Studying Medicine & Dentistry in Scotland: Universities, UCAT, Costs

The admissions system: UCAS, Highers, and UCAT

As in England, applications are submitted exclusively through UCAS, and medicine closes far earlier in the cycle than most other subjects — roughly a year before teaching starts. The exact closing date and the test window move from cycle to cycle, so they are worth checking against the year you are applying in. Scottish applicants usually sit Scottish Highers and Advanced Highers rather than A-Levels; international applicants more commonly submit A-Levels or the International Baccalaureate. All five medical faculties require the UCAT, though there are no fixed minimum scores. Each faculty decides for itself how much weight the test result carries against school grades, and what counts as a competitive result varies by university and by cohort. We assess your profile against the institutions it fits in a free individual consultation.

One distinctive feature is the joint programme ScotGEM from the universities of St Andrews and Dundee: an undergraduate medical degree specifically designed to prepare students for general practice in rural areas of Scotland, with a preference for Scottish applicants who have a connection to underserved communities — in practice largely inaccessible to international students.

The five medical faculties

Four of the five universities offer a complete, standalone MBChB programme. St Andrews is a special case: only the first two years of study are completed there, after which all students transfer to a partner university for the clinical years. For international students (fee status "overseas"), this transfer is not a matter of choice: they go exclusively to the University of Manchester in England, whereas home students can also choose between Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, or Queen Mary London.

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Dentistry: faculties and costs

Dentistry (BDS) is offered in Scotland at three universities — Aberdeen, Dundee, and Glasgow. All three require the UCAT and usually an interview. The figures below are rough estimates rounded to the nearest hundred.

What the route looks like

The Scottish route runs on the same national machinery as England. Applicants sit the UCAT in the summer before the application year and apply through UCAS rather than to each faculty directly, with a limit of four medicine or dentistry choices plus one alternative subject. A personal statement and a school reference go in with the application, candidates who get through shortlisting are invited to a selection interview or a Multiple Mini Interview over the winter months, and an offer is normally conditional on final school results. Evidence of English and a Student visa follow once the place is confirmed.

Test windows, application deadlines and the English certificates a given faculty accepts are set per university and per cycle, and they shift from year to year. We check the live calendar and the current requirements for the universities that fit your profile in a free individual consultation.

Tuition fees and living costs at a glance

Unlike in England, Scottish and many EU students pay no tuition fees thanks to SAAS funding — a privilege that has not applied to applicants from Germany or other EU countries since Brexit. They fall under the same "Overseas" rates as students from outside Europe. Living costs outside Edinburgh and Glasgow are typically £900–1,200 per month; in the two major cities, closer to £1,100–1,500.