students are able to utilise the splendid facilities of the clinical skills centre in the new Centre for Health Science. In addition, our extensive network of teaching general practices around Scotland, also gives students opportunities to experience patient care in many different community settings.

Fully Equipped Clinical Skills Centres

The new Suttie Centre for Teaching and Learning in Healthcare in Aberdeen and the Centre for Health Science in Inverness provide superb new facilities. The Suttie Centre in Abredeen allows Anatomy and Clinical Skills teaching to be co-located. This gives students the opportunity to integrate and consolidate anatomical structure and function with clinical knowledge as they progress through the MBChB curriculum. Both centres allow students to be taught and to learn in the same environment as healthcare staff and to continue to develop their knowledge and skills after graduation. Within the clinical skills areas, students practise communication skills, medical consultations and learn basic examination techniques in the Centre. Volunteer 'simulated patients' from the community take part in these sessions, allowing beginners to practise the skills in a non-threatening environment. A sophisticated digital video recording system allows students to review their skills with their teachers. The facility also allows students to learn techniques using a variety of mechanical and computerised models – e.g. to take blood from an artificial arm, listen to the heart sounds of 'Harvey' (the computerised heart patient) and resuscitate 'Annie' after a heart attack, or deal with medical emergencies with Hal, SimMan or SimBaby.

Remote and Rural Option

The Remote and Rural Option is based at the Inverness campus at Raigmore Hospital. The Option has been developed to be undertaken by students in Years 4 and 5 who have a special interest in undertaking their clinical attachments or even future careers in remote or country areas. Other students just wish to gain this experience to enhance whatever future career path they choose. Rather than undertaking the usual one or two out of the nine clinical blocks outwith Aberdeen in Year 4, students who have elected to take the Remote and Rural Option will undertake all their hospital placements at Raigmore Hospital and attend one of the Highland or Skye General Practices. In Year 5, students who have elected to continue the Remote and Rural theme will undertake all their attachments in the Remote and Rural areas. The hospital placements can be in Elgin, Inverness, Wick, Shetland, Stornoway or Fort William. The GP placements can be anywhere in the Highlands, Western Isles, Argyll, Orkney, Shetland and Skye.

Superb Student Support Services

As well as the University's comprehensive range of student support services, there are also specific support schemes for medical students. The Regent Scheme. Each medical student is assigned to an experienced member of staff who, for the next five years, is that student's Regent. They meet regularly. A student's Regent has two main tasks, to provide support and guidance on any matter and to act as a mentor to help with the student's professional development. Student Pairing Scheme. Every first year student is paired with a 'Mum and Dad' - second year students, who provide support and advice based upon their own experiences. The GMC quality assurance assessment noted the excellent experience at Aberdeen and the students' own high regard for the course and the School. The Medical School also has a very active student-managed Medical Society (MEDSOC) which organises many educational and social events, including a medical electives' evening, the MEDSOC Ball and the Medical School Annual Revue

Programmes

Features

• New state of the art teaching centres on the main hospital campuses in Aberdeen and Inverness
• 5-year, systems-based and fully integrated MBChB programme
• Patient contact and clinical skills training from Year 1
• Opportunities in all years to study in depth, topics of particular interest to you
• Opportunity to take an intercalated BSc Medical Sciences degree
• Opportunity for all students to undertake a six-week Medical Humanities module in third year and an optional intercalated degree in humanities
• Excellent student support systems
• Exciting range of clinical attachments locally and across Highlands & Islands
• Opportunity to study medicine in Remote and Rural areas for up to two years
• Project-based elective with the opportunity to study abroad

Research Environment

Teaching in an atmosphere of research is an important part of our University's philosophy. The Institute of Medical Sciences (IMS) brings over 250 scientists and clinicians together in a high quality research laboratory environment. The Institute of Applied Health Sciences (IAHS) brings together groups with interests in health and health services research.

Research at Aberdeen includes internationally recognised expertise in immunity and infection, microbiology, bone and musculoskeletal medicine, neuroscience and health services research. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) was developed as a result of a crucial innovation by Aberdeen scientists and highly acclaimed research that makes use of advanced imaging technologies is ongoing.

There are opportunities for undergraduates to gain research experience and work towards an academic career path.

For more information please see www.abdn.ac.uk/acat

Intercalated Degree (BSc Medical Sciences)

At the end of third year or alternately, between fourth and fifth year, there is the opportunity to be involved in cutting-edge research, by undertaking an intercalated one-year Honours BSc in the School of Medicine and Dentistry or in the School of Medical Sciences. Currently around 20% of the year does this. 

