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IB Requirements for Medicine: UK Universities and English-Taught Medicine in Italy (2027 Entry)
3 min readBy Renzo DiazLast reviewed October 8, 2026
Medicine asks for Chemistry at Higher Level at every UK university checked here, usually with Biology, and a high total. Cambridge asks for 41–42 points with 776 at HL; Oxford for 39 including the core with 766 at HL; UCL for 39 with 19 at HL, including a 6 and a 7 in Biology and Chemistry; Imperial and King's College London for 38 with 6s in HL Biology and Chemistry; Edinburgh for 38 with 666. All six require the UCAT and an interview, and applications close on 15 October 2026. In Italy, medicine taught in English at state universities is still entered through a national test: the 2025 reform's open first semester applies to Italian-taught courses only.
This page gathers what six UK medical schools and the English-taught medicine programmes in and around Milan ask of an IB Diploma student, from the universities' own pages and the Italian ministry's decrees, read on 8 October 2026.
Mathematics matters less for medicine than for engineering, but it is not irrelevant: several courses name the accepted Mathematics course or level, and the admissions tests include quantitative reasoning. The deciding subjects are Chemistry and Biology at Higher Level.
For medicine, the HL sciences, the UCAT and the interview carry the offer; the total opens the door.
Key takeaways
- Chemistry at HL everywhere: every UK course here requires it, and Imperial, UCL and King's require Biology at HL too.
- UCAT and interview for all six: Edinburgh sets a minimum UCAT total of 1850 for 2027 entry.
- Mathematics is accepted in either course: Oxford has no AA or AI preference at HL, Imperial accepts both, and Cambridge recommends AA for the most competitive application.
- Italy keeps a test for English-taught medicine: the state universities in and around Milan admit through the national test, and the private ones through their own.
- Places for international students are few: Oxford's government quota is at most 14 a year across its two medicine courses.
Six UK medicine courses, side by side
The IB requirement, the Higher Level sciences, what each course says about Mathematics, the A-level offer for comparison, and the test and interview, as each university states them for 2027 entry.
| University | IB requirement | Required at HL | Mathematics | A-level offer | Test and interview |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxford | 39 including the core, 766 at HL | Chemistry, and Biology, Physics or Mathematics | AA or AI at HL, no preference | A*AA | UCAT; online interview if shortlisted |
| Cambridge | 41–42, 776 at HL | Chemistry, and one or two of Biology, Physics and Mathematics, by College | AA recommended for the most competitive application; AI considered | A*A*A | UCAT (overall cognitive score only); interview |
| Imperial | Minimum 38 with 6 in HL Biology and Chemistry; typical 39 with 6 and 7 | Biology and Chemistry | AA or AI accepted | A*AA | UCAT; Multiple Mini Interviews |
| UCL | 39; 19 at HL with 6 and 7 in Biology and Chemistry, no score below 5 | Biology and Chemistry | Not named; GCSE or IGCSE grade 6 (B) if not in the Diploma | A*AA | UCAT; Multiple Mini Interviews |
| King's College London | 38, or 19 across three HL subjects | Biology and Chemistry, 6 in each | Counted only towards the GCSE Mathematics requirement | A*AA | UCAT; remote interview |
| Edinburgh | 38 with 666 at HL | Chemistry, and Biology, Mathematics or Physics | 6 at SL, AA or AI | AAA in one sitting | UCAT, minimum total 1850; assessment day |
Sources: each university's course and entry-requirement pages for 2027 entry, read 8 October 2026 (Oxford's Mathematics rule from its Medical Sciences Division, Cambridge's from its accepted-qualifications page). Contextual and widening-access offers are left out.
The UCAT, interviews and the deadline
All six courses require the University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT), taken in the summer before the final year: for 2027 entry, testing runs from 13 July to 24 September 2026, and the UCAS deadline for medicine is 15 October 2026. The universities use the score differently. Cambridge uses only the overall cognitive score for 2027 entry and sets no minimum; Edinburgh sets a minimum total of 1850 and does not consider applicants in Band 4 of the situational judgement test; Imperial normally interviews the top third of applicants.
The interviews differ too. Imperial and UCL use Multiple Mini Interviews, a series of short stations; Oxford holds at least one online interview for shortlisted candidates; Edinburgh runs a half-day assessment day; King's interviewed remotely in its current cycle.
For international applicants
A government quota on places
The number of medical students with international fee status is capped by a UK government quota at each medical school. Oxford states its quota as at most 14 a year across its standard and graduate-entry medicine courses; Imperial reported 74 overseas places for 2026 entry.
Medicine taught in English in Italy
Italy reformed admission to medicine from the 2025/26 year, replacing the entrance test for Italian-taught courses at state universities with an open first semester (the "semestre filtro"). The reform does not apply to courses taught in English: the legislative decree excludes them, and the ministry's decree for 2026/27 admitted to English-taught medicine through a national test, which the ministry and the universities call the IMAT.
