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Writing the UCAS reference for medicine, dentistry and vet applicants

The UCAS reference now has three sections: a general statement about your centre, any extenuating circumstances that affected the applicant's education, and anything else universities should know. For medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine, the third section usually carries most of the reference. Below: what admissions tutors look for, a suggested structure with example sentences, what differs between the three subjects, and how to handle contextual circumstances. Take what is useful.

Written by Dr Akash Gandhi, NHS GP and founder of TheUKCATPeople. Updated 28 September 2026.

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The reference at a glance

  • UCAS uses a structured reference in three sections: a general statement about your centre, extenuating circumstances affecting the applicant's education, and anything else universities should know. Confirm the current wording and the overall character limit in the UCAS adviser guidance.
  • Section one describes the centre, not the student, so many referees write it once and reuse it for every applicant that cycle.
  • Section two is empty for many applicants. That is normal.
  • Section three is the open one, and for medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine it usually carries most of the reference.
  • UCAS does not show applicants their reference, and schools differ on whether they share it. Anything sensitive needs the student's agreement either way.
  • The reference is the one independent view in the application, so a short sentence confirming a placement or role carries weight.

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The current format

The structured reference, in three sections

UCAS replaced the old free-text reference with a structured form. This follows the current adviser guidance. The wording, section order and character limit can change between cycles, so check them in the UCAS adviser portal.

Section names follow the current UCAS adviser guidance, which can change between cycles. Universities do not publish a marking scheme for references; these are the questions a reader will usually have in mind. Chart by TheUKCATPeople.
Annotated diagram by TheUKCATPeople of the three-section UCAS reference as a medicine, dentistry or veterinary admissions tutor reads it. Section one: a general statement about your centre. About the centre, not the applicant: the context a university needs to read a set of grades. Section two: extenuating circumstances affecting education or achievement. Anything that affected this applicant's education or achievement, such as illness, caring responsibilities or disruption to teaching. Section three: anything else universities should know about the applicant. Academic potential, suitability for the course, confirmation of things the applicant has described elsewhere, and your professional view. The predicted grades are already in the application and read together with the prose. The questions a reader brings: Do the predicted grades fit the rest of the reference (predicted grades and section three); Can anything in the application be confirmed (section three); What does this achievement mean in this context (section one and section two); How does the student work day to day (section three); Is there anything that might need explaining (section two and section three).

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<a href="https://www.theukcatpeople.co.uk/teachers/ucas-reference"><img src="https://www.theukcatpeople.co.uk/teachers/ucas-reference/how-admissions-tutors-read-the-ucas-reference.png" alt="Annotated diagram by TheUKCATPeople of the three-section UCAS reference as a medicine, dentistry or veterinary admissions tutor reads it. Section one: a general statement about your centre. About the centre, not the applicant: the context a university needs to read a set of grades. Section two: extenuating circumstances affecting education or achievement. Anything that affected this applicant's education or achievement, such as illness, caring responsibilities or disruption to teaching. Section three: anything else universities should know about the applicant. Academic potential, suitability for the course, confirmation of things the applicant has described elsewhere, and your professional view. The predicted grades are already in the application and read together with the prose. The questions a reader brings: Do the predicted grades fit the rest of the reference (predicted grades and section three); Can anything in the application be confirmed (section three); What does this achievement mean in this context (section one and section two); How does the student work day to day (section three); Is there anything that might need explaining (section two and section three)." width="1600" height="1000" style="max-width:100%;height:auto" loading="lazy"></a>
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.theukcatpeople.co.uk/teachers/ucas-reference">Writing the UCAS reference: a guide for teachers</a>, TheUKCATPeople</p>

Section one: a general statement about your centre

The first section is about the school, college or centre, not the individual applicant. It gives a university the context to read a set of grades: the type of centre, the size and nature of the cohort, the curriculum and qualifications you offer, and any limits on what a student here could have done.

Because it describes the centre, many referees write it once and reuse it for every applicant in the cycle. If your centre does not have one yet, drafting it in September saves a lot of time in October.

Source: UCAS adviser guidance on references, ucas.com

Section two: extenuating circumstances affecting education or achievement

The second section is for anything that has affected this applicant's education or achievement: serious or prolonged illness, bereavement, caring responsibilities, significant disruption to teaching, a change of school mid course, or any other circumstance that makes their attainment read differently from the raw figures.

It is individual to the student, and for many applicants it will be empty. That is normal. When it is used it can matter a lot, because universities look here when considering a contextual offer.

Source: UCAS adviser guidance on references, ucas.com

Section three: anything else universities should know about the applicant

The third section is the open one. For medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine it usually carries most of the reference: academic potential, suitability for the course, confirmation of things the applicant has described elsewhere, and your professional view of them.

Some referees write it as a few short paragraphs, each doing one job. There is a suggested order further down this page, but it is only one way to do it.

