How to get into University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) MedicineYour 2027 Entry step-by-step guide
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University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) expects either Year 12 ATAR or a bachelor GPA — First Year (domestic): enrol full-time in BHSc (NCEA rank score ≥250 for UE entry) or BSc Biomed (NCEA rank score ≥165) at UoA; complete 7 prescribed courses full-time with GPA ≥6.0/9.0 (B+) and no fails; UCAT ANZ required (2027 entry).
Graduate (domestic): qualifying degree ≥GPA 6.0/9.0 within 5 years prior; UCAT ANZ required (2027 entry). International (graduate only): GPA ≥6.0; UCAT ANZ not required under current 2026 policy.
Final ranking (First Year): GPA 60% + MMI 25% + UCAT ANZ 15%. for Medicine (MBChB) and uses Asynchronous online MMI via Kira Talent (8 stations) for interviews in the 2027 Entry cycle.
Entry is dual-pathway (undergraduate and graduate) and selection uses UCAT-ANZ and CASPer; you apply to the university directly against its own preference deadlines, and domestic and international places are both capped, so treat the standard above as a threshold to clear rather than a target to aim at.
This guide is written for 2027 Entry applicants and updated annually before each NZCAA / university admissions cycle. Sources include University of Auckland's official course page, the UCAT-ANZ Consortium, and direct conversations with current students. Read time: ~12 minutes.
Checked field-by-field against University of Auckland's official course page on 14 August 2026.
University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) at a glance
| ATAR / GPA | First |
|---|---|
| Interview format | Asynchronous online MMI via Kira Talent (8 stations) |
| Interviews (2027 entry) | Typically July 2026–September 2026 (First Year applicants); June 2026–July 2026 (international graduate) |
| Decisions (2027 entry) | December 2026 |
University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) entry requirements
University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) selects on First Year (domestic): enrol full-time in BHSc (NCEA rank score ≥250 for UE entry) or BSc Biomed (NCEA rank score ≥165) at UoA; complete 7 prescribed courses full-time with GPA ≥6.0/9.0 (B+) and no fails; UCAT ANZ required (2027 entry). Graduate (domestic): qualifying degree ≥GPA 6.0/9.0 within 5 years prior; UCAT ANZ required (2027 entry).
International (graduate only): GPA ≥6.0; UCAT ANZ not required under current 2026 policy. Final ranking (First Year): GPA 60% + MMI 25% + UCAT ANZ 15%.
Year 12 ATAR (school leavers) or bachelor degree GPA (graduates) is the academic gateway, plus the admission test and interview.
Australian admission profile
UCAT-ANZ
UCAT-ANZ is a 2-hour computer-based aptitude test (Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Reasoning, and a separately-banded Situational Judgement Test). Sat between July and early August. The UCAT-ANZ Consortium operates separately from the UK UCAT — scores are NOT interchangeable.
Working towards the UCAT score University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) expects? Build a week-by-week plan from your test date — free for the first two weeks.
Written submissions
New Zealand has no UCAS, no central application service and no personal statement. You apply directly to Otago or Auckland, and for most domestic applicants there is no written document at all: Otago's Health Sciences First Year (HSFY) and Graduate categories rank on academic score with UCAT-ANZ used as a threshold gate, and Auckland ranks on first-year GPA, UCAT-ANZ and an asynchronous Kira Talent MMI. Written material appears in only three pathways - the Auckland MAPAS MH04 form, the Otago Alternative Category (for experienced allied-health professionals) and Auckland Graduate Entry - and in the last two it is assessed by interview, not as a scored essay. Treat each of those as a specific, structured task rather than a narrative statement.
There is no national word or character limit, because there is no national document. The MAPAS MH04 form has its own question-specific fields; the Otago Alternative Category interview does not use a pre-submitted scored document; and Auckland Graduate Entry is assessed verbally at the MMI. Check your school's current admissions page for the exact form and deadline for your pathway - requirements are reviewed each cycle.
