Studying at QUB School of Medicine

Overview

Queen’s University Belfast is currently the only medical school in Northern Ireland, giving you a great opportunity to explore this part of the UK while you study! At Queen’s you’ll benefit from early clinical contact, with placements from the very first year. You’ll also have the chance to perform a full body dissection as part of your anatomy teaching – great for any budding surgeons!

The selection process uses both GCSE grades and UCAT to rank applicants for interview. Therefore it is an ideal choice for candidates who score well in both of these aspects. It’s also ideal for candidates who have very strong UCAT/GCSEs as this can boost your application and make up for weaker aspects.

Key Points

• Ireland
• UCAT
• Optional Intercalation
• Integrated Course

Insider’s Guide to QUB Medical School from Astha P, QUB Medical Student

What makes QUB unique to other medical schools?

There is early clinical contact with patients in first year. We also have Student Selected Components with a wide range of choices throughout the medical curriculum. Our assistantship programme in Final Year is 9 weeks long – giving you much longer preparing for your first job than other medical schools! There is also plenty of intercalation study options at both BSc and Masters levels so you can explore areas of interest and gain additional degrees.

Queen’s has recently opened a dedicated, large interprofessional simulation suite for student use so that students can work together with future colleagues from nursing, pharmacy and other disciplines, in simulated scenarios that reproduce real life in the healthcare setting.

Course Structure at QUB Medical School

Year 1 & 2 at QUB Medical School

You learn about the scientific basis of medical practice, you explore each body system, focusing on the mechanisms of cellular structure and function. You also study pathology, microbiology, therapeutics and genetics. Teaching of basic science subjects is integrated with clinical skills training which you acquire through clinical simulation and practice with patients. You will have hospital placements from semester 2 and have patient contact, you will also have a student selected components and have family attachment. There are practical classes throughout years one and two – these are designed to support learning in the basic sciences. Students will have the opportunity to undertake cadaveric dissection during the Anatomy components of the course.

Year 3 at QUB Medical School

The third year has a higher clinical exposure. Almost all of your teaching will be in a clinical setting. Classroom-based and clinical teaching takes place in each of the medical and surgical specialties, which is integrated with therapeutic, pathological and microbiological principles relevant to clinical medical practice in longitudinal clerkships in hospitals and general practices all over Northern Ireland.

At the end of second or third year, students may apply to take a year out of their medical degree to study for an intercalated degree. This extra research focused year will lead to either a qualification at Bachelor or Master’s level.

Year 4 at QUB Medical School

During the fourth and fifth years you gain further experience in child health, women’s health, mental health, cancer, general practice and Ageing and Health. Integrated teaching between primary and secondary care offers an opportunity for you to consolidate and advance your clinical skills and enhance your clinical and related knowledge.

Year 5 at QUB Medical School

In fifth year, you have the opportunity to undertake an assistantship, during which you complete the range of tasks undertaken by a Foundation Doctor. Professionalism, ethics, communication, teamwork, and related behavioral science is embedded through the Double-Helical Themes.

Currently, as part of the medical degree there are opportunities for students to take a clinical module in a European institution participating in the Erasmus programme. Students may also opt to travel to other counties as part of the final year Elective module.

Teaching Style at QUB Medical School

What is the general teaching style at QUB? E.g. is it PBL/Traditional? etc.

The curriculum is integrated and systems-based. There is cased based learning [Students work in groups to discuss key cases that form the spine of the integrated curriculum. The group work is facilitated by academic staff and clear learning outcomes are provided.]

Does QUB offer dissection?

QUB aims to teach students anatomy through cadaveric full-body dissection

What is the pre-clinical / clinical split like? Do you get early clinical exposure?

QUB does integrated curriculum, and assesses the students through a progress test. Four ‘Double-Helical Themes’ weave their way into every module and year of the course. These themes – the DNA of the curriculum – are Global and Population Health, Clinical Science and Practice, Achieving Good Medical Practice and Teamwork for Safe Care.

Years 1 and 2 are termed as pre-clinical years, where you have a higher emphasis on scientific knowledge. Years 3,4, and 5 are clinical years where almost every teaching happens in a clinical placement.

Social Life at QUB Medical School

What are the clubs and societies like? What is the social life like?

Belfast is in the center of Northern Ireland. Whether you’re looking for a high-energy music gig, a cosy traditional pub, rooftop cocktails, your nights out in Belfast will be amazing. I honestly love living here, I have never felt like I miss out on anything. Even if partying isn’t your thing, you will always find something to do here. Belfast has art and culture as its heart and soul and is bursting with museums, plays, that explore the diverse history and life of this region.

Northern Ireland’s spectacular scenery is an outdoor pursuits paradise, and getting outside is as simple as going for a walk, run or cycle at many places close to the university. As a medical student many students are involved in the several medical based societies at Queen’s, including the Belfast Medical Students’ Association (BMSA), Scrubs, Medsin and Students Working Overseas Trust (SWOT). In addition, the University has over 190 clubs and student societies offering the opportunity to medical students to develop their interests and explore new activities.

FAQs