All the information you need to apply to Deakin Uni Med School!

Deakin University’s Doctor of Medicine (MD) helps students pursue their dream as a medical practitioner by offering rewarding careers; from general practice, pathology or paediatrics to surgery. Deakin Uni’s medical course focuses on rural and regional medicine, improving Indigenous health and patient-oriented communication and service. 

The Deakin Uni MD course aims to guide graduates to undertake internships at various Victorian and interstate hospitals to qualify as a registered Medical Practitioner with the Australian Medical Council.

Deakin MD 2023 Course Structure

The first two years of Deakin University’s medical program for the Doctor of Medicine (MD) takes place at the Waurn Ponds campus, Geelong. Established in a rural setting, students are exposed to clinical experiences from an early stage in the course.

During years three and four, students undergo intensive clinical training within services attached to one of five clinical schools - Barwon Health (Geelong), Warrnambool, Ballarat or Eastern Health (Melbourne), or with the Rural Community Clinical School. Students will be guided by experienced staff. The course concludes in Year 4 with a two five week rotation - an elective that can be taken in Australia or overseas, and a pre-internship at a hospital to understand the day-to-day experience as a medical intern.

Deakin University Entry Requirements

There are three entry streams available at Deakin University for students enrolling into the Doctor of Medicine programme: the General Entry Stream, Rural Training Entry System, and the Indigenous Entry System.

General Entry Stream

The application process for admission via the General Entry System is administered by the GEMSAS. To be eligible for the General Entry Stream, applicants must either have:

Received an academic performance in an approved Bachelor, Honours, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma or Masters by coursework completed no more than 10 years before the course commencement date.

OR

  • An academic degree completed outside this 10 year duration may be considered if you have completed relevant Higher Education study from an institution recognised by the Australian Qualifications Framework or equivalent overseas institution determined by Deakin.
  • A final GPA (weighted) score of at least 5.0
  • Successful performance in the Deakin University medicine Interview

Indigenous Entry Stream

The Doctor of Medicine course available at Deakin University has reserved up to 5% of domestic places for Indigenous Australian applicants. Indigenous Australian applicants get direct entry via the Indigenous Entry stream with any undergraduate degree and aren’t required to excel in the GAMSAT.

For more information on the academic requirements, additional information and the application process under this stream, visit the Deakin University Indigenous Entry Stream on Deakin’s website.

Rural Training Stream

The Rural Training Stream at Deakin University holds up to 30 places for applicants with a rural background. The minimum entry requirements match those for the general stream, with the addition of a written application and a tiered priority entry system, aligned with the applicant’s rural residency profile. Places will be allocated to eligible Tier 1 applicants, if places remain, to Tier 2 applicants and finally Tier 3. To meet this eligibility criteria, applicants must have lived for at least 10 years cumulatively or any 5 years consecutively after birth within a nominated tier aligned with specific rural geographical locations. 

The application process remains the same as the general stream - students must apply through GEMSAS along with their written application.

Applicants eligible for the Rural Training Stream must make a commitment to completing four clinical semesters in rural and regional Victoria, during years 3 and 4 of the MD program.

Deakin University has three rural clinical schools across Victoria: Warrnambool Clinical School, Ballarat Clinical School and the Rural Community Clinical School (RCCS). The RCCS provides year-long Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship in year 3 based in nine rural communities across South Western Victoria.

Deakin University Medicine Bonus

Deakin medical school also offers a series of ‘adjustment bonuses’ to increase certain applicant’s chances of being successful in their application.

Course Adjustment Bonuses (Additional points added to the combined GPA & GAMSAT Score)
Rural/regional Residency

To qualify for the bonus, applicants must have lived for at least 10 years cumulatively or any 5 years consecutively after birth in a region classified by the ASGS-RA system as RA 2-5 or the City of Greater Geelong.
    Prior Clinical Experience
    • Applicants who have completed 12 months of full-time clinical practice as an AHPRA registered health professional, or in speech pathology or dietetics may have a 4% adjustment bonus.
    • Applicants with internal clinical practice experience that aligns with the list on the AHPRA website including speech pathology and dietetics, may also be eligible for the adjustment bonus.
    Work Experience Applicants with a minimum of 2 years full-time employment experience in any area of work (consecutively or cumulatively over 4 years) may be eligible for a 2% adjustment bonus.
    Deakin Graduate

    Applicants who qualify for the bonus may have a 4% adjustment and to qualify, applicants must either:

    • Have completed and graduated with a Bachelor degree from Deakin University with a minimum of two years of full-time equivalent study; or
    • Must be currently enrolled in an undergraduate degree with Deakin University and will be completing a minimum of two years of full-time equivalent study.
    Financial Disadvantage
    		 Applicants that can provide evidence of facing financial disadvantage directly impacting their academic performance during their recent years of study may be eligible for a 2% adjustment bonus.

