Program Overview

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CertHE Medical Sciences Pre-Med (9-months)

Course Overview

The CertHE Medical Sciences Pre-Med (9-months) is a unique programme, awarding graduates of this course with a Certificate of Higher Education (CertHE) in Medical Science qualification. The Pre-Med has been developed for students that wish to enhance their application to medical or dental schools.

Key Benefits

• Core modules are taught from a clinical perspective which provides students with the theory and experience to make the transition to medical or dental school.
• Our teaching strategy promotes student centred learning with a focus on small tutorials and workshops rather than large lecture-based programmes.
• Part of the Pre-Med selection criteria is the successful completion of an MMA. Completing this prior to joining the programme, therefore, makes your application to our MB ChB an uncomplicated and streamlined process.
• Students who have achieved at least 70% on the 9-months Pre-Med will be eligible to make an application to The University of Buckingham MB ChB selection process.

Progression Route onto MB ChB

As part of our entry requirements for Pre-Med, as well as meeting our academic requirements, you would be required to attend a Selection Event – Stage 2 Multiple Mini Assessment (MMA). Depending on your performance at this, you would then either be given an offer or will be unsuccessful in your application.

Should you enrol on the Pre-Med course and wish to apply for our Medicine course, you would be required to submit a Medicine application for your intended year of entry as well as achieve a minimum of 70% overall on the Pre-Med programme in order to be eligible for a Medicine offer. Please note, you would not need to interview for the Medical School if you were offered a place on our Pre-Med programme, as you would have already passed the interview process.

Entry Requirements

A-Levels

• Required grades: BBC

International Baccalaureate

• Required points: 30
• Required subjects: an overall score of 30 points, excluding any additional points for Theory of Knowledge or Extended Essay. These must include HL Biology and Chemistry HL3 and HL4 (in either order) or SL5 Biology and Chemistry.

Equivalent Qualifications

• Approved Medical/Biomedical foundation programme
• Irish Leaving Certificate
• Scottish Highers and Advanced Highers
• BTEC Level 3 Diploma/A levels: We require a Merit overall with B, C in Biology and Chemistry A Level

Equivalent International Qualifications

For country-specific requirements, please see our Entry Requirements document.

English Language Requirements

If English is not a student’s native language, they are normally expected to have passed a recognised test in English to the level of IELTS UKVI Academic score of 6.5 or equivalent (with no less than 6.0 in each section). IELTS General Training is not suitable for this level; other recognised Secure English Language tests (SELTs) can be found on the GOV UK website.

Admissions Process

The selection processes operate in two stages. The first stage is Academic Screening, and the second stage is a digitalMultiple Mini Assessment (MMA).

Stage One: Academic Screening

This first stage involves judgements on the basis of the written application, primarily related to academic achievement as an indicator of intellectual suitability for a medical course and the practice of medicine. Applicants may offer a variety of qualifications, but the overriding principle is that achievement should be at the highest level, and comparable to entrants to other medical schools in the United Kingdom. It is not intended that ability to pay the fees for the course should compensate for academic achievement that is less than usual for entry to a medical course in the UK.

Stage Two: Multiple Mini Assessment

The second stage of selection applies only to those who meet the academic threshold and is intended to judge personal attributes relating to suitability for practice as a doctor. It is a computer-based test, made up of a series of tasks intended to test applicants’ analysis, interpretation and judgement abilities related to ‘Good Medical Practice‘, published by the UK General Medical Council.

Applicants who successfully pass will receive an offer; unsuccessful applicants will be advised.

Teaching and Assessment

The programme is taught using a range of teaching methodologies such as lectures, small group tutorial sessions, problem-based learning , one-to-one personal tutoring, seminars, practicals and personal assessments.

Level 4 (October-June)

• Matter and Energy in Medicine
• Professional Values and Behaviour
• Molecular Cell Biology
• Brain, Muscle and Coordination
• Gut, Hormones and Metabolism
• Circulation and Fluid Balance

After Your Course

Transferable Skills for Your CV

You will gain experience in laboratory work during your degree and this will equip you with the skills you need to plan, conduct and evaluate experiments. It will also enable you to comply with health and safety regulations and research and interpret scientific literature.

Transferable skills gained on your course include:

• team working – from laboratory work or activities such as sport, societies or voluntary work
• analytical and problem-solving skills
• computing and the use of statistics
• data analysis, evaluation and interpretation
• project management
• numeracy
• organisation and time management
• oral and written communication.

Course Fees

The fees for this course are:

• Sep 2025 Full-time (9 Months) | UK| £15,408
• INT| £23,040

The University reserves the right to increase course fees annually in line with inflation linked to the Retail Price Index (RPI). If the University intends to increase your course fees it will notify you via email of this as soon as reasonably practicable.

Course fees do not include additional costs such as books, equipment, writing up fees and other ancillary charges. Where applicable, these additional costs will be made clear.