Where are Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL) located, and how does that affect cost?

Birmingham is in Birmingham, UK. Queen Mary (QMUL) is in London, UK. Tuition is £9,250/year at both for UK home applicants; the main cost difference is accommodation (London accommodation typically runs 30-50% above the national average).

When does each school release decisions?

Birmingham typically releases dentistry decisions After all interviews complete. Queen Mary (QMUL) releases dentistry decisions Spring. If one is earlier than the other, you may need to hold a decision while waiting for the second school — be ready to compare in real time.

Dental school comparison

Birmingham vs Queen Mary (QMUL)

Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL) are both UK dental schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Birmingham is based in Birmingham (England) while Queen Mary (QMUL) sits in London (London), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination. Their A-Level requirements (AAA vs A*AA) place them in slightly different academic-strictness tiers.

The interview formats diverge — MMI vs Panel — and the prep approaches for the two are fundamentally different.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL).
Comparison field	BirminghamBirmingham	Queen Mary (QMUL)London
Quick comparison
Location	Birmingham, UK	London, UK
A-Level offer	AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Biology / Human Biology and Chemistry	AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) — single sitting, no more than 2 years. UCAS Tariff minimum 152 (AAA delivers this).
TrueScore	Birmingham TrueScore 2130	Queen Mary (QMUL) TrueScore 2210
UCAT home cut-off	~2130+/2700 (mean offer holder); minimum threshold ~2130+	Expressed as a decile, not a raw score: applications below the fourth decile of the total UCAT do not pass first shortlisting, and clearing it guarantees nothing.
Interview format	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI), in person	Two-interviewer panel, online (January–February)
Post-interview chance	Home: 131/302 = 43% (2025). Overseas: 10/15 = 67%.	2025 - All applicants: 182/267 = 68%. Overseas: 13/22 = 59%.
Decision date	After all interviews complete	Spring

A-Level offer	AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Biology / Human Biology and Chemistry	AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) — single sitting, no more than 2 years. UCAS Tariff minimum 152 (AAA delivers this).
Contextual A-Level offer	ABB at A-level (with BBB predicted) for Pathways to Birmingham contextual applicants — must include Chemistry and Biology	Reduced offer available for East London / contextual applicants
Required A-Level subjects	Biology (or Human Biology) and Chemistry both required	Biology or Chemistry required, plus a second science from Chemistry / Biology / Physics / Mathematics
A-Level resit policy	Resits not routinely considered (extenuating circumstances only). Those applying with achieved A-levels need not meet GCSE criteria.	Resits only with extenuating circumstances falling under the Equality and Diversity Act 2010
GCSE requirements	Seven GCSEs in total, to include grade 8/A* in Biology and Chemistry and grade 7/A in Mathematics and in English Language or Literature. GCSE resits are not considered. Worth knowing: if you apply after your A-level results are achieved - for example by taking a year out - Birmingham assesses your A-level attainment instead and does not assess the GCSE profile at all.	Six GCSEs at grade 7,7,7,6,6,6 (777666) or above, must include Mathematics, English Language or Literature, Biology and Chemistry (or Double Science). GCSEs are not required for graduate applicants.
GCSE scoring methodology	High GCSE minimum requirements form the academic gate — once met, the bottom 25% of candidates by UCAT are rejected, the rest considered holistically	Used as minimum threshold once met — UCAT and UCAS tariff drive the ranking. No longer at a 50:50 UCAS:UCAT weighting.
Scottish Highers	AAAAA at Higher in S5 including Chemistry and Biology	AAA at Higher
Scottish Advanced Highers	AA at Advanced Higher in Chemistry and Biology (no requirement for a third Advanced Higher)	AA at Advanced Higher
International Baccalaureate	32 points minimum overall, 666 at Higher Level including Chemistry and Biology	37 points overall, 666 at Higher Level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one further science from Chemistry / Biology / Physics / Mathematics
Graduate-entry degree requirement	2:1 (Upper-second-class Honours) in a health-science-related degree (or 65% average if unclassified) + ABB at A-level including Chemistry, Biology and one other subject	2:1 (Upper-second-class Honours) or above. Graduate qualifications scored via QMUL's internal Academic Points system (50/50 UCAT:Academic Points). No GCSE requirement for graduates.
Alternative qualifications	-	-

