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Lowest entry requirements for medicine (UK)

There are no “easy” medical schools — every school below rejects most of its applicants. But the bars are in completely different places: the school with the lowest UCAT bar is not the school with the lowest grade offer or the lightest GCSE rules. This page maps where each bar genuinely sits, including the schools that say no outright.

Lowest UCAT requirements

Two different systems hide behind “UCAT requirements”. At cut-off schools, UCAT is a line to clear: some publish the line in advance, most set it wherever their interview numbers land (want 600 in the interview room, the cut-off is the 600th applicant’s score). Clear it and your UCAT has done its job. At scored schools, UCAT is points in a wider formula alongside GCSEs or A-levels, so strong academics can carry a mid UCAT. If your UCAT is below the national mean (1891 in 2025), look for the generous cut-offs and the academic-weighted formulas:

SunderlandTop 8 deciles qualifies — roughly 1680/2700. The offer is then decided at interview alone. Lowest published bar in the UK.
Kent & MedwayUCAT is a generous pass/fail gate (~50th percentile region), not a ranking — clearing it puts you level with everyone else.
PlymouthPublishes its cut-offs; the line swings year to year and has dipped well below the mean in soft years.

Several schools also barely weight UCAT at all — they score your grades instead (see the tool’s “Realistic for my UCAT” lens).

Lightest GCSE requirements

GCSEs are the most misunderstood gate in medicine. At some schools your GCSE set is literally the ranking; at others it’s a token check. If your GCSEs are weak, the difference is everything:

ExeterGCSEs not scored at all — a single English Language grade 6 is the only requirement. Your A-level predictions do the work.
GlasgowLight touch: English, plus Biology at GCSE only if it’s not among your A-levels.
PlymouthGCSEs are a pass/fail gate, not points — they never rank you.

Lowest grade offers (AAB, ABB, BBB)

The standard offer is A*AA–AAA almost everywhere, but real routes below it exist:

PlymouthAAB standard offer — A in Biology plus a second science. The lowest standard offer at a UCAT school.
Newcastle (PARTNERS)BBB offer through the published PARTNERS contextual scheme — the lowest confirmed offer in UK medicine.
Contextual AAB/ABBA long list of schools drop one or two grades if you meet their widening-participation criteria — each scheme’s rules differ.

Gateway and foundation-year programmes (Medicine with a Gateway Year) sit around BBB with strict eligibility — usually postcode, school performance or household income based. If you qualify, they are the single biggest requirement drop available.

Medical schools that accept resits

Around 10 schools accept A-level resits without penalty, and more accept them with conditions — typically a minimum first-sitting result (for example ABB at the first attempt, then resit to higher grades). GCSE resits are accepted far more widely, at 29 of 41 schools, though a few only count your first sitting. The conditions are where resit applications die: two schools that both “accept resits” can have completely different first-sit minimums.

The hard NOs — free, because you shouldn’t waste a UCAS choice finding out

For standard applicants (extenuating circumstances aside), A-level resits are rejected outright at: Edinburgh (no resits of any kind), Imperial, UCL, St George’s, Kent & Medway and Queen Mary. Don’t spend a choice on these with resat A-levels.

Medicine without chemistry (or biology) A-level

A short list, but it’s real:

NewcastleNo A-level subject requirements at all — AAA in any three subjects. The most open subject policy in UK medicine.
PlymouthNo chemistry required — A in Biology plus one of Chemistry, Physics, Maths or Psychology.

The lowest bar is the one your profile clears.

Low UCAT but strong grades? Weak GCSEs but a 9th-decile UCAT? Resitting Year 13? The “easiest” school is different in each case. EDGU scores your exact profile against every UK medical school’s own system and ranks where you’re genuinely strong.

Get the full tool — £29 £39

FAQs

Which UK medical school has the lowest entry requirements?

There's no single answer because schools gate on different things. Plymouth's AAB is the lowest standard A-level offer at a UCAT school, Sunderland's top-8-deciles rule (~1680/2700) is the lowest UCAT bar, and widening-participation routes reach ABB and even BBB (Newcastle PARTNERS). The right question is which school's lowest bar matches YOUR weakest metric.

Can I get into medicine with AAB or ABB?

Yes. Plymouth's standard offer is AAB. Several schools make contextual offers at AAB or ABB if you meet their widening-participation criteria, and Newcastle's PARTNERS scheme goes to BBB. Gateway/foundation-year routes (Medicine with a Gateway Year) sit around BBB too.

Can I get into medicine with bad GCSEs?

Realistically, yes — at the right schools. Exeter doesn't score GCSEs at all (one English Language 6 is the only gate), and several others use GCSEs as a light pass/fail check rather than a points race. The schools to avoid are the GCSE-dominant scorers, where your GCSE set IS the ranking.

Which medical schools accept A-level resits?

Around 10 UK medical schools accept A-level resits without penalty, and more accept them with conditions — usually a minimum first-sitting result. A few reject resits outright for standard applicants, including Edinburgh, Imperial, UCL, St George's, Kent & Medway and Queen Mary (extenuating circumstances aside). The conditions vary school by school, which is exactly where resit applications go wrong.

Do I need chemistry A-level for medicine?

Not everywhere. Newcastle has no A-level subject requirement at all (AAA in any three subjects), and Plymouth requires Biology plus one of Chemistry, Physics, Maths or Psychology — so no chemistry needed. Most schools do require Chemistry and/or Biology, so the no-chem list is short but real.

Also useful: the free UCAT score calculator and decile guide.