Mature Medicine Applicants Thread 2013

FairytaleGirl

Hi Guys and Gals,

Thought Id start a thread (in the hope that it doesnt die off:rolleyes:) for anyone applying this year.

Its my second time applying - Spent the year studying an Extended Diploma in Health Science.
Will start HPAT revision shortly, wanna improve miles from last year.

Just registered with CAO and now thinking on choices again. Im still a little confused as to where I'm actually eligible for, sent a few emails the last few weeks but have not had a lot of feedback

Hope to hear from others in the same boat!

Dee

spacecat

Hi Fairytalegirl,

Sooo, its time to start the rollercoaster ride again this year,lol. I guess I'm in the same boat as you, second time applying.

I'm going to reg with the CAO this weekend and like you start with the HPAT

Chin up al the way!!!!

RAnnaC

I'm applying this year as well. Just finished a Medicinal Chemistry degree, tried to apply through the gamsat last year with a score that would have got me into Limerick but missed my II.1 by a fraction so have to go the mature entry route...
As second-timers, where do you think it went wrong for you last year?

studentforever

Hi all,
The time has come to start prep work for repeating Bio and Chem and the dreaded HPAT... first time for the HPAT for me so I haven't a clue where to begin! Any tips are welcome!
Has anyone started writing their personal statements yet? I was working on a first draft the other day and it just sounds so soppy, I'd be mortified if anyone saw it!
Also, did anyone apply to the Trinity shadowing day on the ? I'm pretty sure I was too late submitting my application but sure you never know :rolleyes:

RAnnaC

I only saw about the shadowing day on Sunday so was too late to apply, I emailed the girl in charge but haven't heard anything back so I'm guessing it's full. There's an open evening in RCSI next week though, (20th November), I applied online for it a few weeks back.

studentforever

Thanks for the info! Don't know how I missed that?! I submitted my form to another TAP staff member but I'm not too optimistic! Both would be a benefit if we got interviews so all open days, shadowing etc. are welcome ;-)
What kind of experience does everyone have? I've very little direct medical experience so I'm pretty sure that will go against me :-(

RAnnaC

I sent in my shadowing application and got a place in that! Has anyone actually applied to the CAO yet? I did my application the other day, just the choices etc., but it has just dawned on me that the personal statement, CV, etc. has to be sent to them too, but when does that have to be in I wonder? I'm nowhere near starting that yet.
In terms of experience, I haven't got a whole lot. I volunteer once a week in a centre for people with intelectual disabilities but am hoping to get more volunteering as the year goes on. Log onto volunteer.ie and they'll set you up with something in your area.

studentforever

I'll be seeing you at the shadowing day, got the confirmation email and itinerary an hour ago. It looks pretty full on! Should be interesting enough. I've been begging hospital departments and gp's for some shadowing but no joy :-( I've an internship starting in January with a semi-health related organisation (ties in to my undergrad so two birds and all that jazz) so hopefully I can solicit some practical experience with some of the affilated doctors...
I haven't applied to CAO or Hpat yet. Putting it off like the plague! And those statements. ..sweet Jesus! Utterly dire so far. I'm convinced it's impossible to make yourself sound as competitive a candidate as possible without coming across as a conceited knobend

paperclip2

RAnnaC wrote: »

I sent in my shadowing application and got a place in that! Has anyone actually applied to the CAO yet? I did my application the other day, just the choices etc., but it has just dawned on me that the personal statement, CV, etc. has to be sent to them too, but when does that have to be in I wonder? I'm nowhere near starting that yet.
In terms of experience, I haven't got a whole lot. I volunteer once a week in a centre for people with intelectual disabilities but am hoping to get more volunteering as the year goes on. Log onto volunteer.ie and they'll set you up with something in your area.

The CAO handbook says that all accompanying docs including the statement have to be in a week after you apply online. They may give some leeway but not sure how much.

RAnnaC

yeah, emailed the CAO to ask about that today, if that is the case I really should have held off a couple of months to apply but I was anxious to apply for the HPAT... We'll see how this one pans out

paperclip2

They're pretty ok to deal with. I know last year the told one poster to get their statement in before the Feb deadline.

studentforever

Hey all, I was out in UCD yesterday for a graduate fair and got talking to the lovely people on the GEM booth. The woman was talking to me about mature entry and I asked what work experience would make an applicant competitive, but she said a lot of work experience can work against an applicant. She also said competition for places is ridiculous (which we all know ) and even with the limited places available, in past years not all places have been filled because of 'undesirable' candidates!!! So that was a little disheartening...
BTW today is the undergrad fair out there so if anyone wants to pop out and talk to the undergrad people in the med school, they'll be there in force

Abby19

One thing as a mature student is that you still need to meet the minimum subject requirements for medicine. Some require one science, some require two. If you don't have these they won't look at your application. However unlike direct school leavers your don't need to get this at the same time as the rest of your leaving cert (or equivalent).
Check with the various colleges what you actually need, and you would still have time to pick up a science subject in the leaving cert if you started now.

