Where are Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary) located, and how does that affect cost?

Aston University is in Birmingham, UK. Barts and The London (Queen Mary) 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?

Aston University typically releases medicine decisions March onwards. Barts and The London (Queen Mary) 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

Aston University vs Barts and The London (Queen Mary)

Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary) are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Aston University is based in Birmingham (England) while Barts and The London (Queen Mary) sits in London (London), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination.

The interview formats diverge — MMI vs Panel — and the prep approaches for the two are fundamentally different. Barts and The London (Queen Mary) is the older institution (founded 1785); the other (founded 2018) has shaped its medical school around modern integrated-curriculum thinking.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary).
Comparison field	Aston UniversityBirmingham	Barts and The London (Queen Mary)London
Quick comparison
Location	Birmingham, UK	London, UK
A-Level offer	AAA at A-level (A must be in Chemistry or Biology)	A*AA at A-level achieved in one sitting over a study period of no longer than two years
TrueScore	Aston University TrueScore 1950	Barts and The London (Queen Mary) TrueScore 2010
UCAT home cut-off	No cut-off at all. Aston states it does not set score requirements for the UCAT and has no lower cut-off for either the UCAT or the SJT.	A hard floor at the fourth decile: Queen Mary states your application will not be considered beyond first shortlisting if your total UCAT falls below it. Clearing the fourth decile is no guarantee of an interview.
Interview format	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)	Panel interview with two senior academic or clinical staff, sometimes a lay selector (online)
Post-interview chance	All Applicants: 306/363 = 84% (2025); Non-Contextual: 182/214 = 85%	UK Undergrad: 948/1294 = 73% (2025); International: 61/159 = 38%; A101 Graduate Medicine: 55/127 = 43%
Decision date	March onwards	March onwards

A-Level offer	AAA at A-level (A must be in Chemistry or Biology)	A*AA at A-level achieved in one sitting over a study period of no longer than two years
Contextual A-Level offer	AAB at A-level for Aston Ready (WP) applicants, with AA in Chemistry + Biology	AAA at A-level for standard or enhanced contextual applicants. AAB for care-leavers.
Required A-Level subjects	Chemistry + Biology compulsory, plus one other subject. If 4 A-levels taken, Chemistry, Biology and the next-best grade are considered.	First A-level: Chemistry or Biology. Second A-level: a further science from Chemistry, Biology, Physics or Mathematics. Third A-level: any subject.
A-Level resit policy	Final qualification profile must normally be achieved in no more than three academic years - one resit attempt only	Resits only with extenuating circumstances. UCAS tariff scoring applies only to the 3 A-levels meeting the A*AA requirement (not EPQ or music qualifications).
GCSE requirements	Minimum 6 GCSEs/IGCSEs at grade 6/B or above including English Language, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology (or Double Science)	At least 6 GCSEs at grades 777666 (AAABBB pre-2017) including Biology, Chemistry, English Language or English Literature, and Mathematics. Science Double Award may substitute all sciences. GCSEs not required for graduates.
GCSE scoring methodology	GCSEs scored /24 (or /12 if A-levels completed) as part of the academic score: 9/8/A* = 4 (or 2) pts, 7/A = 3 (or 2) pts, 6/B = 2 (or 1) pts, 5/4/C = 1 (or 0) pt	Used only as minimum threshold once met - UCAT-led ranking takes over
Scottish Highers	-	-
Scottish Advanced Highers	AAA at Advanced Higher including Chemistry and Biology	-
International Baccalaureate	37 points overall, 7,6,6 at Higher Level including Chemistry and Biology - one of Chem/Bio must be grade 7 HL	38 points overall, 7,6,6 at Higher Level - including HL Chemistry or Biology and a second science / Maths
Graduate-entry degree requirement	Upper-second-class (2:1) Honours degree in any discipline + ABB A-levels including Chemistry and Biology (one of which at grade A). Five-year programme - no accelerated graduate route.	2:1 (Upper-second-class Honours) or above. A101 4-year accelerated Graduate Entry programme available.
Alternative qualifications	-	-

Contextual cut-off	Aston Ready contextual applicants are ranked in their own Home Widening Participation group rather than against other home applicants.	-
Scottish (where applicable)	-	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	-	-
International cut-off	-	-
Graduate cut-off	-	-
SJT band	Not scored - good for band 4	Band 4 auto-rejected. SJT used minimally post-interview (B1=2pts, B2=1pt, B3=0).
UCAT notes	Aston ranks applicants on their ACHIEVED qualifications - normally GCSEs - together with the total UCAT score. A-level predicted grades are not used in scoring and are not considered at any stage. Hom…	Queen Mary says plainly that it is not possible to predict what the thresholds will be in any given year, nor to use previous years' data to predict them - so treat any specific figure quoted elsewher…

