Veterinary medicine is an extremely competitive subject area with its own unique entry requirements and selection process. There are a number of reasons why you may not have been successful in your application. Common reasons for an unsuccessful veterinary medicine application You do not have the required qualifications If you do not meet, or are not predicted to meet, the subject-specific entry requirements for our veterinary medicine degree programmes, we unfortunately cannot consider you for a place. 5-year programme entry requirements (The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies) 4-year Graduate Entry Programme entry requirements (The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies) You are qualified but competition for places was very high Competition for places is extremely high. Every year we receive: approximately 1,100 applications for 75 UK places and 35 graduate and international places on the 5-year programmeapproximately 800 applications for 60 places on the 4-year Graduate Entry Programme View BVM&S admissions statistics We interview approximately 700 candidates from the applications we receive each year, which means many applicants fall below the cut-off point for interview. We use selection criteria which includes: academic gradesrelevant work experiencecareer explorationschool referenceextracurricular activities (such as charity work, voluntary work or activities which show strong leadership and communication skills) This helps us narrow down the number of applicants to a shortlist we can interview. The result is that many highly qualified candidates are unsuccessful. For most applications, the overall academic profile is the most significant factor in not gaining an interview. You applied after the deadline Due to the extremely high demand for places, we only consider a late application in the most exceptional circumstances. The deadline for applicants is 15 October in the year prior to the programme start date. You did not submit all required information If we do not receive a complete application, we are unable to take it further. You must submit all required information, including a reference, a Work Experience Summary form and disclosing relevant information we have asked for. You applied with resits We do not consider resits for any qualification. You must achieve your examination grades at your first attempt in each subject. If you are applying with resit qualifications, we will not enter you into the selection process unless under very exceptional circumstances, for which you have provided verified evidence before applying through UCAS. You applied for deferred entry In our high-demand subject area of veterinary medicine, we are unable to consider deferred applicants, unless it is due to compulsory National Service in your home country. In this case, we can consider a deferral of normally one year. If you have been unsuccessful due to requesting a deferral, you are welcome to make a new application during your gap year. However, since we do not expect competition for places to change year on year, we cannot guarantee that you will be offered an interview or a place. You made more than two consecutive applications Due to pressure on places each year, the Veterinary School’s Admissions Committee will only consider two consecutive applications from candidates. We do not normally consider third applications. What to do after an unsuccessful application If you were unsuccessful after an interview You can request detailed feedback by contacting us at vetug@ed.ac.uk with your full name and UCAS personal ID number (or VMCAS ID if you have applied from North America as a graduate applicant). If you decide to apply again the following year, you should provide specific details about the work experience you have gained in that period. We expect you to spend time: covering areas of work where you have had no previous experienceenhancing other areas where you already have experience (such as from prior work), although we do not expect you to spend the whole year undertaking voluntary work Our entry requirements pages have information about the types of practical work experience we consider. 5-year programme entry requirements (The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies) 4-year Graduate Entry Programme entry requirements (The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies) Application process (The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies) You should also check the degree finder before you apply again to make sure you have the most recent information. Undergraduate subject: Veterinary Medicine (degree finder) We encourage you to apply again if you meet our requirements, but we cannot guarantee an interview or a place in future years. Demand will remain high, and offers are dependent on how other applicants perform. If you did not meet the entry requirements for the 5-year programme An alternative route into veterinary medicine is to complete a science-based first degree and gain: a 2:1 Honours degree, or3.4 CGPA on a 4-point scale (or better) With these qualifications you should be eligible to apply for our 4-Year Graduate Entry Programme. Veterinary Medicine BVM&S 4-Year Graduate Entry Programme This article was published on 2025-10-07