And you can then use this in your personal statement along the lines of, 'I am committed to study medicine and to that end I am sitting X, Y, or Z in the summer to complete my matriculation requirements' and it also shows you are serious and have done your homework.

eg. for Trinity http://www.tcd.ie/maturestudents/News/#linkc
Applicants must present a Grade B and a Grade C in two of Biology and Chemistry or Physics at higher Leaving Certificate level or equivalent.

It does not matter if you have since got a science degree, or a PhD, or whatever - you need these at LC level.

PingO_O

Hey guys! I'm another mature med hopeful, recognise some of you from other threads so glad to see you haven't given up on the dream!

If anyone reading this has actually gone back to do med as a mature student would you mind sharing your experiences here? Not just the course material but supporting yourself through college, workload compared to your first degree if you have one, social life ( ) and is it as good as you thought it would be now you've decided to go for it?

studentforever

Is everyone going back to repeat something in the LC? I haven't even started studying but have a fairly solid science base and all the studying for the GAMSAT will be put to use Does anyone have any recommendations for Hpat materials? No idea where to start.

Also is anyone applying to Trinity? I can't find the supplemental application anywhere on the site, although having said that I think they're updating their online application system so that could be it.

New mantra for the next 6 months 'everything will work out in the end'. (I hope.... )

Abby19

studentforever wrote: »

Also is anyone applying to Trinity? I can't find the supplemental application anywhere on the site, although having said that I think they're updating their online application system so that could be it.

This year it will be online and you need to have a CAO number to access it. There is info here (and copies of most of online form).
http://www.tcd.ie/maturestudents/content/pdf/00447_TCD_MatureGuide_2013.pdf

fiinch

had a quick flick through the tcd applications, max word counts of 400 and 500 for each section!? glad i applied last year, i think i had over 1000 for those sections, and that was after i cut it down by a considerable amount. 4/500 words for each of those sections isn't much

RAnnaC

Anyone at the RCSI evening last night? It was particularly aimed at mature students and was really informative. The only thing getting me worried are the fees which are 6 grand more in RCSI for mature students for some reason... Still banking on getting in with my LC points.
The one thing they did say about the HPAT was to really focus on section 3 (non-verbal reasoning), especially if you're female.

studentforever

I had booked to go but a last minute crisis meant I couldn't. The fees for RCSI are truly shocking. Fair enough, the GEM fees are so expensive, but the matures being the same is crazy! I've been looking for non verbal reasoning books so if I come across anything good I'll post it. There's a couple of online resources that give you the test and results, but no explaination which kind of defeats the purpose.

Anyone going to the TCD shadowing day today? My boyfriend and sister think I'm going to get some experience for a masters application ... just hope there's no bad karma for lying

FairytaleGirl

RAnnaC wrote: »

Anyone at the RCSI evening last night? It was particularly aimed at mature students and was really informative. The only thing getting me worried are the fees which are 6 grand more in RCSI for mature students for some reason... Still banking on getting in with my LC points.
The one thing they did say about the HPAT was to really focus on section 3 (non-verbal reasoning), especially if you're female.

I really have my heart set on Rcsi, as a mature student! Any thing else worth mentioning from the night? What did they say about competition and entry in general? Did they give a reason behind the Section 3 tip?

PingO_O

RAnnaC wrote: »

Anyone at the RCSI evening last night? It was particularly aimed at mature students and was really informative. The only thing getting me worried are the fees which are 6 grand more in RCSI for mature students for some reason... Still banking on getting in with my LC points.
The one thing they did say about the HPAT was to really focus on section 3 (non-verbal reasoning), especially if you're female.

Yeah the fees are the most difficult thing for me in deciding whether or not to go for it. Even if I had them all before I started you've still got to think about working part time for living costs etc. I'd hate to look back and think I didn't go for it because of money though so I'm staying hopeful and saving. It's a shame the institution couldn't wave the fees until you were earning or something along those lines.

speeding

I started as a mature on the med programme in rcsi this year. Best decision I ever made :-). I love this place. Anyone who wants to ask me anything feel free to pm and good luck with all your applications !