Source: UCAS adviser guidance on references, ucas.com

A note on timing. Applications for medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine or veterinary science close in mid October, well before the main January deadline, and the reference has to be complete before the application can be submitted. That puts reference writing in a busy part of the autumn term, so draft the section one statement in September if you can. The exact deadline for the current cycle is on the UCAS adviser pages, and see what changed this cycle covers the other format changes this year.

The reader

What admissions tutors may be looking for

Universities do not publish a marking scheme for references, but a reader will usually have these questions in mind.

Do the predicted grades fit the rest of the reference?

Predictions and prose are read together. If a prediction is above current attainment, a sentence on why you expect it helps the two tell the same story.

Can anything in the application be confirmed?

The reference is the one independent voice in the file. If an applicant describes a placement, a volunteering role or a position of responsibility, a short sentence from you confirming it carries weight.

What does this achievement mean in this context?

Three A grades mean something different in a centre where that is the median and in one where it is the best result in a decade. Sections one and two are where you give that context, and many universities' contextual admissions schemes use it.

How does the student work day to day?

Medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine are regulated professions. Teachers are well placed to comment on reliability, attendance, how a student takes feedback and how they treat others.

Is there anything that might need explaining?

A resit, a dip in one subject, a gap or a move between centres. If something in the file will make a reader wonder, a brief explanation from you, agreed with the student, helps.

Section three

One possible structure, with example sentences

One way to do it, not a required format. Adapt or ignore the example sentences to suit the student and your own style.

  1. 1. An opening judgement

    Many referees open with their overall view instead of building up to it. Keep the opening in proportion with what follows, so the whole reference reads as one judgement.

    [Name] is among the strongest [subject] candidates we have put forward in [number] years, and I support this application without reservation.

    [Name] is a consistent, well organised applicant whose progress over two years has been steady rather than dramatic, and who I believe will do well on a [course] course.

  2. 2. Academic evidence, with figures where you have them

    Positions, marks, trajectories and comparisons within the cohort all help here. If a prediction is above current attainment, say briefly what it is based on.

    [Name] currently ranks [position] of [cohort size] in [subject], having improved from [earlier position] following [specific change].

    Our prediction of [grades] reflects [mock performance / coursework / trajectory], and is in line with the outcomes of students at a comparable point in previous cohorts.

  3. 3. Suitability for the course

    One specific example says more than a list of qualities. If you have one, name the quality and then describe the occasion that showed it.

    When [specific situation], [Name] [specific action], which is the clearest evidence I can give of [attribute: reliability under pressure / communication with people unlike themselves / judgement].

    [Name] has sustained [commitment] over [duration], including through [period of difficulty], which speaks to the persistence this course demands.

  4. 4. Work experience, confirmed

    The applicant will usually have described their placements already, so there is no need to repeat the detail. If you can confirm a placement, or pass on feedback from the provider, do.

    I can confirm [Name] completed [placement] over [duration]; the [supervisor role] reported that [specific feedback].

    [Name] arranged this placement themselves after [number] unsuccessful approaches, which I mention because that persistence is not visible elsewhere in the application.

  5. 5. Contribution to the centre

    Keep this short. A role or activity says most when it is clear what the student did in it.

    As [role], [Name] [specific thing they built, started or sustained], which has continued after them.

    [Name] has mentored [group] weekly for [duration], and colleagues describe [specific observation].

  6. 6. A closing line, and any adjustments

    Many referees close with a sentence on the predicted grades. If the student has an access arrangement they want universities to know about for interview, it can go here, with their agreement.

    I am confident [Name] will achieve [grades], and I recommend them for [course] without qualification.

    [Name] has [access arrangement] in examinations; they are content for this to be shared so that any interview arrangements can be made in good time.

By subject

What changes between medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine

The three courses look for slightly different things.

Medicine

Medical schools look for commitment over time and a realistic picture of the job.

You might mention

  • Commitment over time, with dates where you have them.
  • How the student works under supervision: punctuality, reliability, how they respond to feedback.
  • Teamwork in a setting where it mattered.
  • Reading or thinking beyond the specification, ideally something specific you have seen them do.
  • An occasion where something went less well and you saw how they responded.

The personal statement covers the student's motivation, so the reference adds more by sticking to what you have seen.

Dentistry

Dental schools want to see that dentistry is a choice in its own right. If you have seen how the student came to it, say so.

You might mention

  • How and when the student settled on dentistry, if you know.
  • Manual dexterity, with an example if you have one: practical work in art, laboratory technique, a craft or an instrument.
  • Care and precision in practical subjects.
  • Communication with people who are anxious or reluctant.
  • Dental work experience, if you are able to confirm it.

Read the finished reference once to check nothing in the phrasing makes dentistry sound like a fallback from medicine.

Veterinary medicine

Vet schools usually ask for more work experience than medicine, across more settings, and want to know the applicant understands the practical and ethical sides of the work.

