University of Western Australia – 2-year Bachelor + 4-year Doctor of Medicine

University of Western Australia 4 year Doctor of Medicine degree is packaged with its designated bachelor degree. If students can’t meet GPA 5.5 out of 7 requirement during the first 2 years’ of bachelor, he or she will be required to graduate with a 3-year Bachelor of Science degree. Otherwise, admitted students are guaranteed to progress to University of Western Australia 4 year Doctor of Medicine degree upon completing the first two years of bachelor studies.

1. Academic Requirement (Accounts for 30% of application success)

Chem & Math are core requirements

• A level: A*A*A
• Canada: 95%
• DSE: 22
  • 5**=6, 5*=5.5, 5=5, 4=4, 3=3, 2=0
• IB: 40
• Murdoch University, Curtin University, Edith Cowan University Foundation: 85%
• Singapore A level: 14.5
  • H2 level: A=5, B=4, C=3, D=2, E=1
  • H1 level: A=2.5, B=2.0, C=1.5, D=1.0, E=0.5
  • Mathematics (O-Level) – B or higher OR H1 Math
• University of Western Australia Foundation: 86%
• USA: ACT 33 or SAT 1420 + AP subjects taken in 2 years with at least 17 points
  • Calculus AB or BC is needed

2. English Requirement

• IELTS: all band 7, one skill retake acceptable

3. ISAT & Deadlines (Accounts for 20% of application success)

• ISAT registration deadline: mid-April
• ISAT taking deadline: early May
• ISAT results: mid Feb or end of May depends on when you take it
• University of Western Australia medicine Deadline：end of June
• ISAT can be accepted 3 years prior to Year 1 university
• ISAT should be higher than 173 to be competitive

a. Where is it going to take place?

The clinical placement will be conducted in the wards and clinics of the hospitals of Perth, general practices and other community settings. Rural Clinical School of WA is also available for the clinical placements and the locations are listed as below:

• Albany
• Broome
• Bunbury
• Busselton
• Carnarvon
• Collie
• Derby
• Esperance
• Geraldton
• Kalgoorlie
• Karratha
• Kununurra
• Narrogin
• Northam
• Port Hedland
• Warren Blackwood
• Urban Centre

b. What is Rural Clinical School of WA like?

General practice in both rural and metropolitan settings deal with totality of the human life and health experience. As a primary health service, GPs provide cradle to grave care for all patients. The difference between rural and metro general practice is the impact of the rural setting. Rural GPs are geographically more remote from secondary and tertiary health care services. They may literally be the only available health service to their community. Rural GPs will deal with a greater complexity of problems and draw on a wider set of skills. They deliver babies, care for dying patients and may be the voice of public health messages for their community. They may do all these things in a single working day. Rural GP is general practice on steroids.

c. How is clinical placement going to be for the students?

The clinical placement will take place from Year 2 to Year 4 with its own focus as below:

• Year 2
  • four 6-week clinical rotations
  • focus on surgery, psychiatry, internal medicine and geriatrics/rheumatology
  • a longitudinal attachment in general practice occurs in parallel with the clinical rotations
• Year 3
  • eight-week duration clinical placements in surgery and psychiatry, internal medicine, general practice and ophthalmology, paediatrics and child health, and womens' and infants' health
  • twenty-five per cent of the UWA MD cohort undertake their studies in a Western Australian rural setting, being places in hospitals and general practices from Esperance to Kununurra
• Year 4
  • five-week duration clinical placements in emergency medicine, surgery, internal medicine, rural general practice, anaesthesia, cancer, palliative care
  • a placement where students are able to select a clinical placement to suit their interests (Selective)

d. What is the course structure?

The Doctor of Medicine (MD) course is based around six themes of Professional, Leader, Advocate, Clinician, Educator and Scholar. The 4-year course comprises the following:

• Year 1
  • Foundational concepts of the biomedical sciences of anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, genetics, immunology, haematology, microbiology, anatomical pathology and pharmacology
  • Introduction to professional aspects of medical practice includes professional behaviours, medical law and ethics, leadership and teamwork, collaborative practice, educational theory and practice, diversity within medicine, and Aboriginal health
• Year 2 -3
  • Clinical placement
  • All Year 3 students need to choose a Scholarly Activity Program
• Year 4
  • Clinical placement
  • complete Scholarly Activity stream, e-Portfolio and Procedural Skills Logbook
  • Preparation for internship

e. What is the teaching style in University of Western Australia?

The following teaching methods are adopted in the course:

• Lectures
• Seminars
• Clinical Skills Workshops
• Team Based Learning Workshops
• Tutorials
• Online Learning
• Labs
• Case-based Learning
• Small Group Learning Sessions
• Personal Study
• Clinical Placement

University of Western Australia 4 year Doctor of Medicine degree Interview (Accounts for 50% of application success)

For domestic applicants, the interview will be in a multi mini interview (MMI) format with the process including registration taking approximately 70-75 minutes. The UWA MMI model consists of 8 numbered stations, each focussing on one question. Each station takes 7 minutes, consisting of 2 minutes to consider the question for that station and 5 minutes with the interviewer to verbally respond.

For international applicants, they will be interviewed by a panel of two interviewers, with the process taking approximately 50 minutes including registration, introductions, and the formal questions. There will be five MMI-style questions and each question is not specifically timed although there is an overall time limit for the interview.

Attributes being assessed include accountability, ethical and moral judgement, communication skills, management skills, problem solving, self-awareness, teamwork/collaboration, conflict resolution, empathy, resilience.

1. How do you think your personal qualities relate to your future career as a health care professional?
2. Why do you want to study medicine at UWA rather than at another medical school?
3. Tell us about an experience that has most prepared you for a career in medicine.
4. Describe a time when you had to work with someone very different from yourself. What challenges arose and how did you address them?
5. A friend in your tutorial group suggests sharing OSCE or exam content after their session. How would you handle this situation?
6. A patient presents with information from social media about a new “miracle cure” and demands that you prescribe it. How would you respond?
7. Discuss a health issue affecting people in rural or remote Western Australia and how you think it could be addressed.
8. Describe a time when you made a mistake that affected others. What did you do afterwards and what did you learn?
9. What qualities do you think are most important in a good doctor, and how have you demonstrated these so far?