Where are Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham located, and how does that affect cost?

Manchester is in Manchester, UK. St Mary's Twickenham is in Twickenham, London, 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?

Manchester typically releases medicine decisions March onwards. St Mary's Twickenham 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

Manchester vs St Mary's Twickenham

Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. Manchester is based in Manchester (England) while St Mary's Twickenham sits in Twickenham, London (London), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination.

Manchester is the older institution (founded 1824); the other (founded 2025) has shaped its medical school around modern integrated-curriculum thinking.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham.
Comparison field	ManchesterManchester	St Mary's TwickenhamTwickenham, London
Quick comparison
Location	Manchester, UK	Twickenham, London, UK
A-Level offer	AAA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Maths / Further Maths / Physics / Psychology. No use of predicted grades.	AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Chemistry or Biology and one of Biology / Chemistry / Physics / Mathematics
TrueScore	Manchester TrueScore 2060	St Mary's Twickenham TrueScore 1700intl
UCAT home cut-off	2060+ /2700 with Band 1 or 2 SJT (2026 entry threshold, A106)	-
Interview format	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance	2026 entry: home 985 offers from 1,667 interviews (59%); overseas 40 from 191 (21%); A101 home 91 from 157 (58%) and A101 overseas 6 from 10. Overseas applicants face a far harder run at both stages than home applicants.	-
Decision date	March onwards	March onwards

A-Level offer	AAA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Maths / Further Maths / Physics / Psychology. No use of predicted grades.	AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Chemistry or Biology and one of Biology / Chemistry / Physics / Mathematics
Contextual A-Level offer	AAB at A-level for WP+ contextual applicants. ABB for refugee or care-experienced (WP++) applicants.	-
Required A-Level subjects	Chemistry or Biology required, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Mathematics / Further Mathematics / Physics / Psychology	Chemistry or Biology required, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Physics / Mathematics
A-Level resit policy	Resits accepted, but only one of Year 12 or Year 13 may be resat, a minimum of ABB at the first Year 13 sitting is required for resit grades to count, and the resit offer is AAA	Resits only considered in exceptional circumstances
GCSE requirements	At least 7 GCSEs at grade 7, 8 or 9. English Language or Literature, Mathematics, and 2 Science subjects must be at grade 6 or above. WP+/WP++: 6 GCSEs at grade 7+ accepted. GCSE resits permitted; up to one Level 2 BTEC may be counted.	Minimum grade 6/B in GCSE Mathematics, English Language, Biology and Chemistry (or Dual Award Science)
GCSE scoring methodology	Used only as minimum eligibility threshold - no further use of GCSEs in shortlisting beyond the floor	-
Scottish Highers	-	-
Scottish Advanced Highers	-	-
International Baccalaureate	36 points overall, 6,6,6 at Higher Level including HL Chemistry or Biology plus another science from Chemistry / Biology / Physics / Psychology / Mathematics	36 points overall, 6,6,6 at Higher Level including Chemistry or Biology and a second science / Maths
Graduate-entry degree requirement	A 2:1 honours degree or above, plus a minimum of BBB at A-level at the first sitting. Applicants with a relevant science degree are exempt from the A-level subject specification but must still meet BBB. The accelerated four-year A101 Graduate Entry programme runs a separate UCAT threshold (2,080 home, 2,310 overseas for 2026 entry).	-
Alternative qualifications	-	New international-only medicine course for 2026 entry - first cohort. Applied to directly outside standard UCAS medicine route. UCAT contributes to combined admissions test + academic ranking. No SJT use.

Contextual cut-off	1960+ /2700 (WP+, 2026 entry threshold)	-
Scottish (where applicable)	-	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	-	-
International cut-off	2250+ /2700 (2026 entry threshold) - 190 points ABOVE the home bar, not level with it	No cut-off exists yet. UCAT contributes to the shortlisting rank, but the first cohort is September 2026 so no historic threshold exists.
Graduate cut-off	2080+ /2700 for home A101, or 2310+ for overseas A101 (2026 entry)	-
SJT band	Band 1 or 2 - do not currently consider B3/4	No usage mentioned in any selection policy
UCAT notes	Met-or-not thresholds, set each November once results are in, so Manchester cannot confirm them in advance and they move year to year. Clear the threshold with an SJT of Band 1 or 2 and you are very l…	International (non-UK/Irish) applicants only. No SJT use stated. Any quoted 'cut-off' for this school is guesswork - it has not yet completed an admissions cycle.

Degree awarded	MBChB	MBBS
Course length	5 years	5 years
Teaching style	Case-based learning + Team-based learning	Case-based learning
Anatomy teaching	Dissection	-
First patient contact	Year 3	Year 1
Placement geography	Greater Manchester and the north west	London, Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire
Named placement sites	Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (Oxford Road), Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (Wythenshawe), Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust (formerly Salford Royal), Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust	West London Trust, Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (Basingstoke), Practice Plus Group (Ilford), Royal Trinity Hospice, Princess Alice Hospice, Meadow House
Intercalation	Intercalate for a year to complete a BSc, a master’s degree or an MB-PhD.	-
Course highlight	The UK’s largest medical school, with over 2,200 undergraduate medical students.	Currently accepts international students only.

Interview window	December - early March	December - March
Interview details	Five-station MMI including a role-play that assesses verbal and non-verbal communication and empathy, plus typical MMI questions on motivation, ethics and teamwork. One station may ask you to elaborat…	Applications are scored on academic record and admissions tests to produce a shortlisting rank. Interviews are online Multiple Mini Interviews (MMIs).

