Who Are We?
In2MedSchool is a widening participation initiative which consists of over 2,500 medical student and doctor volunteers from across the UK wanting to give back to their communities.
The initiative aims to support students from widening participation backgrounds with their journey into university, with a focus on medical school applications. Alongside mentoring, we run various webinars and provide a variety of resources to support our Mentees.
Our Central Team focuses on the smooth delivery of the programme, and is underpinned by the wonderful work of our one-to-one Mentors. Learn more about the structure and individual members of Our Team on National and Regional levels, including Trustees, Board of Directors, Officers and Regional Heads.
Programme Outline
This is an initiative that runs for 2 years, starting during a pupil's Year 12 (England/Wales), Year 13 (Northern Ireland) or S5 (Scotland). They will be matched to a dedicated volunteer mentor who will have virtual meetings (minimum 1 per half term) throughout the duration of the programme.
The initiative is completely free for everyone involved. No costs will ever be incurred.
*Current year 13/S6 students are also eligible
Purpose of the Programme
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Allow students to have a personal Mentor to encourage them in their studies towards becoming a medical student and/or recognising what pathway is suitable for them
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Support with BMAT and UCAT examinations
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Support with personal statement, work experience and interview preparation
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Our ultimate goal is to help young students with a passion for Medicine get into Medical School - creating a legacy of medical students, and to support students who decide to pursue non-Medicine pathways to make informed decisions about their university journey
Entry Criteria
To become a mentee on our programme, you must meet all the following criteria:
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Be a current Year 12 (England/Wales), S5 (Scotland) or Year 13 (Northern Ireland) student.
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If you are in a later year of your education, you can only apply if you are taking a gap year before applying to medical school.
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If you are not in school/college, you cannot join the mentorship programme.
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Studying at a public/state school (not private or independent school*)
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Considering an application to Medicine
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Meet at least one of the following Widening Participation criteria:
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Neither parent has attended university
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Recipient of free school meals
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Have been in care
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Are a young carer
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Estranged from both parents or guardians
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Have a disability
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Are a forced migrant
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Are Black African or Black Caribbean
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Attended a non-selective state school for GCSE/A-level or SQA Highers/Advanced Higher**
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Do not have a parent in a skilled profession
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Live in a neighbourhood with low progression to higher education (Please check POLAR/Acorn data
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Speak English as a second language
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Have a Gipsy, Roma or Traveller background
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*Currently, we are not accepting students from private or independent schools however, students from these schools can still sign up to our events and newsletter.
** For 2022/23 only, students from grammar schools are able to apply if they meet other widening participation criteria. This will be reviewed by the In2MedSchool team over the summer term for future academic years.
Our Founder's Story
In2MedSchool developed as an idea during the summer of 2020 with a LinkedIn post from our founder Brian Wang.
"When my family and I first moved to the UK, we lived in a council flat and I struggled to learn English. At secondary school I had big dreams about studying Medicine but I didn't know who to turn to for advice and really wished I had someone to help me through. I am proud to have recently completed my PHD in Cardiology at Imperial College London, my Bachelors at University of Cambridge and looking forward to joining the team of junior doctors in our great NHS. I want to create a supportive network for aspiring medics.
For this reason, I am reaching out to medical students and doctors who would be willing to mentor minority secondary school and college students, who may come from disadvantaged or underprivileged backgrounds, through the process of applying to med school. This will be free to the students and help an individual with a passion to study Medicine achieve their dream.
If you'd like to help make a difference by volunteering as a mentor please do so below, or help spread the word by liking, sharing or commenting on the post! Please spread the word and lets make a difference!"
In2MedSchool
Following his initial post, Brian received over a 100 volunteer signs-ups from medical students and junior doctors all over the UK, and he worked to locate the schools and to identify Mentees throughout the summer. At the start of September, he began reaching out to a few Mentors to ask whether they would be happy to share the initiative within their university networks and to offer support with the programme.
With the first Regional Head recruited on the 8th of September 2020, the success of reaching out to the universities directly was noted and the In2MedSchool team began taking its shape. Following numerous meetings and more Regional Heads being recruited, the Mentor signs-ups reached 1500 Mentors by the end of September 2020! Since then, the team has developed the foundations for the initiative and have been tirelessly working on developing variety or resources and events to support our Mentees and Mentors.
Awards & Recognition