FairytaleGirl

good to hear from you speeding!glad its going well! Any application tips?

How have you been coping with the course?

speeding

FairytaleGirl wrote: »

good to hear from you speeding!glad its going well! Any application tips?

How have you been coping with the course?

Main application tip I suppose would be to make sure you have experience and have researched into what's involved in a doctor's career. References obviously are important so make you sure you get all these prepared now so you're not rushing around last minute in January.

Course is obviously a lot of work but I actually find the study easy cause the material is so interesting !! Rcsi really want you to keep on top of the study throughout the whole semester. They do this by having 2 midterm mcqs based on everything covered to date. We did the first one at the end of last month. I was pleased with my result :-). Next one is this Monday so hoping I can pull off a similar result for that. They're only worth 2.5 percent each but they're just there to give you an idea whether your study methods are working and what you need to improve on for exams on January. They also have three card signings per semester. Again these aren't worth very much but serve as a guide to how well you're learning anatomy. Card signing takes place on a Friday. An anatomy teacher for your group will then ask you a few questions concerning your cadaver in the dissection room to test your knowledge. Depending on how well you answer you'll be a given a grade of a, b or c.

Fiddles44

Hey All,

I'm also applying for mature entry. Seems like there is so much to do and so little time. HPAT is an absolute nightmare!

What kind of experience has everyone gotten so far? My local hospital and GPs are just not willing to take anyone looking for medical experience. Has anyone else had this problem?

FairytaleGirl

Try care homes, that's also seen as relevant experience of much easier to into-and home for getting you used to the dirty work that can come with medicine!

Fiddles44

Haven't been on this thread in a while but since time is getting closer and closer to the deadline I was thinking about starting to write up my personal statement.

Has anyone else started writing yet? How have you found it?

Do any of you that applied last year and got in have any advice with regards to writing the application?

julie2tubz

Does anyone know when abouts UCD hold interviews for mature medicine candidates?

NinjaK

when do mature students apply for courses?

Fiddles44

It says in the UCD booklet that offers as usually given out around July so I suppose interviews would be around May/June time but I'm not 100% on that, could be earlier

Sunnygrl

Hi, do you have any advice on writing a personal statement? And do you have to have a reference from a doc?

Abby19

NinjaK wrote: »

when do mature students apply for courses?

You have to apply by the CAO deadline, February 1st. Medicine is a restricted entry course and cannot be added to your CAO choices after this date (though afaik if you have one medicine course down you could add others later).

You will need to apply for the HPAT also to complete the CAO application and the deadline for the HPAT application is January 20th.

If you are applying to Trinity you also have to fill in their online application bu Frbruary 1st.

dtfo

julie2tubz wrote: »

Does anyone know when abouts UCD hold interviews for mature medicine candidates?

Definitly early/mid June but there might before some that are earlier or later than this

Fiddles44

Anyone else feel like ripping their hair out trying to fill in the applications forms?

spacecat

Fiddles44 wrote: »

Anyone else feel like ripping their hair out trying to fill in the applications forms?

I feel your pain

RAnnaC

I have only done my CAO and hpat application so far. Is it just the trinity application that needs to be in by feb 1st?

borrch

Hi, I was hoping some one on this thread could answer a quick question for me... I'm applying to NUIG for medicine as mature entry & through the CAO also as i'm repeating the leaving cert this year.
When i filled out the CAO form i picked the NUIG med course & ticked mature entry on my application. Is this enough? If i'm unsuccessful with the leaving cert would i be automatically considered for mature entry..?

Any help would be really helpful

PingO_O

Hey borrch as far as I'm aware you'll have a chance with both, if you're unsuccessful with mature entry but you manage to get the points and matriculation requirements in the leaving cert then you're in!

That's what I've gathered from reading other threads so someone correct me on that if I'm wrong!

I don't think I'll be applying this year, the fees along with the cost of living would be just impossible for me even though I've been saving! Might give it another year, can always apply then!

borrch

Thanks Ping for your reply. The fees are crazy alright, I live in Galway so wouldn't have the living expenses problem. I think there'll be a lot less people applying for mature/graduate entry this year due to fees, but I could be wrong...
esp as the banks aren't giving loans out anymore

spacecat

Hrum, just having a look at Trinity's application form for Mature Medicine. Am I right in saying that there is an application fee of 35euros?? Really????? Thats just wrong surely.

Fiddles44

spacecat wrote: »

Hrum, just having a look at Trinity's application form for Mature Medicine. Am I right in saying that there is an application fee of 35euros?? Really????? Thats just wrong surely.