Degree awarded	MBChB	MBBS
Course length	5 years	5 years
Teaching style	Problem-based learning	Problem-based learning + Team-based learning
Anatomy teaching	-	Full-body dissection
First patient contact	Year 1	Year 1
Placement geography	The West Midlands	East London and north east London
Named placement sites	-	The Royal London Hospital, Homerton Hospital, Newham Hospital, Whipps Cross Hospital, King George Hospital, Queen's Hospital
Intercalation	-	Intercalated degree options include Experimental Pathology, Global Medical Humanities, Neuroscience, Pharmacology and Innovative Therapeutics, Prehospital Medicine, and Sports and Exercise Medicine.
Course highlight	-	-

Interview window	December - March	December - February
Interview details	MMI format with 7-10 stations of around 7 minutes each, plus 2 minutes' reading time. There are typically 2 acting/role-play stations testing how you handle difficult situations.	Online panel-style MMI of about 20 minutes. You speak with a current medical student before it begins, which can help settle nerves. Stations cover motivation for medicine, teamwork, communication and…

Specialities	Medicine, Community Medicine	Medicine, Dentistry, Biomedical Sciences
Established	2018	1785
Course type	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
What makes it different	UCAT and GCSE used heavily post-interview (academic:UCAT:interview ratio = 2:1:1). Interview is just 25% of final scoring, so post-interview chances are excellent for high-stat applicants. SJT not use…	No longer 50:50 weighted on A-level predictions and UCAT - anyone who exceeds the UCAT cut-off generally gets an interview regardless of predictions. SJT band adds bonus points to interview score post…
Official course page	https://www.aston.ac.uk/study/courses/medicine-mbchb	https://www.qmul.ac.uk/fmd/study/undergraduate/courses/a100/

Aston University

Birmingham

Quick comparison

Location: Birmingham, UK
A-Level offer: A*AA at A-level (A* must be in Chemistry or Biology)
TrueScore: Aston University TrueScore 1950
UCAT home cut-off: No cut-off at all. Aston states it does not set score requirements for the UCAT and has no lower cut-off for either the UCAT or the SJT.
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: All Applicants: 306/363 = 84% (2025); Non-Contextual: 182/214 = 85%
Decision date: March onwards

Barts and The London (Queen Mary)

London

Quick comparison

Location: London, UK
A-Level offer: A*AA at A-level achieved in one sitting over a study period of no longer than two years
TrueScore: Barts and The London (Queen Mary) TrueScore 2010
UCAT home cut-off: A hard floor at the fourth decile: Queen Mary states your application will not be considered beyond first shortlisting if your total UCAT falls below it. Clearing the fourth decile is no guarantee of an interview.
Interview format: Panel interview with two senior academic or clinical staff, sometimes a lay selector (online)
Post-interview chance: UK Undergrad: 948/1294 = 73% (2025); International: 61/159 = 38%; A101 Graduate Medicine: 55/127 = 43%
Decision date: March onwards

Aston University vs Barts and The London (Queen Mary) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Aston University requires A*AA at A-level (A* must be in Chemistry or Biology).

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) requires A*AA at A-level achieved in one sitting over a study period of no longer than two years.

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 — Aston University: Minimum 6 GCSEs/IGCSEs at grade 6/B or above including English Language, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology (or Double Science).

GCSEs scored /24 (or /12 if A-levels completed) as part of the academic… Barts and The London (Queen Mary): At least 6 GCSEs at grades 777666 (AAABBB pre-2017) including Biology, Chemistry, English Language or English Literature, and Mathematics. Science Double Award may substitute all sciences. GCSEs not…

Interview formats

Aston University uses MMI (Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)); Barts and The London (Queen Mary) uses Panel (Panel interview with two senior academic or clinical staff, sometimes a lay selector (online)). 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, Barts and The London (Queen Mary) may suit you more. If you prefer discrete capsule answers under time pressure, Aston University is the better fit.

Interview windows: Aston University interviews in December - March; Barts and The London (Queen Mary) in December - February.

Curriculum and teaching style

Aston University runs a PBL curriculum; Barts and The London (Queen Mary) runs a Integrated curriculum. The teaching philosophies are different — Aston University leans on small-group case-based learning from year 1, while Barts and The London (Queen Mary) uses a more traditional lecture-led structure.

Specifics: Five-year MBChB with PBL. Clinical placements across Birmingham NHS sites (UHB, Sandwell, Walsall, Heart of England). Five-year MBBS with integrated theory and clinical practice. Strong East London NHS placement network (Royal London, Whipps Cross, Newham, Mile End).

