UCL MBBS
Written by: Matthew Lau
Date: 26th August 2021
UCLMS has always been regarded as a traditional medical school that integrates aspects of modern teaching. The 6-year course is known as a gruelling and vigorous one that pushes students to not just become a doctor, but a “UCL doctor”, equipped to practice medicine in a constantly changing world. After spending a term at UCL, here’s a brief insight into what it’s like to study there.
Timetable/Modules
The year 1 timetable is unsurprisingly mostly comprised of lectures with a few tutorials in a 9-5 format. Most days will compose of 4-5 timetabled events which means that apart from an hour for lunch, most of your day will be spent in lectures. It seems overwhelming at first, especially when every lecture feels like an entire A-level chapter but over some time, you adjust and get used to the volume of content.
In terms of modules, there are 4 running in parallel at the same time. These are composed of the core module, anatomy, pharmacology and CPP (Clinical and Professional Practice). The core module is the “main content” that you’ll be learning such as Circulation and Breathing and forms the bulk of your timetable. Anatomy and pharmacology are periphery modules, with a lecture for once every 1-2 weeks each. CPP tackles the clinical and social aspect of medicine with subtopics including clinical skills, ethics/law, professionalism and others.
I personally loved the set structure of the course and how organised everything was. Every module was organised well with supplementary activities such as short quizzes to solidify understanding. However, there’s no getting around the fact that the workload is intense and the course demanding. At the start of the course, a lot of my coursemates struggled a lot to make the jump to medical school and some still struggle. That’s not to say that the process isn’t enjoyable or achievable as almost everyone still manages to graduate but keep in mind that it is a very science/content-based course. I liked this aspect, but others may prefer a more practical course or one with more clinical teaching within the first 2 years.
The image on the right is an example timetable.
Assessments
Although UCL has a reputation of being very academic, their assessment system is actually very lenient. Apart from some pass/fail assignments to submit, there is only one summative assessment (an assessment that counts) at the end of both year 1 and 2 that determines whether you can progress to the next year. This assessment is also pass/fail with the pass mark determined beforehand by academic staff, so it isn’t determined by your peers’ performance. Supplementary to this, you will have formative (which don’t count) exams at the end of each module and periodically throughout the year which are there to help you track progression.
Wellbeing/Support
UCLMS has one of the most thorough support systems I’ve ever seen. At the start of each year, you are assigned a personal tutor who checks in with you frequently to make sure you’re doing alright and are coping with the demands of medical school. Alongside this, you have dedicated wellbeing support teams in place should you need to contact them about any mental health issues or general issues. I’ve never felt as if I don’t know who to talk to about my problems or where I should go for my issues which is so important, especially in a vigorous subject such as medicine.
Community/Social
The medical student society at UCL is known as RUMS and is arguably one of the best in the country. Not only do they offer a wide range of clubs from sports to charity to entertainment, but they also hold multiple socials throughout the year which allows you meet medics in the years above as well. Alongside this, they have lots of support for younger years such as the mums/dads scheme and regular tutorials to solidify understanding.