You might mention

  • The range of animal settings: small animal practice, farm or equine, and non clinical work such as kennels, stables or a rescue centre.
  • Confidence and safety around animals, if you or a colleague have seen it.
  • Willingness to do hard, practical work on placement.
  • An understanding of the difficult parts of the job, such as euthanasia and cost limited decisions.
  • Strength in practical science and data handling.

Nearly every applicant loves animals, so the reference adds more by describing what the student has done.

Section two

Contextual circumstances

Section two can help a student a lot, and it involves personal information, so it needs some care.

Talking to the student beforehand

UCAS does not show applicants their reference, and schools differ on sharing it: some read it through with the student, many do not. Either way, anything personal in section two needs the student's agreement before it goes in, so it is easiest to talk it through with them first. If a student does not want a circumstance mentioned, leave it out.

The impact rather than the diagnosis

Universities need to understand the effect on learning, not the clinical detail. 'Was absent for eleven weeks of Year 12 and missed the whole of the [module] teaching' gives a reader what they need. Health information should only be included with the student's explicit consent.

Dates and duration

Where you can, say when the circumstance began, how long it lasted, how much teaching was affected and which assessments fell in that period.

What the centre did, and what the student did

Add a sentence on the support the school put in place, and one on how the student managed.

Resolved or ongoing

Say whether the circumstance is resolved or continuing, since that can affect the support a university offers.

Keep it for what mattered

Section two works best when it is kept for circumstances that affected what the student could achieve. No need to repeat the same material in section three.

Space

Things you might leave out

Space is limited. Most referees leave these out.

  • Material the student has already covered in their personal statement, since the space is limited.
  • Strong superlatives without an example alongside them.
  • Health information, a diagnosis or a disability the student has not agreed to disclose.
  • Family circumstances the student has not asked you to share.
  • The names of other universities the student has applied to.
  • A long restatement of the predicted grades, which are already in the application.
  • Paragraphs shared word for word with another student's reference, other than the section one centre statement.
  • Comparisons with other named applicants.
  • Phrasing that could read as a reservation you do not hold, such as 'should cope with the demands of the course'.
Before you submit

Easy things to miss

Common slips when references are written in a hurry.

  1. 1A section three that is warm but general. One specific example makes a big difference.
  2. 2Focusing on personal qualities alone, when academic potential and suitability for the course are also being considered.
  3. 3Predicted grades and prose that seem to point in different directions.
  4. 4No mention of work experience that the application leans on heavily, where you are in a position to confirm it.
  5. 5Something visible in the file, such as a resit or a change of centre, that is not explained anywhere.
  6. 6Leaving the reference until close to the deadline. Medicine, dentistry and veterinary applications close in mid October, so the reference is written in a busy part of the autumn term.
  7. 7Writing each section one from scratch, when a single centre statement can usually serve the whole cycle.
The other side of the application

What to point the student at while you write

Guides for the student on the parts of the application they write themselves.

The current UCAS guidance on the personal statement format is published by UCAS, and adviser guidance on references is on the UCAS adviser pages.

Quick answers

Common questions from referees

Who should write the UCAS reference for a medicine applicant?

The reference comes from the school or college, not a friend or family member, and is normally coordinated by the head of sixth form, a tutor or the careers lead. It works well when one person owns the document and gathers short contributions from subject teachers, the work experience coordinator and anyone who has supervised the student. The referee does not need to be a scientist or a medic. The reference is about academic potential, context and suitability, not subject content.

How long should a UCAS reference be?

UCAS sets an overall limit across the three sections. It can change between cycles, so go by the current figure in the adviser portal. You do not have to use every character. Section one describes the centre and can be reused, so most of the individual work goes into sections two and three.

Should I mention a student's mental health or a diagnosis in the reference?

Only with the student's explicit agreement. If it goes in, universities need the effect on education, not the clinical detail: teaching missed, assessments affected, and how the student managed. If the student would prefer it was not mentioned, leave it out. Your school's safeguarding or data protection lead can advise if you are unsure.

Will the student see their UCAS reference?

Not through UCAS. The applicant is told when the reference has been completed, but UCAS does not show it to them. Whether they see the text is up to your centre. Some teachers read it through with the student and many do not. Both are common.

Either way, anything sensitive in section two needs the student's agreement before it goes in. Applicants can also make a subject access request for personal data held about them, and your school's data protection lead can advise on how that applies to references.

Does the reference matter for medicine, or is it all UCAT and grades?

It matters, but mostly as context and confirmation. Admissions test scores and grades usually do most of the shortlisting, and few universities publish how they weight the reference. It is still the one independent view in the application, and it can make a difference in contextual admissions and for borderline candidates. Each university's admissions pages say more about how they use it.

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The rest of the teacher library

Most references are written in the autumn term. The other teacher pages cover the eighteen months before it.

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