Dundee vs Queen's University Belfast

Dundee's published UCAT threshold for home applicants is around 1830, while Queen's University Belfast sits at approximately 2025.

The 195-point spread matters: Dundee offers slightly more headroom for an average-strong UCAT, while Queen's University Belfast expects performance closer to the national 75th-90th percentile.

Contextual / widening-participation cut-offs differ — Dundee: not separately disclosed; Queen's University Belfast: Different combinations valid - very low deciles accepted with 9× grade 9s at GCSE. Eligible applicants should weight this heavily when choosing.

Dundee requires AAA including chemistry and biology, all in the same sitting. Ideally 1–2 A* predicted. Resits not accepted.

Queen's University Belfast requires AAA including chemistry and biology/human biology. Resit: only those who applied to QUB Dentistry on first attempt and held an offer (if made) as conditional firm - then awarded 36/36 on academics.

Both demand the same A-Level grade band, so academic prediction is unlikely to differentiate your application between them — provided you meet the required subject combination at each.

Both Dundee and Queen's University Belfast use MMI interviews, so the underlying prep approach is the same — practise ethics frameworks, NHS hot-topic answers and (for MMI) structured station responses against a timer.

That said, the specifics differ slightly: Dundee runs multiple mini interviews (mmi); Queen's University Belfast runs mmi / panel format. Mock practice tailored to each school's exact format is the highest-leverage prep.

Interview windows: Dundee interviews in December – February; Queen's University Belfast in December – February.

Dundee: Scottish: 71/149 = 48%. RUK: 17/127 = 13%. Overseas: 28/58 = 48%. Queen's University Belfast: All applicants (2024): 87/204 = 43%.

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.

Dundee: Non-graduate weighting: 60% academic / 40% UCAT. Graduate weighting: 40% academic / 60% UCAT. Both A-level predictions and GCSEs feed the academic score, so consistent strong grades matter.

Queen's University Belfast: Scoring system changed: total now /45 (UCAT /9 not /6). UK students scored on UCAT decile + best 9 GCSEs (9 = 4 pts, 7/8 = 3 pts, 6 = 2 pts, 4/5 = 1 pt). Achieved A-levels meeting requirements = 36/36. International students: no UCAT needed; assessed holistically. 15 overseas places.