For 2026/27 that test had 60 questions in 100 minutes: 4 on reading and knowledge from studies, 5 on logic, 23 on biology, 15 on chemistry and 13 on physics and mathematics, scored 1.5 for a right answer and −0.4 for a wrong one. The private universities run their own tests. The decree for 2027/28 had not yet been published.
| University | Programme | Admission | Places 2026/27 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Università degli Studi di Milano | International Medical School | National test | 60 + 15 |
| Università di Milano-Bicocca | Medicine and Surgery, taught in Bergamo | National test | 40 + 20 |
| Università di Pavia | Harvey Medicine and Surgery | National test | 103 + 40 |
| Humanitas University (private) | Medicine and Surgery | Own test | Not stated by programme |
| Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele (private) | International MD Program | Own test | 86 EU + 64 non-EU |
Sources: the ministry's Decree 1005 of 6 August 2026 (Table B: places for EU and resident candidates + non-EU candidates resident abroad) and each university's admission pages, read 8 October 2026.
The IB Diploma in Italy
The ministry's rule for the Diploma
For any Italian degree, the ministry's circular for international students accepts the IB Diploma with at least 24 points in six subjects, 12 of them at Higher Level, with Theory of Knowledge, CAS and the extended essay passed, from a school the IB recognises; a student who joined the IB from the Italian system must have done so after promotion to the penultimate year. Universities also ask for the CIMEA statement of comparability.
The Netherlands
Of the Dutch medical schools checked, none teaches a bachelor in medicine in English. Groningen teaches its programme in Dutch only and, for IB students, asks for Biology and Chemistry at HL, with Physics and Mathematics at least at SL, where Mathematics means AA at SL or HL, or AI at HL only. Maastricht closed its English track from 2026/27, and its remaining programme is in Dutch.
How to plan the IB for medicine
Four decisions to make early
Take Chemistry and Biology at Higher Level
Every UK course here requires Chemistry at HL, and Imperial, UCL and King's require Biology at HL too; Groningen asks for both.
Choose a Mathematics course that keeps doors open
AA or AI at SL satisfies most of these courses, but Groningen accepts AI only at HL, and Cambridge recommends AA for the most competitive application. The wider comparison is in IB Math AA or AI: what universities require.
Plan the UCAT for the summer before the final year
For 2027 entry the test window closed on 24 September 2026, three weeks before the UCAS deadline of 15 October.
Decide the country before the final year
The UK, Italy and the Netherlands select in different ways and on different calendars: a UCAS application in October, an Italian test in late summer, a Dutch-language programme.
Terms used in this article
- UCAT
- The University Clinical Aptitude Test, required by the UK medical schools on this page, with cognitive sections and a situational judgement test.
- Multiple Mini Interviews (MMIs)
- An interview made of several short stations, each assessing a different quality.
- IMAT
- The name the ministry and universities use for Italy's national admission test for medicine taught in English.
- Semestre filtro
- The open first semester that replaced the entrance test for Italian-taught medicine at Italian state universities from 2025/26.
- 766 at HL
- Grades of 7, 6 and 6 in three Higher Level subjects, the form in which Oxford and Cambridge set IB offers.
Questions about IB requirements for medicine
What IB subjects do you need for medicine?
Chemistry at Higher Level, usually with Biology. Every UK course here requires HL Chemistry; Imperial, UCL and King's also require HL Biology, while Oxford and Edinburgh accept Biology, Physics or Mathematics as the second HL science.
Do you need IB Maths HL for medicine?
No, at the universities checked here. Edinburgh asks for a 6 in SL Mathematics, AA or AI; Oxford and Imperial accept either course; Cambridge recommends AA for the most competitive application.
What IB score do you need for medicine at Oxford?
39 points including the core, with 766 at Higher Level, Chemistry at HL and one of Biology, Physics or Mathematics at HL, plus the UCAT.
Is the UCAT required for medicine in the UK?
Yes, at all six universities on this page. For 2027 entry the test window ran from 13 July to 24 September 2026.
Can you study medicine in English in Milan?
Yes. The Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano-Bicocca (taught in Bergamo) and Pavia admit through the national test; Humanitas and San Raffaele through their own tests.
Does the IMAT still exist after Italy's 2025 reform?
Yes, for medicine taught in English. The reform's open first semester applies to Italian-taught courses; the ministry set a national test for English-taught medicine for 2026/27.
Written by
Teaching IB since 2016. Seven years of IB reviews you can check on Google — and named results with the documents behind them.
Last reviewed October 8, 2026
Sources
Every requirement comes from the university's own pages or the Italian ministry's decrees, read on 8 October 2026; where a 2027 rule had not yet been published, the year shown is stated. Contextual and widening-access offers are left out. King's College London's page counts IB Mathematics only towards its GCSE Mathematics requirement.
- University of Oxford — Medicine (A100)
- University of Oxford, Medical Sciences Division — Academic requirements
- University of Cambridge — Medicine
- University of Cambridge — Accepted qualifications
- Imperial College London — Medicine MBBS/BSc
- UCL Medical School — 2027 entry requirements
- King's College London — Medicine MBBS, entry requirements
- University of Edinburgh — MBChB Medicine, entry requirements
- Edinburgh Medical School — UCAT requirements
- Italian Ministry of University — Decree 1005 of 6 August 2026 (English-taught medicine, 2026/27)
- Legislative Decree 71/2025, article 8 (Normattiva)
- Italian Ministry of University — Procedures for international students, Annex 1
- University of Groningen — Medicine
- Maastricht University — Medicine