Specialities	Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy	Medicine, International Medicine
Established	1824	2025
Course type	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
What makes it different	The UK's largest medical school, with over 2,200 undergraduate medical students and strong research links. Thresholds are met-or-not rather than ranked, so clearing the UCAT bar with an SJT of Band 1…	International (non-UK/Irish) applicants only, applying direct rather than through UCAS, so it costs none of your four UCAS medical choices. Weigh that against the accreditation risk: the MBBS is not y…
Official course page	https://www.manchester.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/courses/2026/01428/mbchb-medicine/	https://www.stmarys.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/mbbs-medicine-degree

Manchester

Quick comparison

Location: Manchester, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Maths / Further Maths / Physics / Psychology. No use of predicted grades.
TrueScore: Manchester TrueScore 2060
UCAT home cut-off: 2060+ /2700 with Band 1 or 2 SJT (2026 entry threshold, A106)
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: 2026 entry: home 985 offers from 1,667 interviews (59%); overseas 40 from 191 (21%); A101 home 91 from 157 (58%) and A101 overseas 6 from 10. Overseas applicants face a far harder run at both stages than home applicants.
Decision date: March onwards

St Mary's Twickenham

Twickenham, London

Quick comparison

Location: Twickenham, London, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Chemistry or Biology and one of Biology / Chemistry / Physics / Mathematics
TrueScore: St Mary's Twickenham TrueScore 1700intl
UCAT home cut-off: -
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: -
Decision date: March onwards

Manchester vs St Mary's Twickenham - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Manchester requires AAA at A-level including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Maths / Further Maths / Physics / Psychology. No use of predicted grades.

St Mary's Twickenham requires AAA at A-level (offer and prediction) including Chemistry or Biology and one of Biology / Chemistry / Physics / Mathematics.

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 — Manchester: At least 7 GCSEs at grade 7, 8 or 9. English Language or Literature, Mathematics, and 2 Science subjects must be at grade 6 or above. WP+/WP++: 6 GCSEs at grade 7+ accepted.

GCSE resits permitted; up… St Mary's Twickenham: Minimum grade 6/B in GCSE Mathematics, English Language, Biology and Chemistry (or Dual Award Science).

Interview formats

Both Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham 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: Manchester interviews in December - early March; St Mary's Twickenham in December - March.

What makes each distinctive

Manchester: The UK's largest medical school, with over 2,200 undergraduate medical students and strong research links. Thresholds are met-or-not rather than ranked, so clearing the UCAT bar with an SJT of Band 1 or 2 usually earns an interview; Bands 3 and 4 are not currently considered.

St Mary's Twickenham: International (non-UK/Irish) applicants only, applying direct rather than through UCAS, so it costs none of your four UCAS medical choices. Weigh that against the accreditation risk: the MBBS is not yet GMC-accredited, and St Mary's contingency is that students would transfer to the University of Lancashire if accreditation is not achieved.

Which is right for you?

Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — Manchester feeds into the England foundation programme network; St Mary's Twickenham into the London 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. Manchester guidance: 2060+ /2700 with Band 1 or 2 SJT (2026 entry threshold, A106). St Mary's Twickenham guidance: International (non-UK/Irish) applicants only. No SJT use stated. Any quoted 'cut-off' for this school is guesswork - it has not yet completed an admissions cycle..

Manchester uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). St Mary's Twickenham 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 - early March (Manchester); December - March (St Mary's Twickenham).

Manchester requires AAA including Chemistry or Biology, plus one of Biology / Chemistry / Maths / Further Maths / Physics / Psychology. St Mary's Twickenham requires AAA prediction and offer requirements, must include chemistry or biology as well as one of biology/chemistry/physics/maths. Resits only considered in exceptional circumstances. GCSEs: grade 6 minimum in maths, English language, biology and chemistry (or dual award science).. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school.

Manchester — At least 7 GCSEs at grade 7, 8 or 9. English Language or Literature, Mathematics, and 2 Science subjects must be at grade 6 or above. WP+/WP++: 6 GCSEs at grade 7+ accepted. GCSE resits permitted; up to one Level 2 BTEC may be counted. Used only as minimum eligibility threshold - no further use of GCSEs in shortlisting beyond the floor St Mary's Twickenham — Minimum grade 6/B in GCSE Mathematics, English Language, Biology and Chemistry (or Dual Award Science).

Manchester's selection methodology: Academic minimums first, then UCAT must exceed cut-off. Historically, all applicants beyond the cut-off interviewed. SJT band 1 or 2 expected. St Mary's Twickenham'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

ManchesterEntry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

St Mary's TwickenhamEntry 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.

Manchester vs St Mary's Twickenham

Side-by-side comparison

Manchester vs St Mary's Twickenham - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Interview formats

What makes each distinctive

Which is right for you?

Common questions

What UCAT score do I need for Manchester vs St Mary's Twickenham?

How do interviews differ between Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham?

What A-Level grades do Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham require?

How are GCSEs weighted at Manchester vs St Mary's Twickenham?

How does each school actually shortlist applicants?

Where are Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham located, and how does that affect cost?

When does each school release decisions?

Should I apply to both Manchester and St Mary's Twickenham?

Where to go next

Other medical school comparisons