Contextual cut-off	~1850+/2700 (A2B programme - ~10% lower than standard)	-
Scottish (where applicable)	-	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	-	-
International cut-off	Used in shortlisting; specific cut-off not published	-
Graduate cut-off	-	-
SJT band	No use of SJT in selection	Band 4 automatically rejected. Used post-interview in offer-making (likely minimal weighting).
UCAT notes	No use of SJT. UCAT score may be reduced by up to 10% for high-performance athletes.	Queen Mary states that thresholds cannot be predicted for any individual year, nor derived from previous years - which is why the bar is published as a decile rather than a score. Applicants above the…

Degree awarded	BDS	BDS
Course length	5 years	5 years
Teaching style	Integrated	Integrated
Anatomy teaching	-	-
First patient contact	Year 1	-
Placement geography	Birmingham and the West Midlands	East London
Named placement sites	Birmingham Dental Hospital and School of Dentistry	The Royal London Dental Institute
Intercalation	-	-
Course highlight	Birmingham Dental Hospital and School is the first integrated, stand-alone dental hospital and school to be built in the UK for almost 40 years.	The Institute of Dentistry moved into the Alexandra Wing of The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel in 2014 — a £78 million building, the first new dental school built in the UK for over 40 years.

Interview window	February half-term	January – February
Interview details	5-10 MMI stations of 5-10 minutes each, with different selectors at each station. Reading time provided before each. Stations cover communication, ethical reasoning, motivation for dentistry and perso…	Online panel interview with two senior academic/clinical staff, a dental student, or sometimes a lay selector. Split into two parts: (1) questions based on an article given 2 weeks prior; (2) personal…

Specialities	Dentistry (BDS)	Dentistry (BDS)
Established	1825	1843
Course type	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
What makes it different	Either before or after the interview, applicants are offered a tour of the Dental School by current students - a useful opportunity to gauge whether the school suits you and to ask candid questions ab…	Queen Mary applies a fourth-decile minimum on the total UCAT: below it an application does not pass first shortlisting, and clearing it guarantees nothing. The bar is published as a decile rather than…
Official course page	https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/subjects/dentistry-courses	https://www.qmul.ac.uk/undergraduate/coursefinder/courses/2026/dentistry/

Birmingham

Quick comparison

Location: Birmingham, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Biology / Human Biology and Chemistry
TrueScore: Birmingham TrueScore 2130
UCAT home cut-off: ~2130+/2700 (mean offer holder); minimum threshold ~2130+
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI), in person
Post-interview chance: Home: 131/302 = 43% (2025). Overseas: 10/15 = 67%.
Decision date: After all interviews complete

Queen Mary (QMUL)

London

Quick comparison

Location: London, UK
A-Level offer: A*AA at A-level (offer and prediction) — single sitting, no more than 2 years. UCAS Tariff minimum 152 (A*AA delivers this).
TrueScore: Queen Mary (QMUL) TrueScore 2210
UCAT home cut-off: Expressed as a decile, not a raw score: applications below the fourth decile of the total UCAT do not pass first shortlisting, and clearing it guarantees nothing.
Interview format: Two-interviewer panel, online (January–February)
Post-interview chance: 2025 - All applicants: 182/267 = 68%. Overseas: 13/22 = 59%.
Decision date: Spring

Birmingham vs Queen Mary (QMUL) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Birmingham requires AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Biology / Human Biology and Chemistry.

Queen Mary (QMUL) requires A*AA at A-level (offer and prediction) — single sitting, no more than 2 years. UCAS Tariff minimum 152 (A*AA delivers this).

