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Medical school comparison

Dundee vs Lincoln Medical School

Dundee and Lincoln Medical School are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Dundee is based in Dundee (Scotland) while Lincoln Medical School sits in Lincoln (England), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination.

On UCAT alone there is roughly a 325-point gap between them — a substantial difference that should shape which you list as firm choice vs. insurance. The interview formats diverge — Traditional vs MMI — and the prep approaches for the two are fundamentally different.

Side-by-side comparison

Dundee

Dundee

Quick comparison

Location
Dundee, UK
A-Level offer
AAA at A-level (minimum) - A*A*A or A*A*A* recommended for non-contextual RUK due to use in shortlisting algorithm
TrueScore
Dundee TrueScore 1700
UCAT home cut-off
No published threshold for the current scale. Dundee publishes admissions statistics by year of entry, but warns that because Abstract Reasoning was withdrawn in 2025 and the maximum moved from 3,600 to 2,700, the figures shown are not directly comparable with scores from 2025 onwards.
Interview format
Two-part selection (~1h40m): observed 30-minute group discussion, then a structured traditional one-to-one discussion with an assessor
Post-interview chance
RUK Non-Contextual (2025): 73/130 = 56%; Scottish: 647/825 = 78%; International: 86/156 = 55%
Decision date
March onwards

Lincoln Medical School

Lincoln

Quick comparison

Location
Lincoln, UK
A-Level offer
AAA at A-level which must include Biology (or Human Biology) at grade A. Chemistry is NOT required at A-level.
TrueScore
Lincoln Medical School TrueScore 1700
UCAT home cut-off
~1700+ /2700 with B1 SJT and 6× grade 9s at GCSE (combined ~51/60 target). Lower UCAT viable with stronger GCSE/SJT mix.
Interview format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance
All Students (2023): 159/229 = 69%
Decision date
March onwards

Dundee vs Lincoln Medical School - in detail

UCAT thresholds compared

Dundee's published UCAT threshold for home applicants is around 2025, while Lincoln Medical School sits at approximately 1700.

That's a 325-point gap — large enough to put the two schools in completely different competitiveness tiers. An applicant scoring in the 1800-1900 band would be competitive at Lincoln Medical School but borderline at Dundee.

Contextual / widening-participation cut-offs differ — Dundee: not separately disclosed; Lincoln Medical School: ~1500+ /2700 with WP uplifts (MEM2 Q1 = 8pts; care experienced = 15pts; UCAT bursary = 6pts). Eligible applicants should weight this heavily when choosing.

A-Level and academic profile

Dundee requires AAA at A-level (minimum) - A*A*A or A*A*A* recommended for non-contextual RUK due to use in shortlisting algorithm.

Lincoln Medical School requires AAA at A-level which must include Biology (or Human Biology) at grade A. Chemistry is NOT required at A-level.

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 — Dundee: Biology, English and Mathematics at minimum grade 6/B if not studied at A-level.

GCSEs feed the academic score (60% of pre-interview ranking for school leavers); higher grades are essential due to… Lincoln Medical School: At least six GCSEs at grade 7/A or above including Biology and Chemistry (or Double Science), plus a minimum of grade 6/B in English Language and Mathematics. GCSE resits accepted before the time of…

Interview formats

Dundee uses Traditional (Two-part selection (~1h40m): observed 30-minute group discussion, then a structured traditional one-to-one discussion with an assessor); Lincoln Medical School uses MMI (Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)). These two formats reward different skills — Traditional emphasises academic reasoning and thinking aloud through unfamiliar problems, while MMI rewards breadth and quick recovery.

If your strengths lie in conversational depth, either may suit you more. If you prefer discrete capsule answers under time pressure, Lincoln Medical School is the better fit.

Interview windows: Dundee interviews in December - February; Lincoln Medical School in December - March.

Curriculum and teaching style

Dundee runs a Spiral curriculum; Lincoln Medical School runs a Integrated curriculum. The teaching philosophies are different — Dundee delivers more didactic lectures with structured systems-based progression, while Lincoln Medical School uses a more traditional lecture-led structure.

Specifics: Five-year MBChB spiral curriculum - concepts revisited with increasing complexity. Clinical placements across NHS Tayside, NHS Fife, NHS Highland, and Five-year MBBChir partnered with Nottingham. Lincoln-based teaching with Lincolnshire NHS clinical placements (Lincoln County Hospital, Pilgrim Hospit

Intake size: Dundee — Home (Scottish + Contextual) ~825 places; RUK ~130; International ~156 (2025 entry).; Lincoln Medical School — ~80 places per year (small cohort, focused on Lincolnshire placements).. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

Post-interview offer rate

Dundee: RUK Non-Contextual (2025): 73/130 = 56%; Scottish: 647/825 = 78%; International: 86/156 = 55%. Lincoln Medical School: All Students (2023): 159/229 = 69%.

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

Dundee: Scottish medical school renowned for anatomy teaching and medical research. Shortlisting weights 60% academic / 40% UCAT for school leavers (40/60 for graduates). Both A-level predictions and GCSEs feed the academic score.

Lincoln Medical School: Strong choice for low-UCAT, high-SJT applicants. SJT scored heavily (B1 = 15, B2 = 10, B3 = 5, B4 = 0). A band 1 SJT can offset a relatively modest UCAT score in the overall ranking.

Which is right for you?

If your UCAT lands below the UK median (~1880/2700), Lincoln Medical School is the more realistic firm-choice option. Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Dundee feeds into the Scotland foundation programme network; Lincoln Medical School into the England network.

If you learn best in small-group case discussion, prefer Dundee; 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

Dundee's typical home cut-off is around 2025, while Lincoln Medical School sits at approximately 1700 — a 325-point spread. That's a meaningful gap; Lincoln Medical School is materially more accessible for an average-to-good UCAT, while Dundee expects performance closer to the top 25% of test-takers. Cut-offs change year on year and vary by tier — check each school's latest published threshold before submitting your UCAS form.

Where to go next

DundeeEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full
Lincoln Medical SchoolEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Other medical school comparisons

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