Where are Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) located, and how does that affect cost?

Aberdeen is in Aberdeen, UK. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is in Preston, 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. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) releases medicine decisions March - April. 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.

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Medical school comparison

Aberdeen vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)

Q: What A-Level grades do Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) require?

Aberdeen requires AAA including Chemistry, plus one of Biology, Human Biology, Mathematics or Physics, plus one other subject. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) requires AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants). Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school.

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

Their A-Level requirements (AAA vs AAB) place them in slightly different academic-strictness tiers. Aberdeen is the older institution (founded 1495); the other (founded 2014) has shaped its medical school around modern integrated-curriculum thinking.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan).
Comparison field	AberdeenAberdeen	University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)Preston
Quick comparison
Location	Aberdeen, UK	Preston, UK
A-Level offer	AAA at A-level	AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants)
TrueScore	1700	-
UCAT home cut-off	-	UCAT used for home applicant shortlisting; no published 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 - April

A-Level offer	AAA at A-level	AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants)
Contextual A-Level offer	-	-
Required A-Level subjects	Chemistry required, plus one of Biology / Human Biology / Mathematics / Physics, plus one other subject	-
A-Level resit policy	Resits only accepted with serious extenuating circumstances or personal difficulties	-
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.	-
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	-
Graduate-entry degree requirement	-	-
Alternative qualifications	-	-

Contextual cut-off	-	-
Scottish (where applicable)	~1700+ non-contextual; ~1650+ contextual	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	~2000+ non-contextual; ~1950+ contextual	-
International cut-off	~1950+	Cognitive subtests considered alongside academic and personal-statement assessment
Graduate cut-off	~1890+ (RUK Graduate)	-
SJT band	No use of SJT - band 4 accepted	-
UCAT notes	UCAT used post-interview - aim 2000–2100+ for good chances.	UCLan publishes limited shortlisting detail. Threshold varies year-on-year; check the official course page closer to your application year.

Interview window	December - March	December - February
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…	MMI of approximately 7-9 timed stations covering motivation, ethics, communication, role-play and data interpretation. Home and international applicants are interviewed on the same MMI structure.

Specialities	Medicine, Medical Sciences, Rural Health	Medicine, Community Medicine
Established	1495	2014
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…	One of the first UK universities to run a privately-funded medical school open to international students; substantial international cohort blended with a smaller home intake. Strong Lancashire regiona…
Official course page	https://www.abdn.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/degree-programmes/796/A100/medicine-5-years/	https://www.lancashire.ac.uk/

Aberdeen

Quick comparison

Location: Aberdeen, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level
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

University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)

Preston

Quick comparison

Location: Preston, UK
A-Level offer: AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants)
TrueScore: -
UCAT home cut-off: UCAT used for home applicant shortlisting; no published cut-off
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: -
Decision date: March - April

Compare different schools

Aberdeen vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Aberdeen requires AAA at A-level.

University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) requires AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants).

Aberdeen is the stricter A-Level offer; University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is slightly more forgiving. If your predicted grades are borderline, University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) carries the lower academic-rejection risk pre-interview.

Interview formats

Both Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) 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; University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) in December - February.

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%.

University of Central Lancashire (UCLan): One of the first UK universities to run a privately-funded medical school open to international students; substantial international cohort blended with a smaller home intake. Strong Lancashire regional placement network.

Which is right for you?

For applicants with predicted A-Level grades at the lower end of the AAA-A*AA range, University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is the lower-risk academic option. Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Aberdeen feeds into the Scotland foundation programme network; University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) into the England 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 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: UCAT used post-interview - aim 2000–2100+ for good chances.. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) guidance: UCAT used for home applicant shortlisting; no published cut-off.

Aberdeen uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) 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 - February (University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)).

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) University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) — GCSE performance considered as part of the broader academic profile; specific scoring not published.

Aberdeen's selection methodology: Contextual + academic + UCAT scoring. AR 2024 average UCAT for interviewees was 660-720/900 (RUK 720). Lowest contextual school-leaver UCAT was 2270 (Home), 2600 (RUK). University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)'s selection methodology: shortlisting weight not fully disclosed; check the official admissions page. 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.

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 University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)Entry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Other medical school comparisons

School data reviewed by the NextGen MedPrep editorial team — last reviewed 18 August 2026.

Aberdeen vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)

Side-by-side comparison

Aberdeen vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Interview formats

What makes each distinctive

Which is right for you?

Common questions

What UCAT score do I need for Aberdeen vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)?

How do interviews differ between Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)?

What A-Level grades do Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) require?

How are GCSEs weighted at Aberdeen vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)?

How does each school actually shortlist applicants?

Where are Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) located, and how does that affect cost?

When does each school release decisions?

Should I apply to both Aberdeen and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)?

Where to go next

Other medical school comparisons