How do interviews differ between North Wales (Bangor) and Swansea (GEM)?

North Wales (Bangor) uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). Swansea (GEM) uses Assessment day: Assessment Day. The two formats reward different skill sets. Plan separate prep streams for each, with at least 3 full mock interviews per format before sitting either. Interview windows: December - March (North Wales (Bangor)); March (Swansea (GEM)).

What A-Level grades do North Wales (Bangor) and Swansea (GEM) require?

North Wales (Bangor) requires AAA including Biology and one further science. Swansea (GEM) requires Graduate entry programme - degree required. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school. Resit policies differ: North Wales (Bangor) — Resits considered.. Swansea (GEM) — Not applicable to graduate entry..

Where are North Wales (Bangor) and Swansea (GEM) located, and how does that affect cost?

North Wales (Bangor) is in Bangor, UK. Swansea (GEM) is in Swansea, 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?

North Wales (Bangor) typically releases medicine decisions March onwards. Swansea (GEM) releases medicine decisions Until May. 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

North Wales (Bangor) vs Swansea (GEM)

Q: How are GCSEs weighted at North Wales (Bangor) vs Swansea (GEM)?

North Wales (Bangor) — English or Welsh Language at grade B/6, and Double Science at BB/66. Swansea (GEM) — No specific GCSE requirements published for graduate-entry MBBCh - academic competence is shown through the degree.

North Wales (Bangor) and Swansea (GEM) are both UK medical schools, but the path to an offer at each is meaningfully different. North Wales (Bangor) is based in Bangor (England) while Swansea (GEM) sits in Swansea (Wales), and the regional context shapes everything from fee status to NHS-deanery destination.

The interview formats diverge — MMI vs Panel — and the prep approaches for the two are fundamentally different.

Side-by-side comparison

Show only differences

Side-by-side comparison: North Wales (Bangor) and Swansea (GEM).
Comparison field	North Wales (Bangor)Bangor	Swansea (GEM)Swansea
Quick comparison
Location	Bangor, UK	Swansea, UK
A-Level offer	AAA at A-level including Biology and one further science.	Graduate entry programme - degree required
TrueScore	North Wales (Bangor) TrueScore 1700	-
UCAT home cut-off	-	-
Interview format	Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)	Assessment Day
Post-interview chance	Refused to disclose. New medical school, has been in clearing in past years.	-
Decision date	March onwards	Until May

A-Level offer	AAA at A-level including Biology and one further science.	Graduate entry programme - degree required
Contextual A-Level offer	AAB for Welsh-speaking applicants (who must also hold a first-language Welsh GCSE) and for others meeting Bangor's contextual criteria.	-
Required A-Level subjects	Biology required, plus one further science	-
A-Level resit policy	A-level resits are NOT accepted. GCSE resits are accepted only if completed within 12 months of the original sitting and before application.	Not applicable to graduate entry.
GCSE requirements	English or Welsh Language at grade B/6, and Double Science at BB/66.	No specific GCSE requirements published for graduate-entry MBBCh - academic competence is shown through the degree.
GCSE scoring methodology	-	-
Scottish Highers	-	-
Scottish Advanced Highers	-	-
International Baccalaureate	36 points overall, 6,6,6 at Higher Level including Biology and one further science	-
Graduate-entry degree requirement	2:1 (Upper-second-class Honours) or above in any honours degree (A101 graduate-entry route)	Minimum 2:1 in any subject; OR a Merit in an integrated master's; OR a 2:2 combined with a Pass in a postgraduate higher degree.
Alternative qualifications	-	Graduate-entry only, open to home and international applicants. Admission test may be UCAT (min 1900), GAMSAT (min 50 overall and 50 in Paper 3) or, for international applicants, MCAT (min 500). Selection day is three face-to-face stations; there is no separate written or SJT exercise. Pathways to Medicine applicants are not eligible.

Contextual cut-off	-	-
Scottish (where applicable)	-	-
Rest of UK (where applicable)	-	-
International cut-off	-	International applicants may alternatively submit an MCAT score, minimum 500.
Graduate cut-off	-	1900+ /2700 minimum considered. Swansea accepts EITHER UCAT or GAMSAT - it is not a GAMSAT-only school.
SJT band	Refused to disclose how SJT is used (avoid with B4)	-
UCAT notes	Bangor requires the UCAT but publishes NO minimum threshold - it states only that the score is used in selection. No cut-off should be inferred or estimated.	Three routes in: UCAT (min 1900), GAMSAT (min 50 overall AND 50 in Paper 3), or MCAT (min 500, international only). Selection day is three 20-30 minute face-to-face stations - there is no separate wri…

Degree awarded	BMBS	MB BCh
Course length	5 years	4 years (graduate entry)
Teaching style	Integrated	Case-based learning
Anatomy teaching	-	-
First patient contact	Year 1	Year 1
Placement geography	North Wales	Across Wales
Named placement sites	-	-
Intercalation	-	-
Course highlight	The programme is bilingual — most components can be studied in Welsh as well as English, and students use Welsh on placement.	Unique in Wales, and one of just a handful of similar programmes open to graduates of any discipline.

