Biomedicine

[smamsmo22]

Hi, I'm a current year 12 who believes they want to do medicine at some point, would've probably preferred to get straight into it out of high school and done the undergrad but my UMAT prep (or lack thereof) kinda ruined that for me. Oh well. (:

I was just wondering what the biomed > med pathway is like at UoM, obviously similar questions have been asked before, but just generally;
Is there a manageable uni/life balance? I think I'd benefit from a less intense schedule after being at school ~8 hours a day 5 days a week during yr 12; would doing this course allow me to work more (and potentially travel)? I know its not a lax course by any means and I definitely want to challenge myself, but in terms of hours per week etc, is it a less intense vibe?
How difficult is getting into post grad medicine at Melbourne? Is the % success low and is it really competitive? I don't have a problem with working hard and am prepared to do so to get the required marks, but generally are your chances decent?
Generally, people who did this pathway, did you enjoy it? Was it good to prepare yourself for/ get a better idea of medicine and/or try the breadth subjects?

Finally, this is just an added q that is more relevant to Monash (and I'll ask it there if no one knows here), but does Monash offer any high ATAR guarantees which get you straight into post grad med after the undergrad without GAMSAT, as UoM does with the Chancellor's program?

Thanks so much for the help.

[VanillaRice]

Finally, this is just an added q that is more relevant to Monash (and I'll ask it there if no one knows here), but does Monash offer any high ATAR guarantees which get you straight into post grad med after the undergrad without GAMSAT, as UoM does with the Chancellor's program?

I can answer this one - unfortunately, no. One of the reasons would probably be because they already have a direct undergraduate entry. Also, their grad pathway doesn't require the GAMSAT regardless.

[Bell9565]

Okay so my cousin is currently at UoM doing Biomed and wants to to postgrad medicine and she's told me a little so hopefully I can help out.

From what I can gather it is pretty competitive, because a large chunk of people only to biomed hoping to get into med, not to actually work in the biomedical science field. She is often in the library to very late at night and does a lot of work for her studies and is already studying for the GAMSAT as a first year.

As she got a 99+ atar, she is guaranteed a spot in medicine (not chancellors scholars) if she keeps her scores above a certain level BUT it is not a CSP meaning she would have to pay a bucket load of cash to study med so really, she's trying to get in like the rest of her cohort - through her GPA, interview and GAMSAT. To get a CSP guaranteed you need Chancellors scholars and then you still need to pass the interview.

Alternatively at Monash (where I'd want to study biomed if i don't make it into med next year), from what I can gather its slightly easier to get into postrgad med from biomed. Monash ONLY take monash students, meaning if you wanted to do postgrad at UoM you could if you did undergrad at Monash but not other way around. Plus, they have 50 spots which are a CSP reserved for their biomed graduates which doesn't take GAMSAT into account. Plus the rest of the med cohort (25 places) going to either other biomed grads or science/pharmacy ect.

Either way, getting into med undergrad or postgrad is hard but its doable, but from what I can gather the pathway at UoM results in less biomed grads ending up in postgrad med. I may be wrong but that's the general idea I get.

Goodluck for the rest of the year!

[cookiedream]

Alternatively at Monash (where I'd want to study biomed if i don't make it into med next year), from what I can gather its slightly easier to get into postrgad med from biomed. Monash ONLY take monash students, meaning if you wanted to do postgrad at UoM you could if you did undergrad at Monash but not other way around. Plus, they have 50 spots which are a CSP reserved for their biomed graduates which doesn't take GAMSAT into account. Plus the rest of the med cohort (25 places) going to either other biomed grads or science/pharmacy ect.

Just wanted to add that, from what my Biomed friends have told me, it's only slightly easier in a statistical sense.

They described to me how toxic the environment is with virtually every one of the 600 students going for the 50 places. The sheer number of assignments, the weekly 3-hours labs, the 11 (or so)-hour lectures every week, having no days off and the ruthless timetables made me a lot more wary about the Biomed pathway into Monash med than when I first heard of it in Year 12.  Of course, one or two friends have had positive experiences, but they're really on top of their game with organisation and time management that I could only dream of.

[Sine]

I'm currently in 2nd year biomed @ monash and yeah it's not "easier" for monash studnets imo - yes there are more opportunities but if you can get in via one pathway you are more than likely able to get through both.

Also I don't agree with the "toxic environment", (although cookiedreams friends are in a different year level so can't comment on that).
It is one of the closest and tight knit cohorts imo as we all generally the same subjects together every semester so it's easy to make connections, personally I've never seen anyone try to impede anyone else for their own personal gain and there is literally only one person I dislike and that is completely unrelated to academics LOL.

