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

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) is in London, UK. Edinburgh is in Edinburgh, 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?

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

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) vs Edinburgh

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

Their A-Level requirements (A*AA vs AAA) place them in slightly different academic-strictness tiers. The interview formats diverge — Panel vs Assessment day — and the prep approaches for the two are fundamentally different. Edinburgh is the older institution (founded 1583); the other (founded 1785) has shaped its medical school around modern integrated-curriculum thinking.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: Barts and The London (Queen Mary) and Edinburgh.
Comparison field	Barts and The London (Queen Mary)London	EdinburghEdinburgh
Quick comparison
Location	London, UK	Edinburgh, UK
A-Level offer	A*AA at A-level achieved in one sitting over a study period of no longer than two years	AAA at A-level (theoretically minimum, but AAA* predictions ideal for RUK/English applicants to maximise post-interview chances) including Chemistry plus one of Biology, Mathematics or Physics
TrueScore	Barts and The London (Queen Mary) TrueScore 2010	Edinburgh TrueScore 1850
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.	1850+ /2700 - a hard floor for 2027 entry. Edinburgh states that an applicant scoring below the cut-off will not be considered at all.
Interview format	Panel interview with two senior academic or clinical staff, sometimes a lay selector (online)	Half-day assessment day, held at Edinburgh Medical School or online (Edinburgh describes it as 'not a typical MMI format')
Post-interview chance	UK Undergrad: 948/1294 = 73% (2025); International: 61/159 = 38%; A101 Graduate Medicine: 55/127 = 43%	Around 800 applicants reach the assessment day each cycle, competing for an intake in the low hundreds across the Scottish, RUK and international pools, so a substantial share of interviewees are unsuccessful. Edinburgh publishes per-cycle admissions statistics with the current breakdown.
Decision date	March onwards	March onwards

A-Level offer	A*AA at A-level achieved in one sitting over a study period of no longer than two years	AAA at A-level (theoretically minimum, but AAA* predictions ideal for RUK/English applicants to maximise post-interview chances) including Chemistry plus one of Biology, Mathematics or Physics
Contextual A-Level offer	AAA at A-level for standard or enhanced contextual applicants. AAB for care-leavers.	-
Required A-Level subjects	First A-level: Chemistry or Biology. Second A-level: a further science from Chemistry, Biology, Physics or Mathematics. Third A-level: any subject.	Chemistry plus one of Biology / Mathematics / Physics
A-Level resit policy	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).	Resits considered with strong justification.
GCSE requirements	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.	Minimum grade 7/A in Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics and English. Edinburgh then scores your best 8 GCSEs as part of the academic component, applying proportional scoring where school policy meant fewer than 8 were sat. It does not publish a target grade profile beyond the minimum.
GCSE scoring methodology	Used only as minimum threshold once met - UCAT-led ranking takes over	Best 8 GCSEs are scored as part of the academic component, which carries the large majority of the pre-assessment-day ranking (UCAT 17.5% and SJT 7.5% make up the rest). Proportional scoring applies w…
Scottish Highers	-	National 5s, Highers and Advanced Highers are all considered, and the standard offer requires strong Higher and Advanced Higher performance. Edinburgh does not publish a separate Scottish UCAT minimum - the published cut-off of 1,850 for 2027 entry applies to all applicants except those carrying a Plus Flag.
Scottish Advanced Highers	-	Strong Advanced Higher performance expected for full academic points
International Baccalaureate	38 points overall, 7,6,6 at Higher Level - including HL Chemistry or Biology and a second science / Maths	38 points overall, 6,6,6 at Higher Level including HL Chemistry plus one of Biology / Mathematics / Physics
Graduate-entry degree requirement	2:1 (Upper-second-class Honours) or above. A101 4-year accelerated Graduate Entry programme available.	2:1 (Upper-second-class Honours) or above. UCAT still required - graduate applicants ranked alongside undergraduate by total academic + UCAT score.
Alternative qualifications	-	-