Queen Mary (QMUL) is the stricter A-Level offer; Birmingham is slightly more forgiving. If your predicted grades are borderline, Birmingham carries the lower academic-rejection risk pre-interview.

GCSE profile matters at both schools — Birmingham: Seven GCSEs in total, to include grade 8/A* in Biology and Chemistry and grade 7/A in Mathematics and in English Language or Literature. GCSE resits are not considered.

Worth knowing: if you apply… Queen Mary (QMUL): Six GCSEs at grade 7,7,7,6,6,6 (777666) or above, must include Mathematics, English Language or Literature, Biology and Chemistry (or Double Science). GCSEs are not required for graduate applicants…

Interview formats

Birmingham uses MMI (Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI), in person); Queen Mary (QMUL) uses Panel (Two-interviewer panel, online (January–February)). These two formats reward different skills — MMI emphasises breadth, station-recovery and structured answers under time pressure, while Panel rewards depth and consistency.

If your strengths lie in conversational depth, Queen Mary (QMUL) may suit you more. If you prefer discrete capsule answers under time pressure, Birmingham is the better fit.

Interview windows: Birmingham interviews in February half-term; Queen Mary (QMUL) in January – February.

Curriculum and teaching style

Both schools deliver a Integrated-style curriculum, so day-to-day study habits will feel similar across years 1-3.

Specifics: Five-year BDS with integrated science and clinical practice from Year 1. Clinical placements at Birmingham Dental Hospital and West Midlands community Five-year BDS at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry. Clinical placements at Royal London Dental Hospital and East London community

Intake size: Birmingham — ~80 home + ~20 international places per year for BDS Dentistry.; Queen Mary (QMUL) — ~80 home + ~20 international places per year for BDS Dentistry (Barts and The London).. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

Post-interview offer rate

Birmingham: Home: 131/302 = 43% (2025). Overseas: 10/15 = 67%. Queen Mary (QMUL): 2025 - All applicants: 182/267 = 68%. Overseas: 13/22 = 59%.

Post-interview odds give you the clearest signal of how competitive each school is at the final stage — a school with a 60% post-interview success rate is structurally easier to convert than one at 25%, even if the interview thresholds look identical on paper.

What makes each distinctive

Birmingham: Either before or after the interview, applicants are offered a tour of the Dental School by current students - a useful opportunity to gauge whether the school suits you and to ask candid questions about the course.

Queen Mary (QMUL): Queen Mary applies a fourth-decile minimum on the total UCAT: below it an application does not pass first shortlisting, and clearing it guarantees nothing. The bar is published as a decile rather than a score because the boundary moves with each cohort, and Queen Mary states thresholds cannot be predicted from previous years.

Higher predicted grades do not compensate. SJT band 4 automatically rejected.

Which is right for you?

For applicants with predicted A-Level grades at the lower end of the AAA-A*AA range, Birmingham is the lower-risk academic option. Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Birmingham feeds into the England foundation programme network; Queen Mary (QMUL) into the London network.

Your firm/insurance choice should ultimately weight: where your UCAT and predicted grades sit relative to each school's threshold, which interview format you can prepare for most credibly, and where you'd actually want to live for five years.

Common questions

Neither school publishes a single fixed UCAT cut-off; both use UCAT as part of a composite shortlisting score alongside GCSE and personal-statement weighting. Birmingham guidance: ~2130+/2700 (mean offer holder); minimum threshold ~2130+. Queen Mary (QMUL) guidance: Expressed as a decile, not a raw score: applications below the fourth decile of the total UCAT do not pass first shortlisting, and clearing it guarantees nothing..

Birmingham uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI), in person. Queen Mary (QMUL) uses Panel interview: Two-interviewer panel, online (January–February). The two formats reward different skill sets. Plan separate prep streams for each, with at least 3 full mock interviews per format before sitting either. Interview windows: February half-term (Birmingham); January – February (Queen Mary (QMUL)).

