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Medical school comparison

Cardiff vs St Andrews

Cardiff and St Andrews are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Cardiff is based in Cardiff (Wales) while St Andrews sits in St Andrews (Scotland), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination. St Andrews is the older institution (founded 1413); the other (founded 1893) has shaped its medical school around modern integrated-curriculum thinking.

Side-by-side comparison

Cardiff

Cardiff

Quick comparison

Location
Cardiff, UK
A-Level offer
AAA at A-level including Biology and Chemistry
TrueScore
1700
UCAT home cut-off
~1700+ /2700 (Welsh-domiciled - UCAT bar much lower; low priority over GCSE)
Interview format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance
International (2024): 60/146 = 41%; Welsh: 232/349 = 66%; RUK: 347/664 = 52%; ~600 offers from 1000 interviews in 2025
Decision date
March onwards

St Andrews

St Andrews

Quick comparison

Location
St Andrews, UK
A-Level offer
AAA at A-level (offer and predicted) including Chemistry and one of Biology, Mathematics or Physics
TrueScore
1850
UCAT home cut-off
-
Interview format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance
RUK Student (2025): 123/162 = 74%; Scottish + RUK: 411/505 = 81%; International (2023): 56/82 = 68%
Decision date
March onwards
Compare different schools

Cardiff vs St Andrews - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Cardiff requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. St Andrews requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. 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 — Cardiff: Top 9 GCSEs scored out of 27 points (must include Maths, English Language, Biology, Chemistry). A*/8/9 = 3 pts, A/7 = 2, B/6 = 1. St Andrews: Strong National 5 / GCSE profile. Biology required if not studied at A-Level (per Glasgow partnership rules).

Interview formats

Both Cardiff and St Andrews 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: Cardiff interviews in December - February; St Andrews in December - March.

Curriculum and teaching style

Cardiff runs a Case-based curriculum; St Andrews runs a Traditional curriculum. The teaching philosophies are different — Cardiff leans on small-group case-based learning from year 1, while St Andrews uses a more traditional lecture-led structure. Specifics: Five-year MBBCh with case-based learning. Cardiff splits clinical placements across South Wales (Cardiff & Vale, Aneurin Bevan, Cwm Taf Morgannwg). First 3 years at St Andrews leading to BSc (Hons) Medicine. Most students then transfer to a partner clinical school for years 4-6 of MBChB. Intake size: Cardiff — ~270 home + ~30 international places per year (A100).; St Andrews — RUK ~24 places, Scottish ~150, International ~30 (3-year pre-clinical only - clinical years at partner schools).. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

Post-interview offer rate

Cardiff: International (2024): 60/146 = 41%; Welsh: 232/349 = 66%; RUK: 347/664 = 52%; ~600 offers from 1000 interviews in 2025. St Andrews: RUK Student (2025): 123/162 = 74%; Scottish + RUK: 411/505 = 81%; International (2023): 56/82 = 68%. 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

Cardiff: Leading Welsh medical school with strong community-medicine and research focus. GCSE-heavy scoring (/27) - full points typically requires 9 grade 8/9s. UCAT is used to rank candidates only when there are too many at the maximum GCSE score. St Andrews: Three-year pre-clinical course at St Andrews followed by transfer to a partner medical school for clinical years. SJT not used (was used many years ago, not now or in future). Scottish students face much lower cut-offs than RUK applicants.

Which is right for you?

Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Cardiff feeds into the Wales foundation programme network; St Andrews into the Scotland network. If you learn best in small-group case discussion, prefer Cardiff; 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. Cardiff guidance: ~1700+ /2700 (Welsh-domiciled - UCAT bar much lower; low priority over GCSE). St Andrews guidance: Top ~500 ranked applicants invited to interview. WP applicants get 10% UCAT uplift. SJT not used. A990 Canadian Programme ~1950+..

Cardiff uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). St Andrews 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 - February (Cardiff); December - March (St Andrews).

Cardiff requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. St Andrews requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school. Resit policies differ: Cardiff — Cardiff considers resit applicants on a case-by-case basis.. St Andrews — Resits considered with extenuating circumstances..

Cardiff — Top 9 GCSEs scored out of 27 points (must include Maths, English Language, Biology, Chemistry). A*/8/9 = 3 pts, A/7 = 2, B/6 = 1. St Andrews — Strong National 5 / GCSE profile. Biology required if not studied at A-Level (per Glasgow partnership rules).

Cardiff's selection methodology: GCSE points + A-Level achievement points + UCAT combined. Lowest UCAT invited to interview varies year-to-year (1980-2690/3600 in recent cycles). St Andrews's selection methodology: RUK 2024 entry: lowest UCAT for interview was 2500/3600, average 2892. Lowest UCAT given offer 2500, average ~2892. St Andrews delivers the first 3 years (BSc Medicine), then transfers most students to a clinical school (Glasgow, Manchester, Dundee, etc.). 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.

Cardiff: International (2024): 60/146 = 41%; Welsh: 232/349 = 66%; RUK: 347/664 = 52%; ~600 offers from 1000 interviews in 2025. St Andrews: RUK Student (2025): 123/162 = 74%; Scottish + RUK: 411/505 = 81%; International (2023): 56/82 = 68%. 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%.

Cardiff is in Cardiff, UK. St Andrews is in St Andrews, 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.

Cardiff typically releases medicine decisions March onwards. St Andrews 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.

Cardiff runs a Case-based curriculum. St Andrews runs a Traditional curriculum. The teaching philosophies differ — pick the style that matches how you learn best. Cardiff specifics: Five-year MBBCh with case-based learning. Cardiff splits clinical placements across South Wales (Cardiff & Vale, Aneurin Bevan, Cwm Taf Morgannwg). St Andrews specifics: First 3 years at St Andrews leading to BSc (Hons) Medicine. Most students then transfer to a partner clinical school for years 4-6 of MBChB.

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.