Imperial College London School of Medicine is one of the largest and most research-intensive medical schools in the UK, offering a six-year MBBS/BSc across campuses in west London. Imperial is ranked 1st out of 40 for Medicine in the Guardian University Guide 2027, with 96% of students satisfied with their teaching and a top score for career prospects, and 3rd in the UK in the Complete University Guide 2027.
Imperial College London School of Medicine offers a spiral curriculum, in which each module builds on the last, adding more depth and complexity. It’s delivered through a range of teaching methods, including:
You will undertake the following clinical placements:
Anatomy is taught at the Human Anatomy Unit on the Charing Cross campus, which comprises a dissection room, a dedicated anatomy skills laboratory and a pathology museum holding around 1,600 specimens. Teaching resources there include whole body dissection, prosections, skeletal material, anatomical models and living anatomy classes.
Assessments for the MBBS are pass/fail, while the science modules in Phase 2 are graded and count towards the classification of your BSc. You’ll also need to pass both parts of the national Medical Licensing Assessment (MLA), pass university finals and demonstrate your fitness to practise in order to register with the GMC.
More information about the course structure and delivery at Imperial College London can be found here. The website also notes that the page is updated regularly to reflect the latest version of the curriculum, and that this information is subject to change, so you can check for updates via the same link.
Most of your study will be at the South Kensington and Charing Cross campuses, but your clinical attachments will take you across west London and beyond. Imperial provides a sample of teaching hospitals which you may undertake clinical attachments in; these are as follows:
Imperial notes that it has partnerships with healthcare providers inside and outside of London, and that this list is given as a guide rather than an exhaustive one.
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During your studies, you’ll have opportunities to explore your areas of interest with speciality choice placements and a pre-foundation elective period in your final year.
The programme at Imperial College London is a six-year dual qualification course; meaning you’ll achieve a BSc degree in addition to your MBBS. Whereas some medical schools offer an intercalated degree as an additional option, at Imperial College London this is included within the programme of study, and forms the ‘Phase 2’ (Year 4) portion of your course. During your fourth year, you’ll undertake a series of modules and a research project in an area of your choice, from a range of specialisms including Cancer Frontiers, Cardiovascular Sciences, Global Health, Humanities, Philosophy and Law, Management, Neuroscience and Mental Health, Remote Medicine, and Surgical Design, Technology and Innovation. You can find out more about ‘Phase 2’ and the range of subject options available here.
Away from the curriculum, the School of Medicine has its own students’ union, ICSMSU, which supports around 65 medical student clubs and societies, from sports teams to arts and volunteering groups. You can find out more on the ICSMSU page.
Imperial offers the option of an intercalated PhD for “exceptional students” studying standard entry medicine. This consists of three years’ research, taken after completion of the BSc component of your degree. You can find more information here.
A four-year MBBS Medicine (Graduate Entry) course is also offered, which you can view here. This is now delivered at the Pears Cumbria School of Medicine, a collaboration between Imperial and the University of Cumbria, and for 2027 entry applicants need to sit either the Graduate Medical School Admissions Test (GAMSAT) or the UCAT.
Other selling points you could mention at interview include:
The typical entry requirements for 2027 entry are:
You must be 18 by the time you start the course, and resit qualifications aren’t accepted. General Studies, Critical Thinking and the EPQ aren’t included in offers, and there’s no advantage to taking four A Levels. The School of Medicine’s target intake is 345 places, made up of 271 Home and 74 Overseas places. You can find the full list of accepted qualifications on the course page, and compare schools in our guide to medicine entry requirements.
Widening access: Imperial uses UCAS data to apply a widening participation flag automatically, and contextual applicants benefit from a lower UCAT threshold, an uplift to their interview score and a contextual offer, where the A* can be in any subject. If your circumstances aren’t captured by UCAS data – for example if you have caring responsibilities – you’ll need to send supporting evidence by 13 November 2026 to be considered for contextual admissions for 2027 entry. Year 11 and Year 12 students can also apply to Imperial’s Pathways to Medicine programme, which is designed to help aspiring medics make a strong and informed application.
Imperial College London School of Medicine uses the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) format for its interview. Applicants who meet the academic requirements and the UCAT threshold for that year are invited, and no offer is made to anyone who hasn’t attended a competitive interview. The following are identified on their website as the main topics which will be covered:
For 2026 entry, the MMI had six stations, and you get five minutes to answer the questions at each one. Each station is marked out of ten: six points for content (what you say) and four points for communication (how you say it). Your personal statement isn’t graded during shortlisting, but it is given to the interviewer for Station 1: Commitment to Medicine, so expect to discuss it there.
MMIs are typically held throughout January and February, so for 2027 entry you should be available from January 2027. The Medical Schools Council lists Imperial’s interview method as in person and online, and your invitation will confirm the arrangements for your slot. For 2026 entry, 870 applicants were invited to interview, 253 of whom were international students.
Most medical schools require you to pass an admissions exam before you’ll be invited for interview.
Admissions exam for Imperial College London: University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT)
The UCAT assesses the characteristics, attitudes and professional behaviours that you require for medical school. The exam now includes 4 subtests: Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making, Quantitative Reasoning and Situational Judgement (SJT). Abstract Reasoning has been removed from the test.
For 2027 entry, the UCAT is being held between 13 July and 24 September 2026. Imperial first checks that you have, or are predicted to obtain, the minimum academic requirements, and then selects candidates for interview on their UCAT scores alone. Threshold scores are calculated each year by ranking applicants’ scores against the number of interview sessions available, so they change every cycle. The thresholds applied for 2026 entry were:
| Applicant group | Minimum total score | SJT requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Home | 2320 | Band 3 minimum (Band 4 discounted) |
| Overseas / EU / query fee status | 2310 | Band 3 minimum (Band 4 discounted) |
| Widening participation | 2170 | Band 3 minimum (Band 4 discounted) |
Source: Imperial College London Medicine A100 Admissions FOI FAQs.
Imperial only began using the UCAT for 2025 entry, and that first set of thresholds was based on the previous format scored out of 3600, so those figures aren’t directly comparable with the ones above.
The free Medibuddy UCAT question bank will help you to effectively prepare for all sections of the exam. By continuously assessing your strengths and weaknesses, it can carefully select questions that focus on the areas which you need to develop, to improve your overall UCAT score.
The question bank dashboard clearly shows how you’re performing, with your calculated skill level, the total number of questions answered and correctly, and your response time, to make it easier to judge if you’ll meet the minimum requirements for your chosen medical school.
For advice on how to prepare for the UCAT and more information about the exam, including test dates and fees, visit our UCAT page.
You can also see how other medical schools use the test in our guide to UCAT universities.
Tuition fees for the six-year MBBS/BSc are:
The Overseas fee for 2027 entry hadn’t been confirmed when this page was updated, so check the tuition fees page and the course page for the latest figures. Home students can also apply for the Imperial Bursary, worth up to £5,000 a year where household income is below £70,000, and NHS funding is available in the clinical years of the course.
Good luck with your application to Imperial College London School of Medicine! For more help, take a look at our guides to applying to medical school and the best medical schools in the UK.
