Selection - includes approved subject prerequisites

Please note that these selection requirements have not been finalised and are subject to possible change.

Here is a summary of the proposed selection requirements for the Doctor of Medicine.

• Applicants will need an approved three or more year bachelor degree; prerequisite second year subjects (one each) of anatomy, physiology & biochemistry; the Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT) and a multi mini interview (MMI).
• Applicants for local places (Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents and New Zealand citizens) must sit GAMSAT. Applicants for international places (those who are not Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or New Zealand citizens) may sit either GAMSAT or MCAT.
• Applicants for 2011 must sit GAMSAT/MCAT with a test date in the range January 2008 to May 2010. Applicants sitting GAMSAT/MCAT more than once within this date range may choose which set of scores to include with their application.
• Guaranteed entry is applicable for students who have completed Year 12 in Australia and are doing new generation BSc or BBiomed degrees at the University of Melbourne. A CSP is guaranteed for students with ENTER 99.90 or higher and an Australian full fee place is guaranteed for students with ENTER 99.0 or higher. Places are conditional on achieving a weighted average grade in the degree of H2A (75%); completing the prerequisite subjects; having a satisfactory interview performance (as judged by the panel of interviewers) and sufficient places being available. Students using the guaranteed entry pathway will not be required to sit GAMSAT or MCAT.
• UMAT is not required and will not increase an applicant’s chance of getting a place.
• Applicants will need to have completed at least one semester long subject (12.5 points) at second year level or above in each of anatomy, physiology and biochemistry. These subjects must be approved by the Faculty.
• Please check the following lists for currently approved subjects from Australian and New Zealand universities.
  
  
  • Victoria (updated 30/10/09)
  • New South Wales (updated 23/10/09)
  • Queensland (updated 6/10/09)
  • Other states/territories (updated 6/10/09)
  • New Zealand (updated 23/10/09)
    

Subjects from overseas universities will be considered on a case by case basis.

• The prerequisite subjects do not necessarily have to be studied as part of the completed degree. For example, an applicant could complete the subjects separately if they are available as part of the Community Access Program (CAP)
• A minimum weighted Grade Point Average (GPA) will be advertised in 2010 prior to applications opening.  As a guide, this is likely to be in the range of 5.5 to 6.00. Final GPA/GAMSAT cutoffs will depend on ranking and will not be known until applications are processed.
• Applicants will be shortlisted for the Multi-Mini interview on the basis of their GPA and GAMSAT/MCAT results.  The shortlist will be 125% of the final number of students to be selected. The GPA will be calculated over the last three years of the undergraduate degree (including Honours). All sections in the GAMSAT will be weighted equally.
• CVs, references, testimonials etc are not used in our selection process and should not be submitted.
• Consideration will be given to aspects of disadvantage as set out in the University of Melbourne Graduate Access policy.
• Selection requirements for international applicants are the same as for local applicants except that international applicants may choose to sit the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) as an alternative to GAMSAT.
• Closing dates for 2011 entry are expected to be early June 2010 for local applications and late June 2010 for international applications. It will not be possible to apply via VTAC
• Offers will be made on the basis of a combined ranked list where ranks by GPA, GAMSAT/MCAT and interview are given equal weighting.
• There is no special mature age entry process for the MD. Applicants whose undergraduate degrees were completed more than 10 years prior to the year of application will generally not be considered but can provide evidence of recent study at university level of not less than one year’s full time duration or equivalent, or evidence of other substantial scholarly productivity to the Selection Committee.
• Transfer into Medicine from medical courses at other universities is generally not possible for domestic students and not possible at all for international students. Applications citing unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
• Applications for deferral of entry and leave of absence during the course for the MD will be considered.

Here is some further general information regarding the selection process:

Selection requirements

Selection for the first intake of the Doctor of Medicine (MD) in 2011 will be based on:

• Academic Record, mainly the grade point average (GPA) from a completed 3 (or more) year university degree
• GAMSAT (Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions Test) or for international applicants only, MCAT (US Medical College Admissions Test)
• Structured multi mini interview - held in late September or early October 2010

Please note that CVs, references, testimonials, etc are not used in our selection process and should not be submitted or brought to the interview.

