Medicine
Duration
6 years
Entry
Biomed & Graduate
Scope of practice
NZ and AUS
Cohort size
257
Medicine (MBChB)
The Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery is the most competitive clinical programme at the University of Auckland. This is a challenging programme that can lead to many career options. You will diagnose and treat patients and play a crucial role in the health care.
This degree is very content-heavy, so it’s important to have efficient study methods and good time management. Doctors may work for long hours under stress. You will be dealing with a wide range of patients, so it’s important that you have good communication skills. You can work in Australia without any further exams.
Entry and Statistics
Entry into medicine is highly competitive, and you will be selected based on your GPA (60% weighting), interview (25% weighting) and UCAT (15% weighting). You will need to be an all-rounder to maximise your chances! Below are some entry statistics in the general category. There are approximately 96 seats in the general entry category which can vary.
Want to maximise your chances? Check out our MMI Guide and receive a FREE Consultation today!
Core papers: BIOSCI107, CHEM110, POPLHLTH111, MEDSCI 142.
To be eligible for an interview, you must have an overall GPA of at least 6.0. Meeting this GPA will not guarantee you an interview offer. The interview cut-off GPA, calculated with core papers, is often higher than this. This means that you need to do extra well on your core papers and maintain your grades while studying for the UCAT. The interview-cutoff GPA has been increasing for the past three years. In 2021, the interview-cutoff GPA (CST adjusted) was 7.2. You should focus on your core papers and aim to have a core GPA of above 8 to maximize your chances for entry.
Similarly, to be eligible for an interview, you must have an overall GPA of at least 6.0. In the graduate pathway, the cumulative GPA is used for entry. In 2021, the interview-cutoff GPA is 7.7. You should leave time to practice for the UCAT and interview and maintain your grades throughout your degree.
In both categories, since the semester two grades are not released when interview offers are released, the highest possible grade is assigned for semester two.
The pathways above are for general entry. There are alternative entry pathways into medicine, so check the UoA MBCHB entry guide!
This is a highly simplified guide. We strongly encourage you to visit the UoA medicine entry guide and student centre for more information. We try to make our information as accurate as possible. Still, entry criteria are subject to change, and our information may be outdated.
For entry tips, please visit our undergraduate and graduate guide.
Number of applicants
The number of applicants for medicine has been increasing, with a large jump in 2021.
No Data Found
Percentage of applicants invited to interviews
"GPA cut-offs for MBChB interview offers are set so that approximately twice the number of applicants as places available are interviewed."
No Data Found
Number of successful FY and Grad applicants
Seats are mainly filled by first-year applicants, with the exception of 2021.
No Data Found
Programme overview & what med students say...
The atmosphere in medicine is very supportive and there are a lot of support sessions and events available. Be sure to ask for help when needed and get involved!
Clinical skills
Clinical and professional skills, including how to look after your health and well-being
Illness and disease
Human health and mechanisms of disease
Hands on experience
Practical labs and placements throughout the degree
Medicine prescribing
How to prescribe medicines and pharmaceutical treatments
It’s hard to cover everything here. Below is a general review of what you will do each year (may be subject to change).
Part II
Part II of medicine is focused on building clinical foundation and medical knowledge, covering a wide range of topics. The year is split up into modules with a test at the end of each module. These modules cover the body systems, physiology and clinical conditions. There are labs where you will learn more about the anatomy, physiology, and histology of tissues of each module. You will also learn about mechanisms of how drugs work and basic prescription and dosing of medicines. There are also clinical skills that you will learn and medical ethics, health, and well-being.
Part II may sound like a lot, but you should be fine as long as you manage your time wisely!
“Coming into medicine, let go of your perfectionist mindset. There is less of a focus on grades and sometimes being good is good enough. But at the same time, enjoy what you’re learning and make the most of the opportunities given to you. At the end of the day, we are learning how to be good doctors.”
“Get yourself involved in events and put yourself out there. Join clubs, go to events and have fun with your friends. It’s important to keep a balance, so your not just studying all day. Be selective about what you learn because sometimes you can’t possibly learn everything.”
“Definitely being able to make so many new friends with such a diverse group of people. Med is full of people from so many backgrounds.”
Part III
Part III is very much a continuation of Part II with the introduction of new modules and consolidating anatomy and physiology content before clinical years. Lectures, labs and tutorials are largely held in the first semester. In the second semester, content becomes more clinically focussed. There is also the opportunity to attend ward placements in preparation for Part IV clinical placements. This will be the last time students will experience lectures and tutorials with the whole cohort before splitting off for placements, so do enjoy it!
The habits that are set in the first few weeks will definitely set your standard for the rest of the year. So it’s definitely important to try implement good habits early, cramming is never fun! Also enjoy all the events that are available.