At least with most people I'm close with in the cohort we always try to help each other so we can all to better. (e.g. Sharing notes, tips/info on units if you've done it before, etc)

[mostmagicalmuggle]

I do science, but I'm at unimelb and know a bit about biomed from friends. It is quite a restrictive course in that they force you to do subjects like maths, physics, etc and don't allow much flexibility apart from breadth subjects. Because of this, your WAM may be lower than going through a different course like science, where you have the freedom to pick subjects that you actually like and will get better grades in (as well as prerequisites obviously).

Of course it depends on each person, some of my friends don't mind the biomed subjects, but I know other people who have actually transferred out of biomed because they realise they can probably get a better WAM in another undergrad course. That being said, the somewhat competitive med-focussed environment of biomed may suit you if you are influenced by the work ethic and attitudes of others, and because the cohort is smaller than science/arts and everyone does similar subjects, it may be easier to form study groups and make friends with similar goals.

As for uni/life balance, its completely dependent on you and your time management ability. Biomed lectures tend to start early (8am) but you can watch those online, and you will probably get a day off or multiple half days depending on your timetable, so not 8 hour days like high school. It is quite possible to do other stuff outside of uni like having a part time job and social life, but be prepared to make sacrifices if you are determined to get in to med, as it will undoubtedly be tough. Melbourne uni is quite competitive, and medicine is one of the most difficult postgrad courses to get in to. You should definitely consider applying to interstate unis as well if you are determined to get into med.

Best of luck

[BNard]

Have you considered doing Science at Unimelb instead? I had the option to choose between BioM and Sci and just like you, was a bit worn out from the whole 5 days a week year 12 routine so went with Science.  I'm loving it, find the flexibility with subject selection and timetabling etc so helpful and am fundamentally at no disadvantage in terms of applying for UoM grad med. Whatever you end up doing, uni will be a big adjustment intensity/pace wise (if you're anything like me) so make sure you consider all the options you have to make your life a little bit easier, more relaxed and more balanced!

[Lear]

I’m in the same position as you and from the advice I’ve gotten from a handful of Biomed + Med students, I will definitely be doing B.Sc

[Hydroxyl]

I definitely agree with the sentiments made here about the Bachelor of Science at The University of Melbourne. Melbourne University doesn't prefer their Biomeds over Science students for the Med application process, and indeed they force you to take subjects that are not generally "scientific". For example, the standard course structure of someone doing Biomed in first year is:

2 x Biology subjects
2 x Maths subjects
1 x Chemistry subject
1 x Physics subject
2 x Breadth subjects (which you can choose).

The first year pathway is very restrictive and does not allow you to explore other areas of science, unless through your breadth subjects. This can really ramp up your workload because you're essentially doing 4 science subjects rather than 3 sciences + a breadth!

Additionally, if you do not like the subjects you are enrolled in, there is nothing you can do about it - you have to stick with it. Not to mention that the workload is definitely much more. If you want to apply to Med School, you need to try and be as strategic as possible (just like in VCE) in order to maximise your marks.

I got into B-BMED initially but transferred before the year started because I wanted to continue to study other sciences, such as Psychology, without doing them in my breadths. What essentially pushed me over the line to Science was that core second year Biomedicine subjects are doubly weighted (in terms of credit points), which means double the work for that one subject. This means that whatever mark you get for that subject is counted twice, and then overall second year is counted twice! This means that if you "stuff up" the core MCB (BIOM20001) or HSF (BIOM20002), then that mark is essentially counted 4 times when your GPA is reweighed for Med School Admissions. Not to mention that third year Biomed subjects are primarily research based, and the other 4 subjects relate to your major which is all available in the Bachelor of Science. I don't think your missing out by doing Science, in fact you gain more. A more flexible course that allows you to delve deeper into subjects related to Medicine such as Pharmacology (which you only do 2 weeks of in Biomed), Pathology and the like. You are able to study these in complete subjects, unlike the rushed nature of the so-called "integrated" subjects in second year Biomed. I don't think it's worth cashing in your ATAR for such a difficult course. You won't be losing anything as the skills that have allowed you to score well in VCE will carry over to university provided you work hard.


All the best. I'm sure you can do it!

Hydroxyl

[joshgoundar]

If I recieve an atar of 94.80 do I have a chance of getting into Bachelor of Biomedince @ UoM?

[Alter]

If I recieve an atar of 94.80 do I have a chance of getting into Bachelor of Biomedince @ UoM?

Did you apply through any SEAS categories?

[joshgoundar]

Did you apply through any SEAS categories?

Only catergory 1- underrepresented schools

[vox nihili]

Only catergory 1- underrepresented schools

Potentially a smallish chance. Might as well leave it first. Science is very similar to biomed at Melbourne though, so that should be actively considered. Congrats on your ATAR.