The degree programme consists of interlocking taught courses specifically tailored to medical students, providing structured teaching and building up to a detailed self-directed learning project. This is followed by an extended individual 20-week research project, with projects available in a range of departments and disciplines. The programme aims to give students the opportunity to study in greater depth an area of biomedical or clinical science. At the end of the programme students will be able to undertake and critically evaluate research and understand basic principles of research methodology.

A recent innovation is the opportunity to take the intercalated degree in Medical Humanities, a unique opportunity for students whose interest has been stimulated by the Humanities SSC in third year.

Curriculum Review

The MBChB programme is based on the educational outcomes of Tomorrow's Doctors 2009 (GMC). The programme is constantly updated in response to GMC guidance, to scientific and medical advances, to changes in healthcare delivery and changes in educational theory and practice. Aberdeen has always been at the forefront of medical education and therefore the current curriculum has been modernised to ensure that it produces doctors fit for practice in the 21st century! "Tasters" of arts and humanities have been introduced throughout the course, whilst teaching using the state-of-the-art facilities based in the new Suttie Centre, allows for close integration of basic science and clinical teaching.

Study Abroad

There is an opportunity for spending at least a limited time abroad during the project-based medical elective module in Year 5.

The MBChB curriculum has been recently revised to ensure that it remains up-to-date and the introduction of the new course coincided with the opening of the new Suttie Centre. The main features of the new programme are increased integration of basic science and clinical teaching in the early years and the introduction of a Personal and Professional Development thread (PPD) that runs through all five years. Years 1, 2 and 3 of the programme offer close integration of basic science and clinical teaching and the use of clinical cases (case-based learning) to allow students to apply their scientific knowledge in a clinical context.

Teaching is systems based, with the final integration of the examination of all body systems coming in third year.  

The length of the programme is five years and is designed around the concept of incremental learning. After mastering the basic principles of medicine in years 1 to 3, much of it learned in the "safe" environment of the Clinical Skills Centre, students progress to a comprehensive series of clinical attachments in Years 4 and 5 which allow them to participate in the practical application of everything they have learned.  Thus there is a step-by-step approach to the development of knowledge, skills and professional attitudes, whilst undertaking a systems-based approach to learning. In addition, there is an option to undertake a one-year intercalated BSc degree between Years 3 and 4 and to undertake the Remote & Rural Option for Years 4 and 5. 

Student Selected Components 

The MBChB programme is based on a structure of core material and Student Selected Components (SSCs). The core material accounts for approximately 80% of all teaching and covers topics which are essential for all doctors. The SSCs make up the remaining 20% of the programme and allow students to follow up areas of personal interest for more detailed study. SSCs appear in all five years of the programme and a considerable range of choices is available. In Years 1 to 4 the SSCs predominantly involve group projects but in Year 5 students will undertake individual projects. Ultimately, students must successfully complete both the core and SSC parts of the course to graduate. 

Year 1 

The first term sets the scene for the whole of undergraduate study. This begins with the student gaining an understanding of the medical sciences and the disease processes that underpin medicine. The foundations of clinical method and communication skills are explored with an introduction to clinical practice and patient care. 

The systems-based course will then commence with the study of two major systems, the Respiratory and the Cardiovascular Systems. This systems-based course will use clinical cases to act as a focus for learning. Thus, the appropriate anatomy, physiology and biochemistry of each of the body systems will be explored, as will the disease processes that affect normal structure and function within each system. The clinical cases will illustrate the use of appropriate investigations (tests) and treatments that are undertaken.

Students will learn how to explore patients' symptoms and perform clinical examination (clinical method) for each of the systems studied and thereafter will have opportunities to practice these skills in a variety of clinical settings.

The integrated teaching of communication skills with clinical method will commence with the start of the systems-based course.

During Year 1 students will also undertake a parallel Community Course which uses a network of local general practices. This course will include contributions from disciplines such as General Practice, Public Health, Mental Health, Environmental and Occupational Medicine, Care of the Elderly and Child Health, and will provide an opportunity to learn about the effects of social, economic and environmental factors on humans, and will integrate with the Systems teaching.

Towards the end of the year, the first four-week Student Selected Component will be undertaken involving project-based small group work. 

Year 2 

The systems-based courses and the Community Course continue to develop throughout second year, with students building on their basic knowledge of clinical skills acquired in Year 1. A  second 4-week Student Selected Component with the theme, "Molecular Medicine" is undertaken halfway through Year 2. 