Birmingham requires AAA including biology/human biology and chemistry. Resits not routinely considered.. Queen Mary (QMUL) requires A*AA in single sitting, no more than 2 years. Must include biology or chemistry + second science from chemistry/biology/physics/maths. Resit only with extenuating circumstances under Equality and Diversity Act 2010.. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school. Resit policies differ: Birmingham — Resits are not considered, and A-levels must be obtained in one sitting within the same exam period of the same year. GCSE resits are likewi. Queen Mary (QMUL) — Resits considered with explanation..

Birmingham — Seven GCSEs in total, to include grade 8/A* in Biology and Chemistry and grade 7/A in Mathematics and in English Language or Literature. GCSE resits are not considered. Worth knowing: if you apply after your A-level results are achieved - for example by taking a year out - Birmingham assesses your A-level attainment instead and does not assess the GCSE profile at all. High GCSE minimum requirements form the academic gate — once met, the bottom 25% of candidates by UCAT are rejected, the rest considered holistically Queen Mary (QMUL) — Six GCSEs at grade 7,7,7,6,6,6 (777666) or above, must include Mathematics, English Language or Literature, Biology and Chemistry (or Double Science). GCSEs are not required for graduate applicants. Used as minimum threshold once met — UCAT and UCAS tariff drive the ranking. No longer at a 50:50 UCAS:UCAT weighting.

Birmingham's selection methodology: MMI in February-March. Strict GCSE thresholds (similar to medicine). Three days of NHS-dental work experience strongly encouraged. Queen Mary (QMUL)'s selection methodology: UCAT + academic + MMI. SJT used post-interview. Strong East London focus. Understanding each school's exact algorithm is the single highest-leverage piece of pre-application research — it tells you whether your profile is competitive before you spend an application choice.

Birmingham: Home: 131/302 = 43% (2025). Overseas: 10/15 = 67%.. Queen Mary (QMUL): 2025 - All applicants: 182/267 = 68%. Overseas: 13/22 = 59%.. Post-interview odds tell you how competitive each school is at the final stage. Two schools with similar UCAT thresholds can have very different post-interview rates — a school with a 60% post-interview success rate is structurally easier to convert than one at 25%.

Birmingham runs a Integrated curriculum. Queen Mary (QMUL) runs a Integrated curriculum. Both schools deliver teaching in the same broad style, so day-to-day study habits will feel similar. Birmingham specifics: Five-year BDS with integrated science and clinical practice from Year 1. Clinical placements at Birmingham Dental Hospital and West Midlands community sites. Queen Mary (QMUL) specifics: Five-year BDS at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry. Clinical placements at Royal London Dental Hospital and East London community sites.

You can — UCAS allows 4 medicine/dentistry choices in total, so listing both is feasible if your profile fits each school's selection algorithm. Apply to both only if your UCAT, GCSE and predicted-grade profile is competitive against each school's published weighting. A common mistake is using two of your four slots on similar schools when a more spread-out portfolio (one safe + one stretch) would maximise overall offer probability.

Where to go next

BirminghamEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Queen Mary (QMUL)Entry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Other dental school comparisons

School data reviewed by the NextGen MedPrep editorial team — last reviewed 19 September 2026.

Birmingham vs Queen Mary (QMUL)

Side-by-side comparison

Birmingham vs Queen Mary (QMUL) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Interview formats

Curriculum and teaching style

Post-interview offer rate

What makes each distinctive

Which is right for you?

Common questions

What UCAT score do I need for Birmingham vs Queen Mary (QMUL)?

How do interviews differ between Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL)?

What A-Level grades do Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL) require?

How are GCSEs weighted at Birmingham vs Queen Mary (QMUL)?

How does each school actually shortlist applicants?

Which has a higher post-interview offer rate, Birmingham or Queen Mary (QMUL)?

Where are Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL) located, and how does that affect cost?

When does each school release decisions?

What curriculum style do Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL) use?

Should I apply to both Birmingham and Queen Mary (QMUL)?

Where to go next

Other dental school comparisons