I didn't notice that myself. I'm sure it will tell you at the end of the application though and to be honest I wouldn't be surprised if there is. Seems like all I'm doing lately is handing out money to apply

studentforever

Hi all,

Yes, you do have to pay for the application. Mature applicants are treated very much like post grads in that every application to a different University is charged. Which is a pain, but thats the way it is unfortunately.

I have a question, hopefully one of you can answer it! I'm going the the U.S tomorrow for two weeks. I haven't applied to the CAO yet because I heard from someone that the documentation needs to be sent within a week of applying. But I need the CAO to apply for the HPAT before the 20th deadline. I've emailed CAO asking but they haven't got back to me yet so I'm in a mad panic trying to email lecturers and employers for references and trying to finish off personal statements and so on. So does anyone know if they're ok about late documentation or is it a strict rule?

On a side note, these personal statements are a pain in the ar$e and I'm pretty sure I sound like a complete lunatic in them. Awesome...

spacecat

They are pretty strict with the deadline for Mature students as far as know. However, you can register with the CAO but not fill in the application form. You have two weeks from submitting the application form to send in your relevant paper work. For instance, I registered with the CAO and HPAT last November but I haven't applied for any course yet. Still banging my head against the wall with this PS,blah,lol


So, you can register with CAO and then with HPAT today....once you have the funds pfff, and head off on your holidays tomz stress free(ish)

paperclip2

studentforever wrote: »

On a side note, these personal statements are a pain in the ar$e and I'm pretty sure I sound like a complete lunatic in them. Awesome...

It is s a bit of an art form. Larriane gave some fantastic advice on doing them here: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055676871

paperclip2

Not sure if its on this thread already but a few moths ago Hollinger posted some excellent advice on applying for medicine as a mature student to RCSI.

Applying for Medicine as a Mature Student- Hollinger

Here's a few things I've noticed over my two years of applying for medicine as a mature. I can't "prove" most of this, it's just my opinion based on what I have observed. No one can tell you how to make the perfect application, most of it is shaped by things you've already done and life experience thus far. Certain things are worth knowing and do help to get that extra edge. Go the extra mile if there are weak points in your application, and always ask for feedback from each college if you don't get in, pester them until they give it.

- What they are looking for varies slightly from college to college. TCD/UCD seem to go for matures with a long history of volunteering and charity experience building up to their application. Last minute/token efforts seem to fall on deaf ears. They seem to take charity/volunteer work more seriously, and focus slightly less on academics.

- RCSI seem more likely to take people crossing over from random degrees, and they short list initially based your HPAT score.. the higher the better, but 160~ ish seems to be enough to at least get to sending in the personal statement stage. They made a big deal of my hpat score this year, I went up, from 174 to 192 and they seemed really impressed with this. They want candidates that are first and foremost, really strong academically. I've talked to people that have TONS more volunteer experience than me who didn't even get offered an interview with them, but did in other colleges.

- Can't comment on Galway/Cork since I didn't apply there, but I'm guessing they are at least slightly easier to get into than the Dublin colleges just based on numbers applying.

- RCSI DEFINITELY favour some sort of science background. That doesn't necessarily mean you need a science degree, just that you've actually proven your aptitude in science subjects before coming in.. even at leaving cert level. I think that went against me last year, since I did engineering and never did chem or bio for leaving cert. This year I took on those subjects as an external student and have a place in RCSI conditional on getting a B in Chemistry.

- I haven't heard of any matures in RCSI that did premed, from what I gather they keep the matures together and they all skip premed (have never heard otherwise). So if you aren't eligible to skip premed chances are you won't get a place.

- They want people that have seen the work of doctors directly, and know what they are getting themselves into. Charity/volunteer work that lacks exposure to doctors at work doesn't seem to mean all that much to application in RCSI. Push hard and keep your ear to the ground for volunteer work that actually exposes you to observing real medical work. Go abroad if you have to. There are plenty of third world countries with less red tape where it's easier to actually do something useful and get meaningful experience.

NinjaK

Can mature applicants chop and change over the coming months? Ive a course im interested in doing but im just wondering if I decided to pick something else would it be possible?