Five things that win
Four things that lose
Worked-example opener (do not copy — for shape only)
"On my first shift with the community health team in Northland, I watched a nurse spend twenty minutes with a kuia who had missed three appointments - not chasing the missed visits, but working out that the bus route had changed. The clinical problem took five minutes; the access problem took the rest. That is the gap I want to work in…"
Notice: a specific scene rather than a cliché, a precise detail (the nine-minute conversation), and a closing sentence that bridges to the next paragraph. We have a step-by-step NZ application strategy guide if you want a tutor to help shape yours.
The MMI interview at University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB)
University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) uses Asynchronous online MMI via Kira Talent (8 stations). For 2027 entry, interviews typically take place in Typically July 2026–September 2026 (First Year applicants); June 2026–July 2026 (international graduate). Final decisions are released December 2026.
At University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB), expect the following from the MMI. An asynchronous, video-recorded Multiple Mini Interview on the Kira Talent platform - not a live conversation and not in person. The University of Auckland runs 8 stations (7 assessed plus 1 administrative identity and vetting station): roughly 30 seconds to read each prompt, about 3 minutes to record your spoken answer, and around 30 minutes end to end. There are no second takes once a station's recording clock starts, which is why rehearsing the format matters as much as the content.
How the University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) MMI actually runs
The Auckland MBChB MMI is conducted entirely online via the Kira Talent platform (asynchronous video-recorded model). There are 8 total stations: 7 assessed stations (3.5 minutes each — 30 seconds reading time + 3 minutes response) plus 1 administrative/Police Vetting station (unscored).
Domains assessed across the 7 stations: communication and interpersonal skills; problem-solving and resilience; ethical reasoning; self-awareness and reflection; teamwork and collaboration; professional awareness; social responsibility and equity commitment. MAPAS-eligible applicants (verified Maori or Pacific ancestry) also attend a separate 5-station MAPAS Specialty Interview run by the MAPAS Admissions Panel. International graduate-entry applicants are also interviewed via Kira Talent, typically June–July.
What they assess
What University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) assessors are scoring: Auckland scores each station against a structured rubric (communication, empathy, ethical reasoning, cultural safety, professionalism) and folds the MMI in as roughly a quarter of the selection score alongside first-year GPA and UCAT-ANZ. MAPAS applicants sit the general MMI plus an additional 5-station MAPAS specialty interview that probes hauora Māori and Pacific health in more depth; RRAS applicants sit the same MMI but are ranked in a separate rural pool. You do not need to be perfect - you need to think clearly on camera, listen to the prompt, and reflect honestly.
Common station / question themes
- Motivation for medicine (why this career, why now, why Aotearoa New Zealand)
- Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles of Partnership, Protection and Participation
- Cultural safety and hauora Māori - a regulated clinical standard, not an optional extra
- Health equity for Māori, Pacific, rural, disabled and LGBTQI+ communities
- Ethical scenarios (consent, capacity, end-of-life care, allocation of limited resources)
- Communication and teamwork (describe a time you led, or supported someone under pressure)
- Reflection on work, clinical or community experience
- Knowledge of the New Zealand health system (Te Whatu Ora, rural and community care)
Sample questions you might face at University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB)
Why medicine rather than another health-care career?
What does cultural safety mean to you, and how would it change how you practise?
How would you help close the health-equity gap for Māori and Pacific communities?
Describe a time you worked in a team - what was your contribution?
A patient refuses recommended treatment. How would you respond?
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing rural and regional healthcare in New Zealand?
Tell me about a non-academic interest and what it has taught you.
What concerns you about a career in medicine in New Zealand?
Model-answer guidance: “Why medicine?”
Our MMI prep programme covers ethics frameworks (SPIES, the four pillars), structured behavioural answers (STAR), and live mock interviews with admissions specialists.
Practise the University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) interview
Rehearse the real format before the day — on demand with our AI interviewers, or live with a tutor.
Sit a mock with photoreal AI interviewers — any time
A timed MMI circuit or panel interview on video, with interviewers who listen, react and press with follow-ups. Rubric-scored feedback and a replay the moment you finish.
Live mocks with a tutor who’s been in the room
A full University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB)-style mock with a medic or dentist tutor — honest scoring against real marking criteria, a station-by-station debrief and a written action plan.
