Media

Local state school students learn what it takes to be a doctor at Oxford

19 July 2012

Oxford University is targeting state school students from the Southwest to help those considering applying for one of Oxford’s most competitive courses – Medicine.

For the first time on Saturday 21 July the University will host a day devoted to understanding the Medicine course at Oxford and for Year 11 students interested in studying Medicine at Oxford. The event is specifically targeted at non-selective state schools with little history of sending students to Oxford. Around 75 students are due to attend, along with many parents.

Students from Camborne Science and International Academy and Sir James Smith’s School and their parents are among those taking part in the free one-day event.

The ‘Investigating Medicine’ day for 16-year-old year 11 students is part of the Pathways programme at Oxford, which provides free events offering information, advice and guidance on higher education and Oxford to bright students and staff in non-selective state schools that traditionally send few students to Oxford. The Medicine event is part of an ongoing series of events for students in years 10 and 11 at school (age 15-16).

Medicine is one of Oxford’s most over-subscribed courses, with nearly 10 applicants for every place on offer. Students from state schools in particular tend to apply in large numbers for Medicine, making it extremely competitive. ‘Investigating medicine’ is being held to make students who are interested in Medicine aware of what the process of applying for and studying Medicine at Oxford is about. It also aims to make students interested in the medical sciences aware of the wide range of opportunities academically and in career terms in related science courses.

Robert Wilkins, Tutor for Admissions in Biomedical Sciences at Oxford, who is one of the organisers of the event, says: ‘Medicine is one of the most popular and oversubscribed courses at Oxford, so we think it’s really important to give as much information and support to students from schools that have little history of sending students to Oxford. While it’s important to make sure students are able to separate myth from fact when it comes to admissions process for Medicine at Oxford, the event isn’t just about admissions, but studying at Oxford more generally, and studying medicine specifically.

‘For vocational courses like medicine finances and career goals can be a big part of deciding to apply – so  we want to make sure both students and their parents get a realistic view of what it's like to study Medicine and work as a doctor. We also want to make sure students and parents coming to the event know that there is plenty of financial support for studying at Oxford, and that a medical course can mean career options beyond being a doctor in a hospital.’

Ivanhoe Leung did an undergraduate degree in Chemistry at Oxford and is now a doctoral student at the University. He will be helping out at the day and says: ‘I was very lucky to have the support and encouragement from my school to apply to Oxford when I was in my sixth form; even then the interview was a very daunting experience.

‘Because the way of learning and the tutorial system in Oxford are very different from school (or indeed other Universities), I want to show perspective students how academic life is really like in Oxford, so that they can make an informed choice. It is also a great opportunity to meet current students, and hopefully we can demystify the application and interview process for them. Ultimately I hope no one will be put off from applying because they think they do not fit in certain stereotypical Oxbridge student image that the popular media portraits.’

For more information, please contact Julia Paolitto in the Press Office, Oxford University, on 01865 280 531 or Julia.paolitto@admin.ox.ac.uk

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

Investigating Medicine is part of the Oxford Pathways programme, an initiative coordinated by the Colleges of the University of Oxford, with support from the Sutton Trust. The programme aims to provide information, advice and guidance on higher education and Oxford to academically able students, and staff members, in non-selective state schools with little history of student progression to Oxford.  All events are run in Oxford, and are free to attend.

For more information see: http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate_courses/events_and_outreach/pathways.html

The schools attending the Pathways event on 21 July are:
Abbeywood Community School
Biddenham International School
Bungay High School
Camborne Science and International Academy
Castle Hall Academy
Cowplain Community School
Handsworth Wood Girls' School
Harris Academy Peckham
Hessle High School
Horndean Technology College
Huntcliff
King Edward VI Aston
King Edward VI Handsworth
King Edward VII Coalville
Langdon School
Marlborough School
Midhurst Rother College
Overton Grange School
Pen-y-Dre
Putteridge High School
Reigate School
Roding Valley High School
Salesian School, Chertsey
Sir James Smith's
St John Plessington
Stockwell Park High School
Swinton High School
Tarleton High School
The Holly Hall Academy
The Marlborough School
The Radclyffe School
Walthamstow School for Girls
West Hill

The Pathways events are part of Oxford University’s work with teachers and schools as a significant portion of its outreach work; more broadly, the Oxford University admissions team has several areas of activity that are designed to provide opportunities for students from schools with limited HE application support to find out more about what Oxford is looking for in candidates. These are not activities designed to give undue advantage to students from disadvantaged backgrounds, but rather to encourage those students who might be able to make a competitive application to Oxford but do not have the proper support or information about how to apply and give themselves the best chance:

Working with schools: The University has contact with 78% of all schools offering post-16 education.

Working with teachers: The University over the past several years has focussed an enormous amount of effort in working with teachers, allowing Oxford to help many cohorts of students via their teachers rather than individual students in any given year. Activities include a series of annual regional teachers' conferences; a one-day event for Oxford's own PGCE programme (run through Oxford’s school of education), which trains new teachers being sent mainly into comprehensive schools; and similar programmes working with Teach First participants.

Summer schools: Oxford’s flagship access programme is its UNIQ summer school, which takes students from UK state schools who have strong academic backgrounds and allows them to attend a week-long summer school where they get a chance to study subjects in-depth and learn what living and studying at Oxford is like. The scheme has been effective: 69% of 2010 participants applied to Oxford, and 39% of those won offers (against an overall success rate of 21% for Oxford applicants in that year). That means that 27% of all 2010 UNIQ participants hold offers from Oxford. By 2014 there will be 1,000 places on the summer schools (up from 500), covering every course Oxford offers. Several of the colleges also run summer school and outreach activities in addition to those run centrally.