Lancaster Medical School Interview Questions (2026 Entry)

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👋 Quick introduction to Lancaster Medical School (A100)

Lancaster runs a five-year MBChB (A100) and a six-year Gateway route (A104). For 2026 entry, Lancaster lists 130 UK/Home places and 4 International places for A100 (with the A104 cohort counting toward the following year’s A100 Home cap). 

Lancaster uses Multiple Mini Interviews (MMIs) , and no one is offered a place without an interview. 

🧭 How does Lancaster decide who to invite to interview?

Selection is a four-stage process:

1. Stage 1: Academic check – you must meet the minimum entry requirements.

2. Stage 2: UCAT ranking – for the 2025–26 cycle (2026 entry), Lancaster anticipates selecting from the top ~7 deciles overall and SJT Bands 1–3 (the exact threshold varies each year). Contextual applicants who are borderline may be invited using a lower UCAT threshold. 

3. Stage 3: MMI – see details below.

4. Stage 4: Fitness to Practise (probity checks etc.). 

Additionally, students who complete Lancaster’s Access to Medicine widening participation programme can receive a guaranteed interview, provided they meet the academic and eligibility criteria and sit the UCAT. 

Need an interview plan? Book our Medical School Interview Course – taught by NHS doctors who teach at 3 UK Medical Schools.

💻 How Lancaster will interview for 2026 entry

• Format: Multiple Mini Interviews (MMIs)

• Delivery (2026 cycle): Online via Microsoft Teams

• Station style: Several short stations (typically ~5 minutes each), assessing motivation, reflection, communication, group skills, and more. Some stations may include reading a paragraph or watching a short video, then discussing it at a subsequent station. Interviewers span university staff, NHS clinicians, GPs, patients/public reps, and current medical students. 

🧩 What’s the interview style like?

Lancaster’s MMI uses clearly defined marking criteria at each station; the highest overall performers are made offers, subject to any concerns. 

Historic third-party summaries (use as supportive context only) describe 12–15 short stations with a possible group/PBL-style task and Teams delivery in recent cycles. Always prioritise Lancaster’s official policy for the current year. 

🗓️ When are Lancaster interviews held?

Lancaster states MMIs are usually held in January and February. For 2026 entry, MMIs will be online (MS Teams), with at least two weeks’ notice typically given. 

The public “How to Apply” page also notes that interviews are held in January and February. 

🧠 What topics are covered?

While exact stations vary year-to-year, Lancaster indicates you may be asked about:

• Career choice, work experience, and suitability for medicine

• Communication and group-working skills

• Analysis/discussion after reading or watching a short stimulus (ethics, professionalism, prioritisation, health systems) 

Want targeted practice on motivation, ethics, role-play and group tasks? Join our MMI mock circuits.

📊 How many applicants are interviewed and how many get offers?

Lancaster’s official Admissions Data (A100 UK) shows for recent cycles:

• 2025 entry: 926 applications; 581 interview places; 325 offers; 131 enrolled.

• 2024 entry: 1004 applications; 587 interview places; 261 offers; 126 enrolled.

• 2023 entry: 1009 applications; 353 interview places; 174 offers; 125 enrolled. 

(International A100 numbers are reported separately on the same page.) 

These figures help you gauge competitiveness; Lancaster also publishes UCAT cut-offs and averages by category (e.g., 2025 entry UK non-contextual interview cut-off 2580). 

📮 When are offers released?

Lancaster’s Application Cycle Timeline says that after all interviews (usually finished by the end of February), decisions are generally communicated by the end of March.

📝 Extensive bank of Lancaster-style MMI stations & questions (practice set)

These are practice prompts crafted to mirror Lancaster’s structure and assessment areas (motivation, communication, reflection, ethics, teamwork, data interpretation, stimulus-based tasks). They are not the actual questions.

🎯 Motivation & Insight

• Why Lancaster? How does its course structure (e.g., early clinical skills, small-group learning) suit you?

• Tell us about one interaction during work experience that changed your view of the doctor’s role.

• What challenges of a small, close-knit medical school environment would you welcome, and why?

💬 Communication & Empathy (role-play)

• Break bad news to a peer who failed an exam and feels they’ve “ruined” their chances.

• You’re a Year 12 mentor; a student is anxious about a clinic visit. Explain what to expect and how to prepare.

• A patient relative is angry about waiting times—de-escalate and gather information.

⚖️ Ethics & Professionalism

• A junior doctor posts an unprofessional comment on social media about a patient (no identifiers). Discuss confidentiality, professionalism and GMC guidance.

• A vaccine clinic has one final dose near expiry—two eligible patients arrive. How would you approach fairness and prioritisation?

• You notice a colleague cutting corners on infection control. How do you respond and escalate?

