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Medical school comparison

Nottingham vs Surrey (GEM)

Nottingham and Surrey (GEM) 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.

Side-by-side comparison

Nottingham

Nottingham

Quick comparison

Location
Nottingham, UK
A-Level offer
AAA at A-level including Biology and Chemistry. No use of predicted grades - Nottingham considers achieved grades only.
TrueScore
1850
UCAT home cut-off
~1850+ /2700 with B1 SJT and 8× grade 9s GCSE (2024 entry lowest invited ≈ 1830)
Interview format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance
All Students (2024): 519/913 = 57% (or 336/911 = 37% from another source); A108 WP Foundation Year: 61/188 = 32%
Decision date
March onwards

Surrey (GEM)

Guildford

Quick comparison

Location
Guildford, UK
A-Level offer
AAA including Chemistry and Biology
TrueScore
1700GEM
UCAT home cut-off
-
Interview format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Post-interview chance
-
Decision date
March onwards
Compare different schools

Nottingham vs Surrey (GEM) - in detail

A-Level and academic profile

Nottingham requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. Surrey (GEM) 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 — Nottingham: GCSE results form part of the academic profile alongside A-Level predictions. Maths and English at minimum grade 6 typically expected. Surrey (GEM): Not applicable - graduate-entry programme. Requires a 2:1 honours degree.

Interview formats

Both Nottingham and Surrey (GEM) 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: Nottingham interviews in December - March; Surrey (GEM) in December - March.

Curriculum and teaching style

Nottingham runs a Integrated curriculum; Surrey (GEM) runs a PBL curriculum. The teaching philosophies are different — Nottingham delivers more didactic lectures with structured systems-based progression, while Surrey (GEM) centres learning around clinical cases. Specifics: Five-year MBChB with compulsory intercalated BMedSci built into the course (one of few UK schools to embed BMedSci as standard). Four-year accelerated graduate-entry MBChB. Surrey-based with South-East NHS placements. Intake size: Nottingham — ~250 home + ~30 international places per year.; Surrey (GEM) — ~30-50 places per year (small newer cohort).. A larger cohort means more peer breadth; a smaller cohort means more tutor contact.

What makes each distinctive

Nottingham: Scoring system is now distinct from Lincoln's, weighting GCSE (/32), UCAT (/40) and SJT (/10) - band 4 SJT auto-rejected. No use of predicted A-level grades. Surrey (GEM): New graduate-entry medical school with focus on innovative teaching methods and the use of technology in healthcare delivery.

Which is right for you?

Both schools sit in the same England foundation-programme catchment, so post-graduation training paths overlap heavily. If you learn best in small-group case discussion, prefer Surrey (GEM); 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

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. Nottingham guidance: ~1850+ /2700 with B1 SJT and 8× grade 9s GCSE (2024 entry lowest invited ≈ 1830). Surrey (GEM) guidance: New graduate-entry medical school (first cohort 2024 entry). UCAT required; no cut-off published yet..

Nottingham uses Multiple Mini Interviews: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI). Surrey (GEM) 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 (Nottingham); December - March (Surrey (GEM)).

Nottingham requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. Surrey (GEM) requires AAA including Chemistry and Biology. Most successful applicants achieve these grades on first sitting with strong predicted grades from their school. Resit policies differ: Nottingham — Resits considered case-by-case; standard expectation is one-sitting AAA.. Surrey (GEM) — Not applicable to graduate entry..

Nottingham — GCSE results form part of the academic profile alongside A-Level predictions. Maths and English at minimum grade 6 typically expected. Surrey (GEM) — Not applicable - graduate-entry programme. Requires a 2:1 honours degree.

Nottingham's selection methodology: Combined academic + UCAT scoring (Nottingham/Lincoln weighted system). Historic data: lowest UCAT accepted for interview was 2340/3600 (2022) and 2330/3600 (2023). Average ~2700. Surrey (GEM)'s selection methodology: New programme. UCAT + degree class + interview. Surrey-based graduate medicine. 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.

Nottingham is in Nottingham, UK. Surrey (GEM) is in Guildford, 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).

Nottingham typically releases medicine decisions March onwards. Surrey (GEM) 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.

Nottingham runs a Integrated curriculum. Surrey (GEM) runs a PBL curriculum. The teaching philosophies differ — pick the style that matches how you learn best. Nottingham specifics: Five-year MBChB with compulsory intercalated BMedSci built into the course (one of few UK schools to embed BMedSci as standard). Surrey (GEM) specifics: Four-year accelerated graduate-entry MBChB. Surrey-based with South-East NHS placements.

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.

School data reviewed by the NextGen MedPrep editorial team — last reviewed 20 June 2026.