Part IV
Part IV is the first year of clinical placement where you spend your time in one of 6 hospitals ( Waitematā, Auckland City, Middlemore, Waikato, Rotorua and Tauranga). The year is structured with various medical and surgical runs. Each has its own marking criteria, including case histories, presentations, practical/clinical examinations, taking histories, and examining a required number of patients. The runs that are covered this year are geriatrics, GenMed, SpecMed, anaesthetics, GP, orthopaedics and GenSurg. There’s also a week of procedural skills where you practice things such as cannulations, suturing, casts/back slabs, nasogastric tubes etc. In each run, you get to do a range of cool and exciting things, and the teams mostly try to get you involved. Most days would include shadowing the doctors on ward rounds and seeing all the patients. You also get to be quite independent and choose to talk to patients and examine them, help out the house officers with any jobs, seek out health professionals for teaching or, if you’re on a surgical run, watch surgeries. If you have a nice team, they will let you assist with surgeries or let you do the sutures!
“Overall, there are a lot of ups and downs as every year is but this year is particularly fun as you get to apply your three years of pre-clinical knowledge and finally get a taste of what your future will look like.”
“If you want a career where you get to learn everyday, then medicine is the perfect career”
Part V
Coming soon…
“Make sure you surround yourself with friends and family. There’s the misconception that you won’t be able to spend time with loved ones because of a demanding schedule, but it’s important to prioritise spending quality time with them. No one is an island, especially in a degree as demanding as medicine.
Find something beyond the scope of medicine that interests you- for many people, that can be sport, fitness, music etc. Make sure it’s sustainable and can help you effectively switch off from work and study-related stresses.”
“The workload during clinical years differs significantly from that in premed and preclinical years. It resembles a stereotypical university schedule less, so learning how to stay organised to keep on top of everything is important. As important as being academically inclined is, having good communication skills and an eagerness to work with people in multidisciplinary teams is important during this stage of your learning.
Take this opportunity to be inspired by people – the patients and health care professionals. Let your daily interactions guide and focus your learning as you identify your weaknesses and incorporate different viewpoints interacting with different people can offer you.”
Part VI
Coming soon…
What does the job involve?
The Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery can lead to many opportunities with endless options. You can choose to specialise or become a researcher working in many different environments.
Doctors can work in urban or rural clinics and hospitals, with strong demand for healthcare workers in rural communities. Doctors treat patients and prescribe medicines, but you can also perform surgical treatments if you specialise. There is a wide range of specialties available, but some are very competitive to enter.
Since medicine is such a versatile degree, its hard to cover it all. For more information, CareersNZ has a good guide of each medical specialty.
Wonder what it's like being a Doctor?
Heres what Dr Mo Ziaei, an Ophthalmologist says!
“I’m an academic clinician with a special interest in anterior segment disease. I work both as a senior lecturer at the University of Auckland and as a consultant ophthalmologist at the ADHB and privately at Re:Vision Laser & cataract. My academic work mainly focuses on novel treatments for the treatment of corneal disease, which was also the thesis for my doctoral dissertation. I mainly specialise in front of the eye surgeries. I typically deal with patients with cornea, cataract, and ocular surface issues, as well as individuals who want freedom from their glasses. My job is incredibly varied and rewarding and spans from teaching, doing laboratory work, seeing patients in clinic and, of course, my passion which is operating. The typical surgeries I perform are cataract surgery, corneal transplantation and laser vision correction amongst others. The job is also incredibly rewarding as we are in a blessed situation where we can restore sight or provide freedom with glasses with simple, painless and usually quick surgeries with minimal downtime and incredibly quick recovery. I think this is unparalleled in any other field in medicine and comes with a great mix of surgical niche as well as technology utilisation.
The training process for becoming an ophthalmologist is long however as it involves both medical and microsurgical training. I trained in the UK, and this involved five years of medical school, two years as a junior doctor and seven years of ophthalmology training, followed by a number of surgical and academic fellowships to finetune my skills both as an ophthalmologist and as a researcher. I absolutely think that the long training is worth it, and I would advise ophthalmology to anyone who wants to be involved in a speciality which at its core, combines medical knowledge, surgical prowess and technological advancements to deliver patients unparalleled outcomes in terms of clinical results and surgical safety.”
Pros and Cons
Like any other clinical programme, Medicine has its pros and cons. Just know that everyone has different perspectives. A pro for you might be a con for others!
Pros
– Versatile degree with many career options.
– Flexibility between rural and urban clinics.
– Good job security with relatively high starting pay.
– Option to work in Australia without further exams.
Cons
– 6 year degree that is very content heavy. However, the content is very interesting with lots of practicals.
– Some medical specialties are very competitive to enter.
– Long working hours with more stress. It can be tricky to have a work life balance, but you are taught how to properly manage stress and pressure.