Who is the youngest doctor in the UK?
Arpan Doshi is thought to be the youngest ever medical student to graduate as a doctor in the UK. He was 21 years and 334 days old when he graduated from Sheffield Medical School in 2017. Rachel Faye Hill was the previous record holder receiving her medical degree at 21 years and 352 days old.
Do medical schools have a minimum age requirement?
Some medical schools have no minimum age requirement. Most will require a student to be at least 17 on the first day of starting medical school, and some have a minimum age of 18.
What is the reason for the minimum age requirement for medical students?
There are practical reasons for this age restriction as studying medicine will require you to visit and work in NHS premises; have contact with patients; observe, assist and perform medical procedures; follow NHS protocols etc. These activities often require you to be over 16 or are at least easier for the medical school and the NHS to arrange from a legal, logistical and insurance point of view if you are over 16. Modern medical school curriculums now have patient contact very early on in the course, sometimes even in the first few weeks.
Are many applicants too young for medical school?
To successfully gain a place at medical school you need to meet the entry criteria e.g. relevant work experience, GCSE’s, A-levels or equivalent etc. For the vast majority of medical school applicants, they will be 17 or 18 anyway by the time they can complete these things and start university in September. However, a tiny proportion of potential applicants will be able to meet the entry requirements before reaching the minimum entry age of some medical schools.
What can you do if you don’t meet the minimum age requirement for a chosen medical school?
Firstly, you must very carefully consider if you want to commit to studying Medicine whilst so young. You should receive detailed advice from a diverse range of people including teachers, careers advisors, family etc. If an applicant in this situation wishes to study medicine this early, then they should contact the medical school’s admission team directly to discuss their options. They could of course simply apply to another medical school, apply when they are older or consider deferred entry. If particularly young it would be advised to speak to the medical school’s admissions department even if the medical school states it has no minimum age requirement.
What is a deferred application to study Medicine?
A deferred application is an application for a place not next year like a typical application but instead the year after that. Deferred entry is a very common application type for all types of applicants not just in this specific scenario of being too young. Many applicants simply want to take a gap year before starting medical school. e.g. to travel, work, pursue hobbies, for family or caring responsibilities etc. If you would like to speak in person or online to a doctor who took a gap year either before medical school, during medical school or after graduating, then this can be arranged in our one to one medical school tutoring. We can also give advice on activities to partake in a gap year.
Prepare for your Interview with Medicine Answered
At Medicine Answered we aim to do everything we can to maximise your chances of gaining entry into your chosen UK or international medical school. We offer a range of services which are unique from our competitors as they are created and delivered exclusively by doctors who themselves gained entry into all four medical schools. This unique 100 percent success rate gives them the perfect expertise to help your application stand out. We offer specialist one day medical school interview courses and also one on one medical school interview tutoring which can be done in person or online. We also offer an excellent 360° medical personal statement review service. Our service is different to our competitors as we do not simply proofread your Medicine personal statement. Instead a professional proofreader and a doctor will look at your entire personal statement, your academic and other achievements and come up with a bespoke action plan for you.