Intake size: Aston University — ~110 places per year.; Barts and The London (Queen Mary) — 311 Home places and up to 24 Overseas expected for September 2026 entry on the five-year A100 - one of the larger UK medical schools.. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

Post-interview offer rate

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

Aston University: UCAT and GCSE used heavily post-interview (academic:UCAT:interview ratio = 2:1:1). Interview is just 25% of final scoring, so post-interview chances are excellent for high-stat applicants. SJT not used - band 4 is fine.

Barts and The London (Queen Mary): No longer 50:50 weighted on A-level predictions and UCAT - anyone who exceeds the UCAT cut-off generally gets an interview regardless of predictions. SJT band adds bonus points to interview score post-interview (Band 1 = +2, Band 2 = +1, Band 3 = 0).

Which is right for you?

Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Aston University feeds into the England foundation programme network; Barts and The London (Queen Mary) into the London network. If you learn best in small-group case discussion, prefer Aston University; 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. Aston University guidance: No cut-off at all. Aston states it does not set score requirements for the UCAT and has no lower cut-off for either the UCAT or the SJT.. Barts and The London (Queen Mary) guidance: A hard floor at the fourth decile: Queen Mary states your application will not be considered beyond first shortlisting if your total UCAT falls below it. Clearing the fourth decile is no guarantee of an interview..

Aston University uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). Barts and The London (Queen Mary) uses Panel interview: Panel interview with two senior academic or clinical staff, sometimes a lay selector (online). 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: December - March (Aston University); December - February (Barts and The London (Queen Mary)).

Aston University requires A*AA including Chemistry and Biology (A* in Chemistry or Biology). Barts and The London (Queen Mary) requires A*AA including Chemistry and Biology/Physics/Mathematics. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school. Resit policies differ: Aston University — Resits accepted.. Barts and The London (Queen Mary) — Resits considered with explanation..

Aston University — Minimum 6 GCSEs/IGCSEs at grade 6/B or above including English Language, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology (or Double Science). GCSEs scored /24 (or /12 if A-levels completed) as part of the academic score: 9/8/A* = 4 (or 2) pts, 7/A = 3 (or 2) pts, 6/B = 2 (or 1) pts, 5/4/C = 1 (or 0) pt Barts and The London (Queen Mary) — At least 6 GCSEs at grades 777666 (AAABBB pre-2017) including Biology, Chemistry, English Language or English Literature, and Mathematics. Science Double Award may substitute all sciences. GCSEs not required for graduates. Used only as minimum threshold once met - UCAT-led ranking takes over

Aston University's selection methodology: Newer programme (first cohort 2018). UCAT + academic + MMI. Birmingham-based with strong widening-participation focus. Barts and The London (Queen Mary)'s selection methodology: You must be predicted a minimum UCAS tariff of 152 (A*AA) from the required subjects, and your total UCAT must reach at least the fourth decile to pass first shortlisting. Beyond that, candidates are shortlisted for the MMI, with the SJT used after interview. Queen Mary does not publish, and says it cannot predict, the year's threshold. 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.

Aston University: All Applicants: 306/363 = 84% (2025); Non-Contextual: 182/214 = 85%. Barts and The London (Queen Mary): UK Undergrad: 948/1294 = 73% (2025); International: 61/159 = 38%; A101 Graduate Medicine: 55/127 = 43%. 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%.

Aston University runs a PBL curriculum. Barts and The London (Queen Mary) runs a Integrated curriculum. The teaching philosophies differ — pick the style that matches how you learn best. Aston University specifics: Five-year MBChB with PBL. Clinical placements across Birmingham NHS sites (UHB, Sandwell, Walsall, Heart of England). Barts and The London (Queen Mary) specifics: Five-year MBBS with integrated theory and clinical practice. Strong East London NHS placement network (Royal London, Whipps Cross, Newham, Mile End).

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

Aston UniversityEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Barts and The London (Queen Mary)Entry 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.

Aston University vs Barts and The London (Queen Mary)

Side-by-side comparison

Aston University vs Barts and The London (Queen Mary) - 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 Aston University vs Barts and The London (Queen Mary)?

How do interviews differ between Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary)?

What A-Level grades do Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary) require?

How are GCSEs weighted at Aston University vs Barts and The London (Queen Mary)?

How does each school actually shortlist applicants?

Which has a higher post-interview offer rate, Aston University or Barts and The London (Queen Mary)?

Where are Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary) located, and how does that affect cost?

When does each school release decisions?

What curriculum style do Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary) use?

Should I apply to both Aston University and Barts and The London (Queen Mary)?

Where to go next

Other medical school comparisons