Abby19

studentforever wrote: »

Hi all,

I have a question, hopefully one of you can answer it! I'm going the the U.S tomorrow for two weeks. I haven't applied to the CAO yet because I heard from someone that the documentation needs to be sent within a week of applying. But I need the CAO to apply for the HPAT before the 20th deadline. I've emailed CAO asking but they haven't got back to me yet so I'm in a mad panic trying to email lecturers and employers for references and trying to finish off personal statements and so on. So does anyone know if they're ok about late documentation or is it a strict rule?

spacecat wrote: »

They are pretty strict with the deadline for Mature students as far as know. However, you can register with the CAO but not fill in the application form. You have two weeks from submitting the application form to send in your relevant paper work. For instance, I registered with the CAO and HPAT last November but I haven't applied for any course yet. Still banging my head against the wall with this PS,blah,lol


So, you can register with CAO and then with HPAT today....once you have the funds pfff, and head off on your holidays tomz stress free(ish)

You only have 7 days from online submission to get your paper copies in to the CAO. Check out Page 11 http://www2.cao.ie/handbook/handbook/index.php
'If you apply online, instructions about the submission of any additional documentation will appear on screen. Such documents must arrive in CAO within seven days of the submission of the online application'

As per post above, you can create CAO account to start HPAT application, iirc, you need a HPAT number to complete CAO application and you need a CAO and HPAT number for the TCD application. A bit circular I know.
You can go in and out of the CAO application to tweak to your heart's content, but once you submit it you need to get the supporting documentation within 7 days.

Fiddles44

studentforever wrote: »

Hi all,

Yes, you do have to pay for the application. Mature applicants are treated very much like post grads in that every application to a different University is charged. Which is a pain, but thats the way it is unfortunately.

I have a question, hopefully one of you can answer it! I'm going the the U.S tomorrow for two weeks. I haven't applied to the CAO yet because I heard from someone that the documentation needs to be sent within a week of applying. But I need the CAO to apply for the HPAT before the 20th deadline. I've emailed CAO asking but they haven't got back to me yet so I'm in a mad panic trying to email lecturers and employers for references and trying to finish off personal statements and so on. So does anyone know if they're ok about late documentation or is it a strict rule?

On a side note, these personal statements are a pain in the ar$e and I'm pretty sure I sound like a complete lunatic in them. Awesome...

Did you ever get an answer back from CAO about having to send your application in a week after you apply?

I asked them the same question and they told me it was fine as long as everything was sent to them by the 1st of Feb.
Just wondering did they say the same to you?

Traderdc

Hi guys - I am a mature applicant and will be sitting hpat. I work full time at the moment and am only beginning to prepare for the HPAT now which seems very late having looked at the posts on here! Just a couple of quick questions that I would really appreciate some answers on. I am going to do a prep course, seems like alot of people have done ME or CS. There is a CS one on in Cork on 11 Feb which I think I will do as it is much more convenient for me than heading to Dublin. Which is better? The ME one is a lot more expensive obviously. I have the 2 acer practice tests but is there anywhere else I can get good practice tests with worked solutions? I have read alot of you are doing "drills", what are these exactly and where can I access them. Apols for all the questions but i'd really appreciate some help and feel free to direct me to where these questions have been answered already. Thanks alot.

Fiddles44

Traderdc wrote: »

Hi guys - I am a mature applicant and will be sitting hpat. I work full time at the moment and am only beginning to prepare for the HPAT now which seems very late having looked at the posts on here! Just a couple of quick questions that I would really appreciate some answers on. I am going to do a prep course, seems like alot of people have done ME or CS. There is a CS one on in Cork on 11 Feb which I think I will do as it is much more convenient for me than heading to Dublin. Which is better? The ME one is a lot more expensive obviously. I have the 2 acer practice tests but is there anywhere else I can get good practice tests with worked solutions? I have read alot of you are doing "drills", what are these exactly and where can I access them. Apols for all the questions but i'd really appreciate some help and feel free to direct me to where these questions have been answered already. Thanks alot.

I bought the ME package and I think its pretty good. It gives you a lot of online material to work on (drills) and gives you all the solutions to the questions. I thought the day course was pretty good too. The guy went through the different types of questions that can come up and they give you a mock exam on the second day. Its pretty expensive but I think its worth it

I haven't done the CS course myself but just from reading a few things on boards it sounds good too. People say the day course is actually better than the ME course day but you don't get as much material to work with. I think its cheaper though. Hope thats some help.

I'm obvoiusly applying this year too. How you finding the whole application writing?

Alt.End

Fiddles44 wrote: »

How you finding the whole application writing?

Hi, I just wanted to say that I'm applying this year too, and now that I have to send my documents, I get the impression my application gets worse everyday and I hate my personal statement....is anybody else experiencing something like this?^^ and how long are your statements?
I am applying for the second time this year and it didn't get any easier at all =(