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Medical school comparison

Aston University vs St George's

Aston University and St George's are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Aston University is based in Birmingham (England) while St George's sits in London (London), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination. Their UCAT thresholds are remarkably close (within ~0 points), so the deciding factors are GCSE weighting, interview format and personal-statement use. Their A-Level requirements (A*AA vs AAA) place them in slightly different academic-strictness tiers. St George's is the older institution (founded 1733); the other (founded 2021) has shaped its medical school around modern integrated-curriculum thinking.

Side-by-side comparison

Aston University

Birmingham

Quick comparison

Location
Birmingham, UK
A-Level offer
A*AA at A-level (A* must be in Chemistry or Biology)
TrueScore
1950
UCAT home cut-off
~1950+ /2700 (non-WP - 2024 lowest invited 2600/3600 ≈ 1950)
Interview format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance
All Applicants: 306/363 = 84% (2025); Non-Contextual: 182/214 = 85%
Decision date
March onwards

St George's

London

Quick comparison

Location
London, UK
A-Level offer
A*AA or AAA at A-level (offer depends on cohort strength). Predicted AAA required including Chemistry and Biology / Human Biology.
TrueScore
1950
UCAT home cut-off
~1950+ /2700 (2025 entry cut-off ≈ 1950; 2024 entry was 2018)
Interview format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance
Home Undergrad (2024): 247/677 = 36% (or 423/686 = 62% inc. deferred); Overseas Undergrad: 25/146 = 17% (or 58/152 = 38% inc. deferred)
Decision date
Rolling-basis after Interviews have finished
Compare different schools

Aston University vs St George's - in detail

UCAT thresholds compared

Aston University's published UCAT threshold for home applicants is around 1950, while St George's sits at approximately 1950. Their UCAT bars are statistically indistinguishable (within 0 points), so the UCAT is unlikely to be your differentiator between them. Contextual / widening-participation cut-offs differ — Aston University: ~1800+ /2700 (UK WP - AAB contextual offer via Aston Ready); St George's: not separately disclosed. Eligible applicants should weight this heavily when choosing.

A-Level and academic profile

Aston University requires A*AA including Chemistry and Biology (A* in Chemistry or Biology). St George's requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. Aston University is the stricter A-Level offer; St George's is slightly more forgiving. If your predicted grades are borderline, St George's carries the lower academic-rejection risk pre-interview.

Interview formats

Both Aston University and St George's 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: Aston University interviews in December - March; St George's in November - February.

Post-interview offer rate

Aston University: All Applicants: 306/363 = 84% (2025); Non-Contextual: 182/214 = 85%. St George's: Home Undergrad (2024): 247/677 = 36% (or 423/686 = 62% inc. deferred); Overseas Undergrad: 25/146 = 17% (or 58/152 = 38% inc. deferred). 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. St George's: Strong holistic-care and soft-skills emphasis. SJT used post-interview in offer making (B1 = 15 pts, B2 = 10, B3 = 5, B4 = nothing). St George's is also generous with deferred-entry offers, often made to borderline applicants in lieu of rejection.

Which is right for you?

For applicants with predicted A-Level grades at the lower end of the AAA-A*AA range, St George's is the lower-risk academic option. Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Aston University feeds into the England foundation programme network; St George's 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 or six years.

Common questions

Aston University's typical home cut-off is around 1950, while St George's sits at approximately 1950 — a 0-point spread. The spread is small enough that other factors (GCSE weighting, interview score, contextual flags) usually dominate the firm/insurance decision. Cut-offs change year on year and vary by tier — check each school's latest published threshold before submitting your UCAS form.

Aston University uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). St George's 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 (Aston University); November - February (St George's).

Aston University requires A*AA including Chemistry and Biology (A* in Chemistry or Biology). St George's requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school.

Aston University — Min 5 GCSEs at grade 6 (B) including Maths, English Language, dual-award Science. St George's — GCSE performance considered as part of the broader academic profile; specific scoring not published.

Aston University's selection methodology: Newer programme (first cohort 2018). UCAT + academic + MMI. Birmingham-based with strong widening-participation focus. St George's'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.

Aston University: All Applicants: 306/363 = 84% (2025); Non-Contextual: 182/214 = 85%. St George's: Home Undergrad (2024): 247/677 = 36% (or 423/686 = 62% inc. deferred); Overseas Undergrad: 25/146 = 17% (or 58/152 = 38% inc. deferred). 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 is in Birmingham, UK. St George's 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).

Aston University typically releases medicine decisions March onwards. St George's releases medicine decisions Rolling-basis after Interviews have finished. 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.

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.

School data reviewed by the NextGen MedPrep editorial team — last reviewed 20 June 2026.