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UK Medicine · 2027 Entry
St Andrews Medical School2027 Entry Requirements & Interview Format
Location St Andrews, UKEstablished 1413Interviews (2027 entry) December 2026 - March 2027Decisions (2027 entry) March 2027 onwards
Photo: Daytrick / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 · cropped
Photo: Daytrick · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo: Stanley Howe · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo: Pwstauk · CC BY-SA 4.0
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Full guide
How to get into St Andrews medicine
Step-by-step: entry requirements, UCAT prep, personal statement, interview format and the key deadlines.
Open the guide →Interview guide
Prepare for the St Andrews interview
Format breakdown, school-specific sample questions, FAQs and prep tips from tutors who interviewed here.
Read the guide →The course
What the St Andrews medicine course is like
Integrated, 6 years (3 at st andrews + 3 clinical), placements across St Andrews for three years, then a partner school.
See the course →Overview
About St Andrews
St Andrews offers a 3-year BSc Honours in pre-clinical medicine before transferring students to a partner school for clinical training, with a famously casual interview.
What makes St Andrews different
Three-year pre-clinical course at St Andrews followed by transfer to a partner medical school for clinical years. SJT not used (was used many years ago, not now or in future). Scottish students face much lower cut-offs than RUK applicants.
St Andrews course & teaching
Traditional curriculum. First 3 years at St Andrews leading to BSc (Hons) Medicine. Most students then transfer to a partner clinical school for years 4-6 of MBChB.
St Andrews research strengths
St Andrews is strong in these research areas:
- Photobiology
- Cancer research
- Cardiovascular medicine
- Neuroscience
Intercalation at St Andrews
Built-in BSc within the first 3 years.
How the St Andrews interview runs
Format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
MMI format with chatty, casual interviewers across multiple stations. Topics include ethical scenarios, role-play and motivation for the unusual three-year BSc Honours course before transferring to a partner medical school.
St Andrews intake
RUK ~24 places, Scottish ~150, International ~30 (3-year pre-clinical only - clinical years at partner schools).
St Andrews at a glance
Founded in 1413. Based in St Andrews.
Programmes offered:
- Medicine
- Medical Sciences
- Gateway to Medicine
TrueScore
Predicted UCAT for St Andrews
TrueScore
What is TrueScore?
A data-driven estimate of the UCAT score you'll likely need to be invited to interview at St Andrews for 2027 entry entry — based on its published cut-offs and recent admissions data. Treat it as a target to aim past, not a guarantee.
- Scottish1850
- Contextual1700
- Rest of UK2100
- International1900
St Andrews's Scottish-tier TrueScore is 1850. Build a week-by-week UCAT plan that works back from your test date — free for the first two weeks.
Entry requirements
What you need to apply to St Andrews
A-Level requirements
AAA at A-level (offer and predicted) including Chemistry and one of Biology, Mathematics or Physics
Contextual A-Level offer
AAB at A-level for widening-access applicants
Required A-Level subjects
Chemistry plus one of Biology / Mathematics / Physics
GCSE requirements
Minimum 5 GCSEs at grade 7/A in one sitting (achieved A-level applicants may be considered with fewer). GCSE grade 5 in Biology, Mathematics, and English (Language or Literature) required if not offered at A-level. GCSE resit allowed.
Scottish Highers
Standard entry: AAAAB in S5, predicted to achieve at least BBB in Highers, Advanced Highers or a mix in S6. Minimum entry: AAABB in S5, predicted at least BB in S6.
Scottish Advanced Highers
Mix of Highers and Advanced Highers in S6 acceptable - minimum BB
International Baccalaureate
38 points overall, 6,6,6 at Higher Level + 6,6,6 at Standard Level. Minimum: 36 points (6,6,5 HL + 6,6,5 SL). Must include HL Chemistry and HL in one of Biology / Mathematics / Physics. If Maths not at HL, applicants must have SL in Biology, Maths and English. Either Maths Analysis & Approaches or Applications & Interpretation accepted.
Graduate-entry degree requirement
ScotGEM applicants must have achieved (or be predicted to achieve) a 1st or 2:1 Honours degree in any discipline (Arts, Science, etc.). Plus: Chemistry Higher or A-level (grade A or B) or equivalent; Mathematics at Standard Grade Credit 1/2, Intermediate 2 (A or B), National 5 (A or B), or GCSE (B). GAMSAT required.
UCAT Selection at St Andrews
Weighting
Pre-interview: applicants ranked by UCAT, top ~500 invited to interview. WP applicants get 10% UCAT uplift. Personal statement assessed for minimum requirements (academic ref + work experience). UCAT also used as tie-break post-interview.
SJT band
No use of SJT (was many years ago but not any more or in the future)
Contextual / WP eligibility
Widening Participation applicants get a 10% UCAT uplift, effectively lowering the threshold by ~10%. Scottish applicants face a much lower bar than RUK (mean offer-holder ~2024 vs ~2236).
St Andrews warns explicitly that the 2025 UCAT changes - three subtests and a maximum of 2,700 - mean historical UCAT figures are not comparable with current cycles, so older "lowest invited" numbers should not be used as benchmarks. The SJT is not used. Note that St Andrews, unlike most UK schools, requires relevant medically related work experience alongside the academic requirements and a positive reference.
SJT Band
No use of SJT (was many years ago but not any more or in the future)
Specialities offered
Medicine, Medical Sciences, Gateway to Medicine
Interview
How St Andrews interviews applicants
Format
Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)
Interview window (2027 entry)
December 2026 - March 2027
Decision date (2027 entry)
March 2027 onwards
Post-interview chances
RUK Student (2025): 123/162 = 74%; Scottish + RUK: 411/505 = 81%; International (2023): 56/82 = 68%
Tutor insight
St Andrews' relaxed style rewards applicants who think aloud and let the interviewer follow their reasoning. Be ready to explain why a 3-year BSc before transferring to clinical years suits your goals - that "why this course" question is unique to St Andrews.
Practice
Practise for your St Andrews interview
PrometheusQuestion Bank621 medicine questions inside
Interview questions matched to St Andrews
Two questions our tutors flagged as a strong fit for St Andrews’s interview style. Try answering them out loud, then open Prometheus for the model answers and follow-up tips.
Intercalation
Do you plan to intercalate, and why?
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Where St Andrews's figures come from
A field on this record was corrected against University of St Andrews's official course page on 14 August 2026; the record as a whole has not been re-checked against source.
FAQ
St Andrews — frequently asked questions
Home applicants: No threshold published. Applicants who meet the requirements are ranked on their UCAT global score, and roughly the top 650 are invited to interview.. Contextual applicants: Widening-access applicants receive a 10% uplift on their UCAT score.. St Andrews warns explicitly that the 2025 UCAT changes - three subtests and a maximum of 2,700 - mean historical UCAT figures are not comparable with current cycles, so older "lowest invited" numbers should not be used as benchmarks. The SJT is not used. Note that St Andrews, unlike most UK schools, requires relevant medically related work experience alongside the academic requirements and a positive reference.
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