Year 3 

The study of the systems and the Community Course will be completed in third year. Students by now are able to perform a complete history and examination and have basic knowledge of common diseases in all the major body systems. 

A six-week SSC just before Christmas provides students with a unique opportunity to study a topic outwith the mainstream of medicine, with a wide variety of topics within Medical Humanities offered e.g. History of Medicine, Literature and Medicine, History of Art etc. 

Year 4 

Year 4 begins with a 4-week SSC on a topic within a general them of "General Effectivenes".  This includes project choices in global medicine, evidence based medicine and population health. This SSC provides a gentle start to an intense year of clinical experience.  Students undertake nine five-week blocks when they experience at first hand in clinics, operating theatres and wards the delivery of healthcare – the practical application of the knowledge and skills they have gained in Years 1 to 3.  These clinical opportunities are based in hospitals and the community, in and around Aberdeen and at least one clinical block will be undertaken in Inverness.

Year 4 may be undertaken as described above along with most of the year group, with the main base in Aberdeen. Alternately, students may choose to undertake the Remote & Rural Option for all the blocks in Year 4 and these students will have Inverness as their main base. There are up to 18 places available for students who wish to undertake this option in Year 4. 

Year 5 

Year 5 is very much an apprentice year where students prepare for the competent, safe, effective and professional practice of medicine as a pre-registration Foundation Doctor. This Year is not systems-based, but instead focuses on professional practice and the holistic care of each patient. Students gain extensive clinical experience during three eight-week attachments over a wide range of locations in: 

• A medical specialty (student choices from an adult medical specialty, paediatrics and medicine for the elderly) 
• A surgical specialty (student choices from a surgical specialty, obstetrics and gynaecology and anaesthetics and intensive care)
• General practice or psychiatry

Some students may wish to continue to undertake Remote and Rural attachments for a second year for some, or all of Year 5.

World-wide locations are commonly arranged by students during the eight-week project-based elective.

Prior to qualification, the Professional Practice Blocks provide teaching and learning opportunities to help bridge the gap between life as a student and the practicalities of life as a junior doctor.

Teaching and Assessment

During the first three years of the curriculum, students receive teaching through a variety of methods including lectures, tutorials, practical anatomy and clinical sessions and small group Community Course sessions.  The rest of the time is set aside for self-study and self-directed learning, often computer-based.

Clinical expertise is initially acquired both in the Clinical Skills Centre as well as in hospital and other clinical areas.  Teaching sessions may involve practical demonstrations with real or simulated patients, with many opportunities for supervised or self-directed practice.  Simulation plays an important part of clinical learning in the Clinical Skills Centre and students are encouraged to take the opportunity to 'book' the rooms and equipment and practice their skills further. Later clinical attachments consolidate early practice when students may be placed within Aberdeen.  All students undertake hospital-based clinical placements outside Aberdeen. 

This variety of placements offered, both within and outwith Aberdeen allows our students to experience not only inner-city medicine, but also gives a unique opportunity to see how healthcare is delivered in areas far removed from large teaching centres.

The curriculum is supported by an e-learning platform – My MBChB.  This is a web-based intranet resource for students to support their learning throughout their undergraduate years and can be accessed by students from all clinical and university campuses as well as from outside these areas.  Material available includes administrative information such as lectures and timetables, educational resources such as teaching videos and podcasts and bulletin boards for students to exchange information and post notices.

The Medical School has a duty to ensure that its graduates have achieved a safe and satisfactory standard of performance in all the elements of medical practice. Assessment is built in throughout the five years of the course, to ensure that basic skills are mastered before moving on to more advanced topics. Since medicine is not simply a theoretical subject, teaching and learning covers knowledge, skills and attitudes, and assessment must therefore do the same. A variety of assessment methods are used.

Formative assessments are widely distributed within the course and their purpose is to provide feedback to students on how well they are performing. There is no sanction or penalty for failing these 'practice' exams – they are intended to provide an early warning to students that they are not reaching the required standard. There are extensive support mechanisms within the Medical School and formative exams often help staff to identify students who need help for one reason or another – e.g. because of illness or personal or financial difficulties.

Summative assessments are degree exams, usually at the end of a year. These are the 'official' assessments that determine whether a student is good enough to proceed to the next year of the course, or to graduate at the end of the course. Students normally have two opportunities to pass such assessments. 

