Medical School Admissions

All medical schools are encouraged to provide information for disabled people in their information for prospective students and this should be easily found on their website. However, this is a working progress and if the information is not easy to find, please do not assume that that particular medical school does not encourage applications. All should and do

The GMC have developed a document with the skills and competencies you are expected to have achieved by the time you graduate from medical school to enter Foundation training: Outcomes for Graduates. These outcomes are non-negotiable. However, reasonable adjustments can be made to the modes of assessment of those outcomes, except where the method is part of the competence that needs to be attained. If you are unsure if you would be able to achieve this, we suggest you seek advice/guidance from Occupational Health or similar before deciding against the pursuit of a medical school application because sometimes modifications that you yourself may not consider may actually be possible. The duty to provide reasonable adjustments also applies to you as an applicant

The Medical Schools Council provides guidance and policy regarding medical school application

Here is a very useful guide to applying to medical school with a long-term condition/disability written by our very own Sophie Jackson:

:Applying to medical school with a long-term condition/disability

The GMC guidance Welcomed & Valued, Chapter 4: How can medical schools apply their duties? contains some very relevant and useful guidance that would be well worth reading if you are considering making an application to medical school

It outlines the responsibilities of medical schools to disabled people when it comes to admissions, course inclusivity, health and wellbeing, health clearance, financial support, confidentiality and decisions on your ability to meet the requirements of Outcomes for Graduates

This can be a difficult decision to make. In fact, it is sometimes not until undergraduate training has started that students come to realise that their impairment or illness creates the need for adjustments or affects them in a way that means they could be considered as having a disability

This article discusses all of these points and may help you in making a decision:

Unsure whether or not you should disclose a disability or long term health problem when applying?

: Should I disclose my disability?

Being proactive is key...

There are all sorts of things that prospective students find difficult to understand and arrange when starting University. When you add a chronic health condition or disability to the mix, these difficulties only increase

Be proactive. Once you have accepted an offer, contact the school or University to speak to people about

- Accommodation

- Parking

- Grants

- Specialist equipment

- Transferring your medical care

This can often be achieved by contacting the University disability services or Occupational Health, details of which should be on their website or held by the Admissions Office

Get it all set up prior to starting. Then your first weeks can be spent doing what new students usually do, rather than discovering that you have hours of planning and arranging waiting for you

If you feel you have not been treated fairly or would like to feedback any particularly positive experiences, then please use the contact us form choosing the 'Feedback regarding admissions to medical school' option

The following links may also be helpful to you:

- How to cope if you are challenged/discriminated against

- Legal help