Where are Leicester and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) located, and how does that affect cost?

Leicester is in Leicester, UK. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is in Preston, 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?

Leicester typically releases medicine decisions March onwards. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) releases medicine decisions March - April. 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

Leicester vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)

Leicester and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Both sit in England, so location and clinical-placement breadth are similar — the differentiation comes from selection methodology, interview style and curriculum philosophy. Their A-Level requirements (A*AA vs AAB) place them in slightly different academic-strictness tiers.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: Leicester and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan).
Comparison field	LeicesterLeicester	University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)Preston
Quick comparison
Location	Leicester, UK	Preston, UK
A-Level offer	AAA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics or Psychology - A must be in one of the sciences	AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants)
TrueScore	Leicester TrueScore 1750	-
UCAT home cut-off	Expressed in deciles, not raw scores. Applicants who meet the minimum GCSE requirement, achieved the A-level requirement within two years of their GCSEs, and sit in the TOP 5 DECILES with an SJT of Band 1-3 are automatically invited to interview.	UCAT used for home applicant shortlisting; no published cut-off
Interview format	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance	UK Undergraduate: 797/1351 = 59% (2025); UK Graduate: 19/32 = 59%; Overseas Undergraduate: 57/199 = 29%	-
Decision date	March onwards	March - April

A-Level offer	AAA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics or Psychology - A must be in one of the sciences	AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants)
Contextual A-Level offer	Predicted ABB acceptable for UKWPMed (widening-access) applicants	-
Required A-Level subjects	Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Physics / Mathematics / Psychology. A* must fall in one of the sciences.	-
A-Level resit policy	Resit applicants who did not attain required grades at first sitting only considered if they previously held a conditional firm offer from Leicester and have significant mitigating circumstances	-
GCSE requirements	Minimum grade 6/B in GCSE English Language, Mathematics, Biology and Chemistry (or Dual Science). Resits in English Language and Maths accepted to meet minimums; resits in other subjects only with very significant mitigating circumstances.	-
GCSE scoring methodology	Top 8 GCSEs scored /48 (new system 2026 entry): grade 9 = 6 pts, 8 = 5 pts, 7 = 4 pts, 6 = 3 pts. Combined with UCAT /48 = total /96.	-
Scottish Highers	-	-
Scottish Advanced Highers	-	-
International Baccalaureate	36 points overall, 6,6,6 at Higher Level including Chemistry or Biology plus a second science / Maths / Psychology	-
Graduate-entry degree requirement	2:1 (Upper-second-class Honours) or above in any honours degree. Achieved-grades graduate route assessed at 5th decile UCAT minimum.	-
Alternative qualifications	-	-

Contextual cut-off	-	-
Scottish (where applicable)	-	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	-	-
International cut-off	The equivalent automatic-interview route requires the top 3 deciles, again with an SJT of Band 1-3.	Cognitive subtests considered alongside academic and personal-statement assessment
Graduate cut-off	-	-
SJT band	Band 4 automatically rejected - no further use	-
UCAT notes	Everyone else is scored on academic ability and UCAT together, then ranked within one of five groups - predicted A-level, achieved A-level, resitting A-level, graduate and access - with the highest sc…	UCLan publishes limited shortlisting detail. Threshold varies year-on-year; check the official course page closer to your application year.

Degree awarded	MBChB	MBBS
Course length	5 years	5 years
Teaching style	Integrated	Spiral
Anatomy teaching	Full-body dissection	-
First patient contact	Year 1	Year 1
Placement geography	Leicester, the Midlands, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire	Lancashire and Cumbria
Named placement sites	Glenfield Hospital	East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust, Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust
Intercalation	Optional, and the school encourages it. An iBSc can be taken after year 2 or 3, or an iMSc after year 3, making the course six years. Leicester's own programmes are the iMSc in Clinical Education, iLL…	Optional and selective: after year 4, high-performing students may be offered an additional year to gain a master’s degree.
Course highlight	-	-

Interview window	December - March	December - February
Interview details	In-person MMI testing problem solving, analytical reasoning, communication, writing, listening and speaking abilities. Plenty of follow-up questioning, so staying focused on the actual question matter…	MMI of approximately 7-9 timed stations covering motivation, ethics, communication, role-play and data interpretation. Home and international applicants are interviewed on the same MMI structure.

