COVID-19. Update For Future Medical Students and Parents

April 17, 2020 Blue Peanut Medical Team

Dear Students,

As you are aware we are in the middle of a global pandemic due to the spread of COVID-19. As part of limiting the spread of this virus the government has introduced isolation measures which have now significantly restricted the movement of people here in the United Kingdom. We only expect this restriction to become more severe in the upcoming weeks and currently have no end date of when the situation will return to normal.

The safety of our doctors and students is of paramount importance. Therefore Blue Peanut has taken the decision to suspend some of our courses and to move some of our courses to the webinar format.

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UCAT Course

At the time of writing the UCAT examination is still planned to go ahead this summer. However, the dates in which you are able to sit the examination may start later in the year. Therefore we have decided to move our traditional courses, which are based in hotels around the UK, to virtual classrooms which will be taught as live webinars.

Courses will still be taught live by fully qualified doctors and teachers, just as the day course. The student will log on to the classroom online from the comfort of their own home.
No special software is needed but it would be beneficial to have a webcam and microphone.
There is opportunity for interaction and questions, as well as practicing mock questions, just as you would a traditional course.
The whole webinar will be available to watch online after the course should the student not be able to attend the full course or need to come back to any points that were raised.
Students still have access to over 1000 calibrated questions and copies of all workbooks. In addition additional video tutorials will be recorded for extra tuition.
Students will be able to access our online BMAT study modules free of additional cost. We expect the content of the UCAT and BMAT courses to grow over time.
Access is provided until the end of the UCAT and BMAT seasons. There are no more trains to catch or hotels to book.

We have been teaching students over distance learning for several years now. We are experienced in developing courses with this method of learning in mind.

We will write individually to all students that have already booked the day course and discuss your options with you. The UCAT Webinar courses are now available for booking.

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Doctor for a Day Course

Due to the practical nature of this course, this cannot be done by distance learning.

Whilst it is possible to undertake basic life support training by distance learning, we did not feel this was appropriate for students at secondary school level. We have therefore suspended Doctor for a Day Courses until the free movement of people can be undertaken safely post the COVID-19 pandemic.

We will be writing to students that have booked already to discuss options. We sincerely apologise for cancelling this course for the immediate future due to factors which are beyond our control.

Medical School Interview Course

Some students have booked on our Medical School Interview Courses for the winter 2020 season. We are awaiting developments of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as reactions from medical schools before we can determine if these traditional courses can proceed as planned in the current format.

Get Into Medicine Live Conference

A significant number of students have reserved places on our September conferences in London and Lancashire. It is our hope that this conference will proceed as planned in the current format but it is too early to decide otherwise. We will keep our students updated.

We apologise to our students for the disruption that has been caused. We will keep you updated on developments as they occur. Thank you all for your support and please get in touch if you have any questions.