Contextual cut-off	-	Plus Flag applicants are exempt from the cut-off entirely and are considered with any UCAT total, and they receive a 10% uplift on their UCAT score.
Scottish (where applicable)	-	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	-	-
International cut-off	-	-
Graduate cut-off	-	-
SJT band	Band 4 auto-rejected. SJT used minimally post-interview (B1=2pts, B2=1pt, B3=0).	The SJT band is worth 7.5% of the application score. Band 4 means you will not be considered for entry - Edinburgh applies this to everyone, including applicants eligible for widening-access concessions.
UCAT notes	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…	The 1,850 cut-off is necessary but nowhere near sufficient - clearing it only keeps you in the ranking. The UCAT total is worth 17.5% of the application score and the SJT band a further 7.5%; the acad…

Degree awarded	MBBS	MBChB with BMedSci (Hons)
Course length	5 years	6 years
Teaching style	Problem-based learning + Team-based learning	Integrated
Anatomy teaching	Full-body dissection	-
First patient contact	Year 1	Year 2
Placement geography	East London and north east London	Lothian and the south of Scotland
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.	Built in — year 3 is the honours BMedSci research year.
Course highlight	-	The only Scottish institution offering a six-year MBChB.

Interview window	December - February	December - February
Interview details	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…	Edinburgh invites roughly the top 800 ranked applicants to a half-day assessment day, which it runs as a series of short interviews rather than a standard MMI circuit, and which includes a collaborati…

Specialities	Medicine, Dentistry, Biomedical Sciences	Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Biomedical Sciences
Established	1785	1583
Course type	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
What makes it different	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…	Shortlisting is dominated by the academic score: the UCAT total contributes 17.5% and the SJT band 7.5%, with the academic assessment carrying the rest. Every application is read independently by two…
Official course page	https://www.qmul.ac.uk/fmd/study/undergraduate/courses/a100/	https://study.ed.ac.uk/programmes/undergraduate/354-mbchb-medicine-6-year-programme

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

Edinburgh

Quick comparison

Location: Edinburgh, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level (theoretically minimum, but A*A*A* predictions ideal for RUK/English applicants to maximise post-interview chances) including Chemistry plus one of Biology, Mathematics or Physics
TrueScore: Edinburgh TrueScore 1850
UCAT home cut-off: 1850+ /2700 - a hard floor for 2027 entry. Edinburgh states that an applicant scoring below the cut-off will not be considered at all.
Interview format: Half-day assessment day, held at Edinburgh Medical School or online (Edinburgh describes it as 'not a typical MMI format')
Post-interview chance: Around 800 applicants reach the assessment day each cycle, competing for an intake in the low hundreds across the Scottish, RUK and international pools, so a substantial share of interviewees are unsuccessful. Edinburgh publishes per-cycle admissions statistics with the current breakdown.
Decision date: March onwards

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

A-Level and academic profile

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.

Edinburgh requires AAA at A-level (theoretically minimum, but A*A*A* predictions ideal for RUK/English applicants to maximise post-interview chances) including Chemistry plus one of Biology, Mathematics or Physics.

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) is the stricter A-Level offer; Edinburgh is slightly more forgiving. If your predicted grades are borderline, Edinburgh carries the lower academic-rejection risk pre-interview.

GCSE profile matters at both schools — 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… Edinburgh: Minimum grade 7/A in Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics and English.

Edinburgh then scores your best 8 GCSEs as part of the academic component, applying proportional scoring where school policy meant…

Interview formats

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) uses Panel (Panel interview with two senior academic or clinical staff, sometimes a lay selector (online)); Edinburgh uses Assessment day (Half-day assessment day, held at Edinburgh Medical School or online (Edinburgh describes it as 'not a typical MMI format')).

These two formats reward different skills — Panel emphasises narrative coherence and the ability to develop a thread under follow-up questioning, while Assessment day rewards malleability and intellectual honesty.

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, either is the better fit.

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

Curriculum and teaching style

Both schools deliver a Integrated-style curriculum, so day-to-day study habits will feel similar across years 1-3.