Specialities	Medicine, Medical Sciences, Genetics	Medicine, Community Medicine
Established	1975	2014
Course type	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
What makes it different	Combined UCAT + GCSE scoring out of 96. Predicted A-level applicants only need AAB UKWPMed; achieved-grade applicants assessed in top 5 deciles UCAT instead. Personal statement is not routinely used.	One of the first UK universities to run a privately-funded medical school open to international students; substantial international cohort blended with a smaller home intake. Strong Lancashire regiona…
Official course page	https://le.ac.uk/courses/medicine-mbchb/2026	https://www.lancashire.ac.uk/

Leicester

Quick comparison

Location: Leicester, UK
A-Level offer: A*AA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics or Psychology - A* must be in one of the sciences
TrueScore: Leicester TrueScore 1750
UCAT home cut-off: Expressed in deciles, not raw scores. Applicants who meet the minimum GCSE requirement, achieved the A-level requirement within two years of their GCSEs, and sit in the TOP 5 DECILES with an SJT of Band 1-3 are automatically invited to interview.
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: UK Undergraduate: 797/1351 = 59% (2025); UK Graduate: 19/32 = 59%; Overseas Undergraduate: 57/199 = 29%
Decision date: March onwards

University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)

Preston

Quick comparison

Location: Preston, UK
A-Level offer: AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants)
TrueScore: -
UCAT home cut-off: UCAT used for home applicant shortlisting; no published cut-off
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: -
Decision date: March - April

Leicester vs University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Leicester requires A*AA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics or Psychology - A* must be in one of the sciences.

University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) requires AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants).

Leicester is the stricter A-Level offer; University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is slightly more forgiving. If your predicted grades are borderline, University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) carries the lower academic-rejection risk pre-interview.

Interview formats

Both Leicester and University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) 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: Leicester interviews in December - March; University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) in December - February.

What makes each distinctive

Leicester: Combined UCAT + GCSE scoring out of 96. Predicted A-level applicants only need AAB UKWPMed; achieved-grade applicants assessed in top 5 deciles UCAT instead. Personal statement is not routinely used.

University of Central Lancashire (UCLan): One of the first UK universities to run a privately-funded medical school open to international students; substantial international cohort blended with a smaller home intake. Strong Lancashire regional placement network.

Which is right for you?

For applicants with predicted A-Level grades at the lower end of the AAA-A*AA range, University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) is the lower-risk academic option. Both schools sit in the same England foundation-programme catchment, so post-graduation training paths overlap heavily.

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

Leicester: no published UCAT cut-off. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan): home applicants — no published cut-off. These are the figures on record for 2027-entry applicants. Schools without a fixed cut-off rank UCAT inside a composite shortlisting score, so thresholds move with each year's applicant pool — confirm the latest figure on each school's admissions page.

Leicester uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) 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 (Leicester); December - February (University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)).

Leicester requires A*AA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics or Psychology - A* must be in one of the sciences. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) requires AAB at A-level including Biology and Chemistry (home applicants). Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school.

Leicester — Minimum grade 6/B in GCSE English Language, Mathematics, Biology and Chemistry (or Dual Science). Resits in English Language and Maths accepted to meet minimums; resits in other subjects only with very significant mitigating circumstances. Top 8 GCSEs scored /48 (new system 2026 entry): grade 9 = 6 pts, 8 = 5 pts, 7 = 4 pts, 6 = 3 pts. Combined with UCAT /48 = total /96. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) — GCSE performance considered as part of the broader academic profile; specific scoring not published.

Leicester's selection methodology: UCAT-banded shortlisting after academic minimums met. SJT band 1-3 typically required. Multiple Mini Interview format. University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)'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.

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

LeicesterEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

University of Central Lancashire (UCLan)Entry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Other medical school comparisons

School data reviewed by the NextGen MedPrep editorial team — last reviewed 14 August 2026.