Interview window	December - March	March
Interview details	MMI format spread across several stations. Each station gives 3 minutes' preparation for two questions and 3 minutes to answer each. Topics include motivation, ethics and reflection on experiences.	Two 20-minute panel interviews preceded by a 30-minute written situational judgement assessment. Panels cover personal statement, course-specific motivation and clinical reasoning.

Specialities	Medicine, Community Medicine	Medicine, Graduate Entry Medicine, Rural Healthcare
Established	2020	2004
Course type	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
What makes it different	Bangor publishes no UCAT threshold and has declined FOI requests on its shortlisting weighting, so no cut-off can be quoted. A-level resits are not accepted. Welsh-speaking applicants (with a first-la…	Graduate entry programme with a written SJT exercise as part of the selection day. Personal statement and detailed course knowledge feature prominently - applicants should know Swansea's programme str…
Official course page	https://www.bangor.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/a100-medicine-bmbs	https://www.swansea.ac.uk/undergraduate/courses/medicine/medicine-graduate-entry-mbbch/

North Wales (Bangor)

Bangor

Quick comparison

Location: Bangor, UK
A-Level offer: AAA at A-level including Biology and one further science.
TrueScore: North Wales (Bangor) TrueScore 1700
UCAT home cut-off: -
Interview format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance: Refused to disclose. New medical school, has been in clearing in past years.
Decision date: March onwards

Swansea (GEM)

Swansea

Quick comparison

Location: Swansea, UK
A-Level offer: Graduate entry programme - degree required
TrueScore: -
UCAT home cut-off: -
Interview format: Assessment Day
Post-interview chance: -
Decision date: Until May

North Wales (Bangor) vs Swansea (GEM) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

North Wales (Bangor) requires AAA at A-level including Biology and one further science.

Swansea (GEM) requires Graduate entry programme - degree required.

GCSE profile matters at both schools — North Wales (Bangor): English or Welsh Language at grade B/6, and Double Science at BB/66. Swansea (GEM): No specific GCSE requirements published for graduate-entry MBBCh - academic competence is shown through the degree.

Interview formats

North Wales (Bangor) uses MMI (Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)); Swansea (GEM) uses Panel (Assessment Day). These two formats reward different skills — MMI emphasises breadth, station-recovery and structured answers under time pressure, while Panel rewards depth and consistency.

If your strengths lie in conversational depth, Swansea (GEM) may suit you more. If you prefer discrete capsule answers under time pressure, North Wales (Bangor) is the better fit.

Interview windows: North Wales (Bangor) interviews in December - March; Swansea (GEM) in March.

Curriculum and teaching style

Both schools deliver a PBL-style curriculum, so day-to-day study habits will feel similar across years 1-3.

Specifics: Four-year accelerated MBBCh (Cardiff) for graduates, or 5-year route. Strong rural/community placement strand across North Wales (Betsi Cadwaladr UHB) Four-year accelerated graduate-entry MBBCh. Swansea-based with South Wales NHS placements (Swansea Bay UHB, Hywel Dda UHB).

Intake size: North Wales (Bangor) — ~30 places per year (small cohort, designed for local retention).; Swansea (GEM) — ~70 home + ~10 international places per year (4-year accelerated MBBCh).. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

What makes each distinctive

North Wales (Bangor): Bangor publishes no UCAT threshold and has declined FOI requests on its shortlisting weighting, so no cut-off can be quoted. A-level resits are not accepted. Welsh-speaking applicants (with a first-language Welsh GCSE) and other contextual applicants may receive an AAB offer.

Swansea (GEM): Graduate entry programme with a written SJT exercise as part of the selection day. Personal statement and detailed course knowledge feature prominently - applicants should know Swansea's programme structure in detail.

Which is right for you?

Regionally, the choice often comes down to cost of living and NHS-deanery preferences — North Wales (Bangor) feeds into the England foundation programme network; Swansea (GEM) into the Wales 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. North Wales (Bangor) guidance: Bangor requires the UCAT but publishes NO minimum threshold - it states only that the score is used in selection. No cut-off should be inferred or estimated.. Swansea (GEM) guidance: Three routes in: UCAT (min 1900), GAMSAT (min 50 overall AND 50 in Paper 3), or MCAT (min 500, international only). Selection day is three 20-30 minute face-to-face stations - there is no separate written or SJT paper..

North Wales (Bangor)'s selection methodology: AAA including Biology and a second science, plus UCAT with no published threshold, then MMI. Cardiff University School of Medicine is the contingency partner during GMC accreditation, so students would graduate from Cardiff if required. Swansea (GEM)'s selection methodology: GAMSAT-based selection (UCAT alternative for graduate-entry). Strong Welsh/regional focus. 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.

North Wales (Bangor) runs a PBL curriculum. Swansea (GEM) runs a PBL curriculum. Both schools deliver teaching in the same broad style, so day-to-day study habits will feel similar. North Wales (Bangor) specifics: Four-year accelerated MBBCh (Cardiff) for graduates, or 5-year route. Strong rural/community placement strand across North Wales (Betsi Cadwaladr UHB). Swansea (GEM) specifics: Four-year accelerated graduate-entry MBBCh. Swansea-based with South Wales NHS placements (Swansea Bay UHB, Hywel Dda UHB).

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

North Wales (Bangor)Entry requirements, interview format and key dates in full

Swansea (GEM)Entry 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.