Intercalated Degrees
At the end of the third year, selected Medical and Dental students may be permitted to undertake an intercalated course. Medical and Dental students can apply for a one-year Honours degree within the College of Medical, Veterinary & Life Sciences or College of Arts & Humanities. We also welcome applicants from other Universities.
Programme alteration or discontinuation
The University of Glasgow endeavours to run all programmes as advertised. In exceptional circumstances, however, the University may withdraw or alter a programme. For more information, please see: Student contract.
Contact: med-sch-intercal@glasgow.ac.uk
One Year Intercalated Degree Courses
All of these subjects will be of value to the future doctor or dentist in whatever field he/she may practise. An important aspect of the BSc (MedSci) and BSc (DentSci) degrees is that the student makes contact with research workers, develops an understanding of research methods, and participates in a research project.
Numbers on particular courses are limited and students may not always be offered their first choice of subject. Students are advised to identify a number of alternative options.
Brief summaries of the intercalated programmes are given. For further information, please email the noted contacts.
Intercalating at Another University
There are also potential opportunities for a small number of students to intercalate at other Universities to study subjects not provided at University of Glasgow. Interested students should contact the Head of the Undergraduate Medical School to seek permission to apply to intercalate externally (before the internal application deadline). If permission is granted, this would be subject to the student’s ranking based on exam results being sufficient to qualify for the internal intercalated programme. Students should apply for the internal programme by the deadline (using "Admin" as the course code to indicate an external intercalated degree) and should note on their personal statement that they have permission to apply to intercalate externally. If the student does not qualify for the internal intercalated programme then the external application would have to be withdrawn.
How to Apply
Current University of Glasgow Students
Students in University of Glasgow undergraduate Medicine can access the application page from their MBChB Year web pages. Queries regarding the application process should be directed to the Medical School Administrator. MBChB students who wish to apply should complete the web-based application. Offers will be sent by e-mail so it is important that students regularly check their student e-mail address.
Students in undergraduate Dentistry should contact the Dental School Administrative Officer in the first instance.
Tier 4 students undertaking an intercalated degree
Information can be found at http://www.gla.ac.uk/international/support/
International/EU Applicants
We are very keen to encourage medical and dental students from outwith the UK to come to Glasgow and study for the intercalated degree here.
Application process:
You need to have studied medicine/dentistry for 3 years prior to starting the intercalated degree programme. For applicants whose first language is not English, you will need to have English language skills at IELTS level 6.5 with no sub-test less than 6.0.
Applications for entry in September 2025 will need to be received by 12th March 2025.
To apply, please e-mail the following documents to: med-sch-intercal@glasgow.ac.uk
- A transcript of academic results to date
- Short (half page) statement outlining why you want to do the course
- A full CV
- 3 ranked choices of intercalated option
- Proof of meeting the English language requirement
- A letter/release note from your advisor of studies/medical school stating they support your application to intercalate at Glasgow.
We would usually also wish to conduct a short interview by Skype or likewise.
Science Fees: details http://www.gla.ac.uk/scholarships/feestatus/
Further details on the course can be obtained from the Programme Director, Professor Tom Evans (tom.evans@glasgow.ac.uk)
UK Applicants
Applications from medical and dental students from UK and EU are welcome. Please be aware that we expect admission through this route to be extremely competitive. Applications will be reviewed on their own merits and entrants would be expected to be of a similar standard to those intercalating from within Glasgow. Please note that places on specific specialist courses are limited and allocated on performance to date, therefore even if admission to the programme is successful you may not necessarily be guaranteed a place on your course of choice.
The deadline for applications for entry in September 2025 is 12th March 2025.
To apply, please e-mail the following documents to: med-sch-intercal@glasgow.ac.uk
- a formal letter of application stating which year you are currently in; your present funding status; why you wish to intercalate; which intercalated option(s) (up to a maximum of three) you wish to be considered for; and why in particular you wish to study in Glasgow
- a full CV
- your full academic transcript to date from your host university
- a letter from your advisor of studies / medical school stating that they support your application to intercalate at Glasgow
Intercalated Funding
Dental School Intercalated Funding
** NOTE: please check details of eligibility and admission details before applying for funding**
Funding for intercalated degrees
Students whose fees are already supported by SAAS or their Local Education Authority will normally continue to be funded during an intercalated year of study. Students are advised to contact their funding provider for further advice before applying for an intercalated degree programme. Please be aware that SAAS now classify an intercalated year as use of your ‘plus one’ year of tuition fee funding. This means that, in the unfortunate circumstance that you were required to repeat Year 4 or Year 5 of your MBChB, your fees would not be paid by SAAS. Please refer to the Registry web pages for information regarding Home/EU and international student Science Fees.
The following opportunities may exist for personal support or research costs in the intercalated year:
External Awards
Wolfson Intercalated Awards Programme
The Head of School is normally invited to nominate up to three outstanding students each with a quality scientific project for financial support. The value of the award is normally around £5,000 and is to help students with the additional expense of taking another year of study. The academic criteria are very high and only students with a consistently high academic performance and a quality project will be selected for these awards.
Selection will be made on the following criteria:
- Full curriculum vitae of the student including rank order in the class
- Personal statement by the student
- Basis upon which the student was selected
- Likely success of the student in a future research career
- Specific project with an identified supervisor
James Paterson Trust Intercalated Awards (To be confirmed)
Up to 5 bursaries of around £3,000 each may be available for students undertaking an intercalated BSc (Med Sci) Clinical Medicine at Glasgow University.
The award can be used by the student for maintenance/living expenses or for fees if necessary. The Trustees of the Paterson bequest require that students should have studied physics or maths at Higher or GCE A level and that the proposed research project in their degree should explore aspects of medical science or practice using physics, mathematics or computing science approaches.
Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland - Intercalated Honours BSc
An award of approximately £3,000 may be available for a student whose research project is within the Mechanism of Disease specialist course.
Kidney Research UK
Kidney Research UK invite applications for a grant of £5,000 over one year for medical students undertaking research that is directly relevant to the kidney and kidney disease as part of an Intercalated Degree. The funding is paid directly by the charity to the students who can use this for living costs and fees during their intercalated year.
British Association of Dermatologists
British Association of Dermatologists invite applications for two grants of £3,000 which are available to assist with the fees and living expenses of any undergraduate medical student who proposes to undertake a research project related to dermatology or skin biology as part of an intercalated degree.
Other University Scholarships
With the agreement of the Clerk of Senate in 2006/07 several endowment funds and prizes have been made available as scholarships to support students undertaking BSc (Med Sci) Clinical Medicine. Some of these awards have restrictions on the field of study in line with the original wishes of the bequest.
The scholarships for may include:
- Leonora and Robert Hillman Award (£4000) – open to clinical medicine students
- Elizabeth Potter Award (£1000) – open to all clinical medicine students
How to Apply for Bursaries
All applicants should complete a Bursary Form having read the guidelines (on the form). Students eligible for the Wolfson Awards will be contacted directly but must also complete the bursary form. Applications for bursaries must be submitted by 6 March 2024.
Further information from Laura McMichael.