👥 Teamwork & PBL/Group Skills

• Mini group task: Rank five public health interventions for a measles outbreak and justify your order.

• You’re given conflicting data sources for a case discussion—how will your team proceed?

🧩 Data/Graph Interpretation

• Interpreting a line chart of A&E attendances across seasons—identify trends, hypotheses, and system implications.

• Read a short ABSTRACT on antibiotic stewardship and present two actionable recommendations.

📰 NHS, Health & Society

• What is the role of integrated care systems (ICSs) and why do they matter to patients in Lancashire & South Cumbria?

• Discuss the impact of winter pressures on patient safety and staff wellbeing.

🧠 Resilience, Reflection & Wellbeing

• Describe a time you received critical feedback. How did you process it and what changed?

• Medicine can be emotionally demanding. Build a personal wellbeing plan with two realistic safeguards.

📚 Stimulus-Based (read/watch then discuss)

• Reading: Short article on AI triage. Summarise benefits, risks (bias, explainability), and consent.

• Video: A consultation snippet with poor signposting—identify missed communication techniques and improve them.

🌍 Widening Participation & Context

• How could you contribute to widening access to medicine as a Lancaster student doctor?

• You attend a school with limited science facilities—how have you compensated to demonstrate readiness?

Practise these under timed conditions (5-minute stations), rotate between analysis → stance → justify → reflect. Book an MMI mock circuit to get examiner-style feedback.

💬 What do students say about Lancaster interviews?

• Student forum threads frequently mention the Initial Applicant Survey (IAS) and Teams-based processes in recent years (helpful to check logistics). Treat forum posts as anecdotal, not policy.

• Third-party interview write-ups report friendly interviewers, structured stations, and timed warnings—practical context, but always defer to Lancaster’s current Admissions Policy.

✅ Top tips for Lancaster’s MMI (from NHS doctors who interview & teach)

1. Align to Lancaster’s rubric. Each station has clear criteria: answer what’s asked, signpost your structure, and show insight + reflection, not just description. 

2. Know your UCAT & SJT learning. Lancaster shortlists by UCAT decile and accepts SJT Bands 1–3—show decision-making, prioritisation and professionalism consistent with high-band performance. 

3. Train for stimulus stations. Practise read/watch → summarise → analyse → weigh pros/cons → conclude in ~5 minutes. 

4. Group task mindset. Listen actively, build on others, timestamp decisions, and reflect on the process, not just the outcome. 

5. Lancaster-specific prep. Review the Admissions Policy (2026) and Admissions Data for the week of your interview; policies evolve, and Lancaster publishes applicable thresholds and timelines. 

6. Tech-ready for Teams. Test your camera, mic, notifications, and background. Have ID to hand; arrive early to the waiting room. (Lancaster confirms 2026 interviews are online.)

7. Reflect on real experiences. Expect probing on work experience, volunteering, and what you learned (not what you did). Tie the insights to the GMC’s Good Medical Practice themes.

8. Know the course vibe. Small-group learning, early skills, and a supportive environment—explain why that suits you. (Use Lancaster’s official A100 page for course features.) 

9. Time management. Lancaster’s stations are short—aim for 60–90s per point, then summarise.

10. Get objective feedback. Simulate Lancaster-style stations with examiners who’ll press you with follow-ups. Book our Medical School Interview Course and MMI mock circuits.

🔎 Official sources to bookmark (we used and recommend these)

• Admissions Policy (2026 entry): MMI format, UCAT deciles & SJT, dates, offers timeline, interview delivery. Lancaster University

• Admissions Data page: Applications, interview places, offers, UCAT cut-offs/averages by category. Lancaster University

• A100 course page (2026): Confirms MMI and UCAT requirements. Lancaster University

• How to Apply page: Interview months (Jan–Feb) and application guidance. Lancaster University

📌 Final checklist (print this 🎟️)

•  Re-read Lancaster’s Admissions Policy (2026) and Admissions Data. 

•  Prepare 3–4 work-experience reflections (what, so what, now what).

•  Practise role-plays (breaking bad news, angry relative, confused patient).

•  Rehearse a stimulus station: 2-min note-taking → 3-min discussion.

•  Revise NHS basics: values, teamworking, patient safety, consent, confidentiality.

•  Dry-run your MS Teams setup and ID check.

📚 Keep going

• Want structured prep mapped to Lancaster’s MMI? → Book our Medical School Interview Course – taught by NHS doctors who teach at 3 UK Medical Schools.

• Prefer a realistic, complete circuit with examiner feedback? → Join our MMI mock circuits.

This guide is based primarily on Lancaster Medical School’s own webpages and the 2026 Admissions Policy (updated Aug 2025), with selective contextual insights from reputable third-party sites and student forums. Always defer to Lancaster’s official materials for the latest details.