How do interviews differ between Aberdeen and Hertfordshire?

Aberdeen uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). Hertfordshire uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). The format is the same, so the same prep approach applies — practise ethics frameworks, NHS hot topics, and (for MMI) structured 5-7 minute station answers. Interview windows: December - March (Aberdeen); December - March (Hertfordshire).

Where are Aberdeen and Hertfordshire located, and how does that affect cost?

Aberdeen is in Aberdeen, UK. Hertfordshire is in Hatfield, UK. Scottish-domiciled applicants funded by SAAS pay no tuition fees at Scottish medical schools — a substantial funding advantage worth tens of thousands of pounds over the degree. Rest-of-UK applicants still pay £9,250/year.

When does each school release decisions?

Aberdeen typically releases medicine decisions March/April. Hertfordshire releases medicine decisions March onwards. 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.

Medical school comparison

Aberdeen vs Hertfordshire

Aberdeen and Hertfordshire are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Aberdeen is based in Aberdeen (Scotland) while Hertfordshire sits in Hatfield (England), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination.

Aberdeen is the older institution (founded 1495); the other (founded 2025) has shaped its medical school around modern integrated-curriculum thinking.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: Aberdeen and Hertfordshire.
Comparison field	AberdeenAberdeen	HertfordshireHatfield
Quick comparison
Location	Aberdeen, UK	Hatfield, UK
A-Level offer	AAA at A-level	AAA at A-level including Chemistry and Biology (or Human Biology) at grade A plus a third subject at grade A, completed in one sitting across a maximum of two years. General Studies and Critical Thinking excluded.
TrueScore	Aberdeen TrueScore 1700	Hertfordshire TrueScore 1700intl
UCAT home cut-off	-	-
Interview format	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance	RUK 74/165 = 45% (2025); Scottish 736/863 = 85%; International 101/140 = 72%	-
Decision date	March/April	March onwards

A-Level offer	AAA at A-level	AAA at A-level including Chemistry and Biology (or Human Biology) at grade A plus a third subject at grade A, completed in one sitting across a maximum of two years. General Studies and Critical Thinking excluded.
Contextual A-Level offer	-	-
Required A-Level subjects	Chemistry required, plus one of Biology / Human Biology / Mathematics / Physics, plus one other subject	Chemistry AND Biology (or Human Biology) both required, plus any third subject
A-Level resit policy	Resits only accepted with serious extenuating circumstances or personal difficulties	Resits accepted.
GCSE requirements	English Language and Mathematics at grade 6/B or above. A combination of grade 6–9 GCSEs expected, especially in sciences. National 5 (Scottish): English and Maths at B/6 minimum.	Minimum 5 GCSEs at grade 6/B or above, including English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry and Physics (or Dual Award Science)
GCSE scoring methodology	GCSEs are not used in scoring - minimum threshold only (2025 entry onwards)	-
Scottish Highers	AAAAB at one sitting including Chemistry plus two of Biology / Human Biology / Mathematics / Physics. AAAB for widening-access applicants.	-
Scottish Advanced Highers	-	-
International Baccalaureate	36 points overall, including HL 6,6,6 with HL Chemistry plus HL Maths / Biology / Physics, and one other HL subject	36 points overall with Higher Level 6 in Chemistry or Biology and Higher Level 5 in a second science (Chemistry, Biology, Physics) or Mathematics
Graduate-entry degree requirement	-	-
Alternative qualifications	-	Access to Medicine Diploma accepted: 39 credits at distinction plus six at merit, with all biology and chemistry credits at distinction. International applicants only for the first cohort, applying direct rather than through UCAS, so it costs none of your four UCAS choices. Applicants must be 18 by the start of the course.

Contextual cut-off	SIMD20 and care-experienced school leavers receive a 10% uplift on their UCAT score; SIMD40 school leavers receive 5%.	-
Scottish (where applicable)	No cut-off. Scotland-domiciled applicants are guaranteed an interview if they meet the minimum academic requirements and their UCAT sits within the top 75% of scores from Aberdeen applicants.	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	-	-
International cut-off	-	No cut-off exists yet. Hertfordshire ranks applicants by UCAT and invites a fixed number to interview, but the first cohort is September 2026 so there is no historic lowest-invited score to quote.
Graduate cut-off	-	-
SJT band	No use of SJT - band 4 accepted	No usage mentioned in any selection policy
UCAT notes	Aberdeen does not use a minimum UCAT cut-off at all. Your score is converted into points relative to every other Aberdeen applicant that year, and feeds a total of academic attainment 30%, UCAT 20% an…	International applicants only for the first intake. SJT not used. Any number circulating as a Hertfordshire 'cut-off' is guesswork - the school has not yet completed a cycle.

Degree awarded	MBChB	MBBS
Course length	5 years	5 years
Teaching style	Integrated	Case-based learning + Problem-based learning
Anatomy teaching	-	-
First patient contact	Year 1	Year 1
Placement geography	Grampian, the Highlands and the Scottish islands	-
Named placement sites	Aberdeen Royal Infirmary	-
Intercalation	A one-year intercalated honours degree in Medical Science or Medical Humanities at the end of year 3 or 4.	Available during the course, earning an additional qualification.
Course highlight	The world’s first full-body MRI scanner was developed and built by researchers at Aberdeen.	Initially open to international students only — around 70 places a year — with plans to admit UK fee-paying students soon after.

Interview window	December - March	December - March
Interview details	Multiple Mini Interview format with applicants rotating through several stations. Each station has two interviewers and assesses a specific competency such as motivation, ethical reasoning, communicat…	Applicants are ranked by UCAT score and a fixed number invited to an Interview Day, provided they meet academic minimums. Interview format includes typical MMI-style stations.

