Liverpool vs North Wales (Bangor)

Liverpool's published UCAT threshold for home applicants is around 1910, while North Wales (Bangor) sits at approximately 1700.

The 210-point spread matters: North Wales (Bangor) offers slightly more headroom for an average-strong UCAT, while Liverpool expects performance closer to the national 75th-90th percentile.

Contextual / widening-participation cut-offs differ — Liverpool: ~1730+ /2700 (2024 entry contextual lowest invited ≈ 1733); North Wales (Bangor): not separately disclosed. Eligible applicants should weight this heavily when choosing.

Liverpool requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology.

North Wales (Bangor) 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 — Liverpool: Top 9 GCSE subjects scored. Must include English Language, Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics (or dual science). 2 points per 7+, 1 point per 6. Min total 15 points (≈ 6×7s + 3×6s). North Wales (Bangor): Min 5 GCSEs at grade 6 including Maths, English Language, dual-award Science.

Welsh-language ability welcomed but not required.

Both Liverpool and North Wales (Bangor) 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: Liverpool interviews in December - February; North Wales (Bangor) in December - March.

Liverpool runs a Integrated curriculum; North Wales (Bangor) runs a PBL curriculum. The teaching philosophies are different — Liverpool delivers more didactic lectures with structured systems-based progression, while North Wales (Bangor) centres learning around clinical cases.

Specifics: Five-year MBChB with integrated theory and clinical practice. Strong NHS placement breadth across Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Four-year accelerated MBBCh (Cardiff) for graduates, or 5-year route. Strong rural/community placement strand across North Wales (Betsi Cadwaladr UHB)

Intake size: Liverpool — ~280 home + ~30 international places per year (A100 Standard Entry Medicine).; North Wales (Bangor) — ~30 places per year (small cohort, designed for local retention).. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

Liverpool: Home applicants (2024): 612/1870 = 33%; International: 22/138 = 16%. Low post-interview chances for both. North Wales (Bangor): Refused to disclose. New medical school, has been in clearing in past years.

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.

Liverpool: Historic medical school known for tropical medicine and global health. GCSE-heavy scoring (top 9 GCSEs counted). Personal statement not normally used in shortlisting but reserved for borderline cases. Low post-interview success rate compared with peers.

North Wales (Bangor): Refused to disclose UCAT cut-offs or shortlisting weighting. Anecdotally lower thresholds, particularly for Welsh applicants. Has entered clearing in past years.