Minimum Age Requirements To Study Medicine UK

If you are wondering what the minimum age requirements to study medicine in the UK is then you have come to the right place.

The age requirements to study medicine differ from university to university as they have different policies. If you will be under the age of 18 when you start the course then you must check with the medical school before applying. The majority of medical schools have minimum age requirements, while others do not state whether they do or do not.

Why do medical schools have minimum age requirements?

This age requirement is usually in place due to early clinical/patient contact. Medical students are often expected to work and study in hospitals and clinical locations. Many courses have early patient contact, allowing students to assist and perform procedures. From a purely practical and operational standpoint, these are very difficult to organise if a student is under 18 years old due to legal reasons.

Therefore, any student under the age of 18 could not partake in any clinical elements of the course which would seriously hamper their progress.

WHAT CAn a younger candidate do if they do not meet age requirements?

Ordinarily, if a candidate has got all the entry requirements to apply to study medicine, the applicant would be old enough to apply. However, if an applicant is under 18 and wishes to apply there are options.

Many universities accept applications for deferred entry from younger applicants. Deferred entry means an applicant can secure their place for the next academic year once they are old enough.
Apply exclusively to medical schools which accept students under 18 years old (see table below).
Wait until the applicant comes of age.

It is important to note that, while some medical schools do accept younger candidates, they do so after stating the applicant should consider the commitment to the medical field and their personal maturity.

UK MEDICAL SCHOOL MINIMUM AGE REQUIREMENTS TABLE

With over 30 medical schools in the UK, each with a different stance on the minimum age to study Medicine, we have made life easier for you and put together a table of requirements and policies for every medical school in the UK.

Medical School	Age requirement policy
Aston Medical School	No minimum age listed
Aberdeen	There is no minimum age requirement for Aberdeen medical school.
Barts	You must be over 18 to begin studying at Barts medical school. If you will be 18 in time for the next academic year, then you may apply for deferred entry.
Birmingham	You can begin studying at Birmingham medical school at the age of 17, however, you must turn 18 in the first year of study.
Brighton & Sussex	Brighton and Sussex medical school have accepted applicants aged 17 to study their medicine course. They will not accept applicants who are 16 at the time of entry.
Bristol	Students wanting to study medicine at Bristol university must be over 18 years old by the 1st of October in their year of entry.
Cambridge	National restrictions mean that students under the age of 18 cannot partake in any clinical elements of the medicine course at Cambridge which begins in the second term of their first year of study. Therefore, students must be 18 by the start of their second term.
Cardiff	Students are expected to study in a clinical environment in the beginning of their first year so applicants studying at Cardiff medical school are required to be 18 years of age by the beginning of the academic year.
Dundee	There is no minimum age requirement specified to study medicine at Dundee university.
Edinburgh	Edinburgh medical school do not specify a minimum or maximum age requirement to study there, however, applications from Scottish S5 (15-17 years old) applicants will not normally be considered.
Exeter	Applicants must be over the age of 17 to study at Exeter medical school.
Glasgow	Applicants to Glasgow medical school do not have a minimum age requirement as long as they satisfy the course’s minimum requirements.
Hull York	Applicants must be over the age of 18 by the beginning of the academic year to study medicine.
Imperial	Imperial medical school requires all candidates to be over the age of 18 when they begin the academic year with no exceptions.
Keele	Keele medical school require all applicants to be 18 by the beginning of the academic year due to clinical work. Deferred places are known to be offered to students who would be under the age of 18 for the current academic year.
King’s	Applications from students aged 17 are accepted however the student must be at least 18 years old when clinical placements are carried out.
Lancaster	Lancaster medical school accept applications from all applicants provided they meet the minimum requirements.
Leeds	Candidates must be 17 years old at the beginning of the course. By the time clinical placements begin (in the 2nd term) they must be 18 years of age.
Leicester	Applicants wanting to study at Leicester medical school must be 18 years of age by the 1st of October in their year of entry. The requirement is in place due to patient content in the first year. Deferred entry will be considered for applicants who will not be of age for the current academic year.
Liverpool	There is no minimum age requirement to study medicine at Liverpool, however, applicants under the age of 18 require consent of a parent or guardian.
Lincoln	It is expected that applicants to Lincoln medical school must be at least 18 years old on the first academic day in September, similar to Nottingham which the medical school is linked with.
Manchester	Manchester accept students who are 17 years old and above onto their medicine course. They do not consider applicants who would be 16 on the start date of the course. They accept students of 17 years of age because the clinical placements are carried out further into the course.
Newcastle	Newcastle medical school does not stipulate an upper or lower age limit for their course.
Norwich	Norwich medical school has significant patient contact throughout the first year meaning that students who are not 18 in their first year should consider deferred entry. There is, however, no official minimum age requirement.
Nottingham	Applicants to Nottingham medical school must be at least 18 years old on the first academic day in September.
Oxford	Oxford medical school requires candidates to be 18 years old by the 1st November in the year that they begin the course. This is because clinical content is carried out in the first term. Applicants younger than 18 for this would not be able to partake putting them at a disadvantage.
Plymouth	Early patient contact means that students must be at least 18 years old at or before the 1st of September to study at Plymouth medical school.
Queen’s	Queen’s do not accept any medical applicants under the age of 16 because the minimum age for inclusion on the GMC register on graduation is 21 years of age.
Sheffield	Applicants to Sheffield medical school must be 18 years of age when they start the course.
Southampton	Southampton have early clinical patient contact so students must be 18 years of age when they start their degree.
St Andrews	St Andrews medical school will accept any candidate who meet their minimum requirements, however, they do advise applicants to consider their experience and maturity prior to applying.
St George’s	Applicants must be 18 years of age by the start date of the course.
UCL	As with many other universities, the UCL medical course consists of early clinical content meaning that students under the age of 18 would not be able to participate. Because of this, students must be at least 18 years of age when starting the course.