    To know more about the eligibility criteria, visit the Deakin University Medicine Program.

    NOTE: As the course at Deakin University is capped, course transfer applications from other Medical Schools will be declined.

    How to Apply to Medicine at Deakin University

    Changes to the GPA calculation

    Both the GPA and GAMSAT results are determining factors to receive the Deakin Uni Medicine Interview Offers, prior to final ranking for a place in the MD course. In 2020, Covid-19 disruptions majorly impacted students' learning and Deakin University has employed a transparent approach to assessing applicants to the Doctor of Medicine, by changing the formula to calculate the GPA.

    The calculation of GPA will not include students’ 2020 results. To compensate for the removal of the 2020 results awarded to students, GPA will be calculated for applicants at different stages of studies:

    • Applicants completing their study in 2020 will have their GPA calculated on their two most recent years of study prior to 2020.
    • Applicants in their final year of study in 2020 who have completed at least 0.25 Full-time equivalent (FTE) of their final-year requirements prior to 2020, will have their GPA calculated: Final - 2 x1, Final - 1 x2 and Final x3 / 6.
    • Applicants studying in the final year of their qualifying degree in 2020 who have completed less than 0.25 FTE of their final year requirements will have the GPA calculated as: Final - 1 and Final - 2 years only. Years will be progressively weighted x5 and x1 / 6 to give more weight to recent results.
    • For applicants currently pursuing a standalone honours degree, the final-year GPA will be calculated using numerical subject grades, if at least 0.25 FTE (2units) was available prior to 2020. If there are no results available, the GPA calculated will be: Final 2 years of study in their undergraduate degree with x1 and x5 / 6 weighting applied.

    This practice of excluding the 2020 results in the GPA calculation will impact Deakin University medicine selection for a period of 10 years.

    In saying that, only those degrees completed before 31 July 2022 and the GPA scores acquired before this date will amount towards the GPA calculations for 2023 medicine entry.

    GAMSAT exam requirement: 

    Applicants must register to sit the Graduate Australian Medical School Admissions test (GAMSAT) to assess their capacity to undertake the medicine program. Visit the GAMSAT website to register for the examination.

    A minimum score of 50 in  each of the three sections and an overall score of 50 or greater. The score on the GAMSAT must have been obtained no more than two years prior to the course commencement date.

    For students applying from overseas, the MCAT requirement set by Deakin is a minimum of 125 per MCAT section in order to be considered for a medical degree.

    GEMSAS

    To apply for the Deakin University MD course, all applicants must follow the standard procedure to enter via the Graduate Entry Medical School Admission System (GEMSAS). Visit the GEMSAS website to start your application.

    Deakin University Medicine Interview Process

    Eligible applicants are invited to perform at the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) at Deakin, which consists of 10 consecutive mini stations with five minutes at each station addressing key skills, such as:

    • Communication skills
    • Commitment to Rural and Regional medical practice
    • Evidence-based Practice
    • Teamwork
    • Determination for a career in Medicine
    • Strong-willed to social justice
    • Professionalism and Empathy
    • Effective use of resources
    • Health promotion

    Deakin University Medicine Interview Dates

    Deakin medicine interview offers are released in early September and will be sent to 220 applicants based on their GAMSAT + GPA scores (50:50) with additional weighting to adjustment bonuses (as mentioned above).

    Deakin Uni MMI results are sent out in November, with offers of up to 86 Commonwealth Supported Places (CSP) and 35 Bonded Medical Places (BMP) to successful applicants. Domestic applicants paying Australian Full Fee (AFF) have no capped number of places available.

    About 15 places have been reserved for international students planning to enter Deakin medical school in the 2023 academic year.

    Deakin University Medicine Cost

    Fee Type Course Fees

    Commonwealth Supported Places (CSP)

    Bonded Medical Places (BMP)

    		 AUD $11,401 (Your tuition fees are calculated depending on the units you choose. Not all courses at Deakin have CSP)
    Australian Full Fee (AFF)  AUD $73,000* (subject to changes)

    What Should You Read Next?

    Now that you have read the application process for medicine at Deakin University,  check out Fraser’s Guide to Medical School Applications for information on GPA, GAMSAT, and Portfolio etc. or alternatively try our Medical Interview Offer Calculator to predict the likelihood of receiving an interview from your desired med school!