Grade point average (GPA)

Applicants must have completed or be completing the final year of a university undergraduate degree recognised by the Faculty and have achieved a minimum weighted GPA (still to be determined) at the time of application on a seven point scale. The weighted GPA is calculated on grades achieved in the last three full-time equivalent years of the applicant's most recent undergraduate degree, including an Honours year, with the years progressively weighted x1, x2 and x3. Other qualifications (eg Graduate Diplomas, Masters) are not included in the GPA calculation. The method of calculation of the GPA (prior to weighting) is set out in the Admission Guide which is published on the GAMSAT website

Full academic transcripts covering subjects studied in the years prior to application must be submitted with applications to ACER. Successful applicants completing their degrees in the year of application must submit final results to the University of Melbourne no later than the end of the first week of January 2011. Applicants completing an approved accelerated two-year bachelor's degree (three semesters per annum) must have completed the program before being eligible to be considered (subject to confirmation).

Applicants whose undergraduate degrees were completed more than 10 years prior to the year of application are ineligible for consideration.

No advanced standing or exemptions are available. In the interests of equity, applicants who fail to meet the entrance criteria for selection, irrespective of the circumstances, cannot be considered.

Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT)

GAMSAT is held in late March each year.

For more information please refer to the GAMSAT information booklet which is available from the GAMSAT website as a PDF.

For 2011 entry, acceptable GAMSAT dates are 2009 and 2010.

The University of Melbourne does not conduct any GAMSAT preparation courses and does not endorse any private GAMSAT preparation courses.

GPA and GAMSAT cutoffs

To determine the applicants shortlisted for interview, we use a combined ranking system of GPA and GAMSAT. Every applicant is ranked from highest to lowest for both GPA and GAMSAT and the two ranks are added together. Applicants are then sorted by the combined rank and we make interview offers to approximately 1.25 times our quota.

To be considered, applicants must have achieved a minimum weighted GPA and minimum GAMSAT section scores (both still to be determined for 2011 entry).

Interviews

Interviews for local places will be held at the University of Melbourne in late September or early October 2010. All costs in relation to the interview will be at the applicant's own expense. Arrangements for interviews for international places are still to be finalised.

The interview format will be a multiple mini interview (MMI). The qualities to be assessed at interview include the applicant's interest in and motivation for undertaking the course, their likely capacity for establishing and maintaining rapport with patients in a clinical situation, their communication skills, and aptitude for collaboration and decision making.

Offers will be made on the basis of a combined ranked list where ranks by GPA, GAMSAT/MCAT and interview are given equal weighting.

Offers

Offers will normally be made each year in early November.

How to apply

The first stage of applying to enter the MBBS Graduate Entry Program is to apply to sit the GAMSAT. Full details are in the GAMSAT information booklet which is available from the GAMSAT website

Applications from local applicants must be made via the GMAC Online Admission System. International applicants may apply either via the GMAC Online Admission System or direct to International Admissions at the University of Melbourne.

For a guide to important dates please refer to our timeline for 2011 admission.

International students

Applications from international students are welcomed. International applicants may take either GAMSAT or MCAT. All other requirements are the same as for Australian citizens, except that international applicants may apply either via the GMAC Online Admission System or direct to International Admissions at the University of Melbourne.

Closing dates and all other requirements for international applicants applying via our International Admissions will be the same as for those applying via ACER. For specific closing and interview dates for international applicants please refer to our timeline for 2011 admission.

For 2011 entry, acceptable GAMSAT dates are 2009 and 2010. Acceptable MCAT dates are from January 2008 to May 2010. Please also refer to the GAMSAT website and the MCAT website

For more information please refer to the Admission Guide 2011 which will be available from the GAMSAT website from May 2010.

Please check this page for more information as it becomes available.