Careers

Foundation Programmes

On successful completion of the undergraduate curriculum and graduation you will apply for a two year Foundation Programme rotation. All newly qualified doctors are matched to the Foundation Training Programme. On satisfactory completion of Foundation Year 1 you will be awarded full registration by the General Medical Council with a licence to practise, subject to demonstrating to the GMC that your fitness to practise is not impaired. Successful completion of Foundation Year 2 results in the granting of the Foundation Achievement of Competency Document (FACD) which is a requirement for application to Specialty Training.

Foundation Programmes allow a wider taste of different aspects of medical practice than was formerly the case. In addition, careers advice and counselling will be available part way through Foundation Year 2 (FY2). Detailed information about careers in medicine can be obtained by accessing our website.

Specialist Training

Doctors who have successfully completed a Foundation Programme will compete for a place on a specialty training programme of their choice. There are 65 specialty streams, including General Practice. If successful, a doctor is awarded a National Training Number (NTN) and commences training. On successful completion, the doctor is awarded a Certificate on Completion of Training (CCT). This then allows a doctor to be on the Specialty Register and work as a consultant.

Academic Medicine

A proportion of graduates with an aptitude for research and teaching follow a career in academic medicine. They will almost invariably proceed on to a degree by thesis, e.g. MD, ChM or PhD. Individuals who wish to pursue a Consultant appointment in a teaching hospital may also find this form of higher degree invaluable. Potential academics of the future are mentored in Aberdeen and encouraged to apply for the Academic Foundation Programme.

Finding your direction

There are many opportunities at the University of Aberdeen to develop your knowledge, gain experience and build a competitive set of skills to enhance your employability. This is essential for your future career success.  The Careers Service can help you to plan your career and support your choices throughout your time with us – from first to final year – and beyond.

• More information on employability at the University of Aberdeen.
• More information on the Careers Service.
• More information on careers prospects and employability with a degree in Medicine.

Entrance Requirements

Competition for places to study Medicine each year is extremely high. We strongly advise you to find out more about the academic and non-academic requirements for Aberdeen by visiting our website at http://www.abdn.ac.uk/medicine/prospective/admissions/requirements. 

All applicants must hold a Standard Grade pass at 3 or GCSE level pass at C (or equivalent) in the following subjects: English Language and Mathematics.

Candidates whose first language is not English, must also achieve either IELTS overall score of 7.0 with a minimum of 7.0 in the speaking section, or TOEFL iBT score of 100+, to include 28+ in the speaking test.

Scottish Qualifications (SQA) 

5H at AAAAB obtained at a single sitting of Hs. Chemistry is required, plus two from Biology/Human Biology, Mathematics and Physics plus two other subjects. Applicants only attempting four Hs owing to school policy or personal difficulties are normally required to achieve AAAA at the first sitting. 

Candidates who do not meet the H requirements in S5 may be considered* but must offer an appropriate programme of study in S6 and advice should be sought. The normal expectation for applicants who are one grade down, would be that they offer one new H predicted at A, plus two AH predicted at BB, or two new Hs predicted at AA plus one AH predicted at B. Alternative studies could be three AH at ABB, when Chemistry would be required with one from Biology, Mathematics or Physics plus one other subject. Higher ESOL is also recognised in lieu of Higher English where the mother tongue is not English. 

* Please refer to our medicine website for full details. 

General Certificate of Education (GCE) 

3 A Levels at AAA. Chemistry is required plus at least one from Biology, Mathematics or Physics plus one other subject.  

Irish Leaving Certificate/Ardteistimeireacht (ILC) 

6H at AAAAAA obtained at a single sitting of Hs. Chemistry is required, plus two from Biology, Mathematics and Physics 

International Baccalaureate (IB) 

3 subjects at HL at grade 6 or better, (including Chemistry) plus 3 other subjects at an average of 6 (including two additional sciences - Maths, Biology or Physics, with at least one at HL) – i.e. at least 36 points overall, to exclude points for TOK & bonus points. 

UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UK CAT) 

The University of Aberdeen Medical School, along with most other UK medical schools, uses the UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UK CAT) to help select applicants for the undergraduate medical programme. All candidates must complete the UK CAT by the appropriate closing date for that year's entry. For more information, visit www.ukcat.ac.uk/ 

Our departmental (medicine) website contains much more, extremely useful information for all potential medicine applicants, their parents and teachers. www.abdn.ac.uk/medicine/prospective

Please click on the links below to find out more information on funding in your area.

• Scotland and EU (Excluding England, Wales and Northern Ireland)
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