Specialities	Medicine, Medical Sciences, Rural Health	Medicine, International Medicine
Established	1495	2025
Course type	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
What makes it different	Shortlisting weights academic 60% (A-level scores) / UCAT 40%. Scottish-domiciled applicants in the top 75% academically receive guaranteed interview. Care leavers and Quintile 1 postcode applicants r…	International applicants only for the first intake, with home entry planned later. Delivered with support from City St George's, University of London, and still working toward GMC accreditation - conf…
Official course page	https://www.abdn.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/degree-programmes/796/A100/medicine-5-years/	https://www.herts.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/mbbs-medicine

Aberdeen

Quick comparison

Location: Aberdeen, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level
TrueScore: Aberdeen TrueScore 1700
UCAT home cut-off: -
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: RUK 74/165 = 45% (2025); Scottish 736/863 = 85%; International 101/140 = 72%
Decision date: March/April

Hertfordshire

Hatfield

Quick comparison

Location: Hatfield, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level including Chemistry and Biology (or Human Biology) at grade A plus a third subject at grade A, completed in one sitting across a maximum of two years. General Studies and Critical Thinking excluded.
TrueScore: Hertfordshire TrueScore 1700intl
UCAT home cut-off: -
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: -
Decision date: March onwards

Aberdeen vs Hertfordshire - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Aberdeen requires AAA at A-level.

Hertfordshire requires AAA at A-level including Chemistry and Biology (or Human Biology) at grade A plus a third subject at grade A, completed in one sitting across a maximum of two years. General Studies and Critical Thinking excluded.

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.

GCSE profile matters at both schools — Aberdeen: English Language and Mathematics at grade 6/B or above. A combination of grade 6–9 GCSEs expected, especially in sciences. National 5 (Scottish): English and Maths at B/6 minimum.

GCSEs are not used… Hertfordshire: Minimum 5 GCSEs at grade 6/B or above, including English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry and Physics (or Dual Award Science).

Interview formats

Both Aberdeen and Hertfordshire 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.

Interview windows: Aberdeen interviews in December - March; Hertfordshire in December - March.

Curriculum and teaching style

Aberdeen runs a Integrated curriculum; Hertfordshire runs a PBL curriculum. The teaching philosophies are different — Aberdeen delivers more didactic lectures with structured systems-based progression, while Hertfordshire centres learning around clinical cases.

Specifics: Five-year MBChB with early clinical exposure from Year 1. Distinctive remote/rural placement strand in Highlands and Western Isles. Five-year MBChB. Hertfordshire-based with East-of-England NHS placements.

Intake size: Aberdeen — ~257 Scottish + ~24 RUK + ~39 International per year (2025 entry data).; Hertfordshire — ~50-100 places per year (newer cohort).. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

What makes each distinctive

Aberdeen: Shortlisting weights academic 60% (A-level scores) / UCAT 40%. Scottish-domiciled applicants in the top 75% academically receive guaranteed interview. Care leavers and Quintile 1 postcode applicants receive a 10% UCAT uplift; Quintile 2 receives 5%.

Hertfordshire: International applicants only for the first intake, with home entry planned later. Delivered with support from City St George's, University of London, and still working toward GMC accreditation - confirm the accreditation position before accepting an offer. Applicants are ranked by UCAT with no published cut-off.

Which is right for you?

Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Aberdeen feeds into the Scotland foundation programme network; Hertfordshire into the England network. If you learn best in small-group case discussion, prefer Hertfordshire; if you prefer lecture-led foundations, the other suits better.

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 or six 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. Aberdeen guidance: Aberdeen does not use a minimum UCAT cut-off at all. Your score is converted into points relative to every other Aberdeen applicant that year, and feeds a total of academic attainment 30%, UCAT 20% and interview 50%. Applicants are ranked on that total, so UCAT is only a fifth of the decision and the interview is half of it.. Hertfordshire guidance: International applicants only for the first intake. SJT not used. Any number circulating as a Hertfordshire 'cut-off' is guesswork - the school has not yet completed a cycle..

Aberdeen requires AAA including Chemistry, plus one of Biology, Human Biology, Mathematics or Physics, plus one other subject. Hertfordshire requires AAA including Chemistry AND Biology (or Human Biology), plus a third subject, completed in one sitting across a maximum of two years. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school. Resit policies differ: Aberdeen — Resits considered with strong justification.. Hertfordshire — Resits accepted..

Aberdeen — English Language and Mathematics at grade 6/B or above. A combination of grade 6–9 GCSEs expected, especially in sciences. National 5 (Scottish): English and Maths at B/6 minimum. GCSEs are not used in scoring - minimum threshold only (2025 entry onwards) Hertfordshire — Minimum 5 GCSEs at grade 6/B or above, including English Language, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry and Physics (or Dual Award Science).

Aberdeen's selection methodology: Aberdeen scores academic attainment and predictions at 30%, UCAT at 20% and interview performance at 50%, then ranks applicants on the total; those above the required threshold are interviewed and may then be offered a place. There is no minimum UCAT cut-off - your score is converted to points relative to all other Aberdeen applicants that year. Scotland-domiciled applicants who meet the academic minimum and sit within the top 75% of Aberdeen's UCAT scores are guaranteed an interview. Hertfordshire's selection methodology: Newer programme. UCAT + academic + interview. Hertfordshire-based with strong widening-participation 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.

Aberdeen runs a Integrated curriculum. Hertfordshire runs a PBL curriculum. The teaching philosophies differ — pick the style that matches how you learn best. Aberdeen specifics: Five-year MBChB with early clinical exposure from Year 1. Distinctive remote/rural placement strand in Highlands and Western Isles. Hertfordshire specifics: Five-year MBChB. Hertfordshire-based with East-of-England NHS placements.

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

AberdeenEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

HertfordshireEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Other medical school comparisons

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