Specifics: Five-year MBBS with integrated theory and clinical practice. Strong East London NHS placement network (Royal London, Whipps Cross, Newham, Mile End). Six-year MBChB — the only six-year MBChB in Scotland — with a compulsory intercalated honours year in Year 3 (one of the largest intercalated cohorts

Intake size: 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.; Edinburgh — ~210 Scottish + RUK + ~22 international places per year.. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

Post-interview offer rate

Edinburgh publishes per-cycle admissions statistics with the current breakdown.

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

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).

Edinburgh: Shortlisting is dominated by the academic score: the UCAT total contributes 17.5% and the SJT band 7.5%, with the academic assessment carrying the rest. Every application is read independently by two admissions staff, and only your FIRST attempt at a required subject counts - retaking it in a different qualification does not help.

An SJT of Band 4 ends the application outright, with no widening-access exemption. Strong research focus and international reputation.

Which is right for you?

For applicants with predicted A-Level grades at the lower end of the AAA-A*AA range, Edinburgh is the lower-risk academic option. Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Barts and The London (Queen Mary) feeds into the London foundation programme network; Edinburgh into the Scotland 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. 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.. Edinburgh guidance: 1850+ /2700 - a hard floor for 2027 entry. Edinburgh states that an applicant scoring below the cut-off will not be considered at all..

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) uses Panel interview: Panel interview with two senior academic or clinical staff, sometimes a lay selector (online). Edinburgh uses Assessment day: Half-day assessment day, held at Edinburgh Medical School or online (Edinburgh describes it as 'not a typical MMI format'). 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 - February (Barts and The London (Queen Mary)); December - February (Edinburgh).

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) requires A*AA including Chemistry and Biology/Physics/Mathematics. Edinburgh requires AAA including Chemistry plus one of Biology, Mathematics or Physics. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school. Resit policies differ: Barts and The London (Queen Mary) — Resits considered with explanation.. Edinburgh — Resits considered with strong justification..

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 Edinburgh — Minimum grade 7/A in Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics and English. Edinburgh then scores your best 8 GCSEs as part of the academic component, applying proportional scoring where school policy meant fewer than 8 were sat. It does not publish a target grade profile beyond the minimum. Best 8 GCSEs are scored as part of the academic component, which carries the large majority of the pre-assessment-day ranking (UCAT 17.5% and SJT 7.5% make up the rest). Proportional scoring applies where school policy meant fewer than 8 GCSEs were sat.

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. Edinburgh's selection methodology: Each application is assessed independently by two members of admissions staff against the academic criteria, scoring the best 8 GCSEs plus A-level/Higher performance. Weighted UCAT (17.5%) and SJT (7.5%) points are added, applications are ranked, and roughly the top 800 are invited to a half-day assessment day - which Edinburgh itself calls an interview. Offers follow soon after the final assessment day. 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.

Barts and The London (Queen Mary): UK Undergrad: 948/1294 = 73% (2025); International: 61/159 = 38%; A101 Graduate Medicine: 55/127 = 43%. Edinburgh: Around 800 applicants reach the assessment day each cycle, competing for an intake in the low hundreds across the Scottish, RUK and international pools, so a substantial share of interviewees are unsuccessful. Edinburgh publishes per-cycle admissions statistics with the current breakdown.. 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%.

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) runs a Integrated curriculum. Edinburgh runs a Integrated curriculum. Both schools deliver teaching in the same broad style, so day-to-day study habits will feel similar. 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). Edinburgh specifics: Six-year MBChB — the only six-year MBChB in Scotland — with a compulsory intercalated honours year in Year 3 (one of the largest intercalated cohorts in the UK). Graduates leave with TWO qualification

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

Barts and The London (Queen Mary)Entry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

EdinburghEntry 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.

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) vs Edinburgh

Side-by-side comparison

Barts and The London (Queen Mary) vs Edinburgh - 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 Barts and The London (Queen Mary) vs Edinburgh?

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

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

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

How does each school actually shortlist applicants?

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

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

When does each school release decisions?

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

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

Where to go next

Other medical school comparisons