Book a mock interviewMonth-by-month timeline for 2027 Entry
The cycle runs roughly January 2025 (start of prep) through university preference deadlines in October 2026, MMIs in November-December 2026, to first-round offers in December 2026 and course start in late February 2027. Here are the milestones you cannot miss.
Decide and start work / clinical experience
Confirm medicine or dentistry as your career direction. Start banking clinical exposure (hospital volunteering, GP shadowing, aged-care or disability-support roles) and non-clinical experience (research, peer tutoring, leadership). NZ schools weight reflection over hours - track what each placement taught you.
Begin HSFY papers / enrol at Otago or Auckland
School-leaver applicants enrol full-time in Health Sciences First Year (Otago HSFY) or the BHSc/BSc Biomed gateway (Auckland) - the prescribed papers you sit this year set your academic rank score. Graduate applicants confirm eligibility (a completed NZ degree within the last 3 years) for the Graduate pathway.
Open UCAT-ANZ prep window
Begin Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Reasoning and Situational Judgement practice. UCAT-ANZ acts as a threshold gate for Otago (Verbal Reasoning and SJT percentile minimums) and a ranked component at Auckland - check each school's current weighting before you sit it.
HSFY papers continue + UCAT-ANZ registration opens
Keep HSFY / gateway paper marks high through the year - Otago's HSFY and Graduate pathways select purely on academic rank score. UCAT-ANZ registration opens for the July sitting.
UCAT-ANZ booking
Book your UCAT-ANZ slot for July - popular slots fill quickly. Note BDS at Otago no longer requires UCAT ANZ (removed from the 2025 intake onwards); confirm current requirements for your target school and course.
UCAT-ANZ testing window
Take UCAT-ANZ. There is one sitting per cycle - no retake until the following year, so treat this as a single, high-stakes attempt.
Applications close
Direct-application deadlines fall across July-August depending on school and pathway (for example, Otago BDS applications close mid-August). Confirm your target school's exact deadline and submit HSFY / gateway paper results, referee details, and any required portfolio ahead of the cutoff.
Interview invitations issued
Shortlisted applicants receive interview invitations - Auckland MBChB uses a fully asynchronous Kira Talent MMI; Otago's Alternative Category and all Otago BDS applicants attend a structured Zoom interview. Otago's HSFY and Graduate MBChB pathways have no interview and are ranked on academic score alone.
Interviews run
Interviews run through October for schools/pathways that require one. Prepare for asynchronous video (Auckland Kira Talent) or live Zoom (Otago) formats based on your school's known approach.
Offers released
Offers are released from December, combining academic rank score, UCAT-ANZ (where applicable) and interview performance (where applicable). Reply by the stated acceptance deadline or forfeit the place.
Course start
Teaching begins late February / early March. Orientation, first lectures, and (for HSFY entrants who secure a place) the transition into the professional programme.
What makes University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) different
Auckland is the only NZ medical school admitting via a first-year gateway programme (BHSc or BSc Biomed) rather than Otago's HSFY. The MMI is fully asynchronous and remote (Kira Talent), not in-person or live video. International places are graduate-entry only — there is no international first-year pathway. From 2028 entry UCAT ANZ will be replaced by CASPer. MAPAS applicants sit an additional 5-station specialty interview. The RRAS rural sub-scheme gives access to Auckland's Rural Stream in Phase 1 of the MBChB.
Notable research areas
Curriculum (Integrated)
6-year MBChB. Year 1: BHSc or BSc Biomed gateway (FMHS-prescribed courses). Years 2–6: MBChB programme at FMHS City Campus. Phase 1 includes a Rural Stream for RRAS applicants. Clinical phases structured across Auckland teaching hospitals and affiliated sites.
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Founded in 1968. Whether the city suits you matters - five or six years is a long commitment. Visit on an open day if you can; current students will be the most honest assessors of culture and clinical placement quality.
Application statistics for University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB)
University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) intake
317 domestic places per year; up to 30 international (graduate-entry only); total up to ~347.
How University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) selects, at a glance
Source: University of Auckland admissions data; UCAT-ANZ Consortium decile data; published university selection statistics.
Six mistakes that derail medicine applications
University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) — frequently asked questions
Sources for this University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) guide
Apply to University of Auckland — Medicine (MBChB) with confidence
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