Best Universities in Australia for Medicine

If you’re researching the best universities for medicine in Australia, the rankings are easy to find. The harder question is which of those universities will take you, and when. Australia’s top-ranked medical school doesn’t admit school leavers straight into medicine, and some of the most accessible routes are run by regional universities. Here’s how the top schools compare, and how to decide.

The top-ranked medical schools (2026)

University	QS 2026 Medicine (world)	Main route for school leavers
Melbourne	20	None direct. Graduate MD with GAMSAT
Sydney	26	Double-degree MD, usually needing a 99.95 ATAR plus a written assessment and panel discussion
Monash	33	Direct entry using ATAR, UCAT and interview equally
UNSW	=62	Direct entry using ATAR, UCAT and interview

Melbourne also ranks first in Australia on the Times Higher Education 2026 Medical and Health rankings. Rankings mostly measure research and reputation, though. They don’t tell you much about teaching quality or how your clinical placements will feel. Every Australian medical degree that leads to registration is accredited by the Australian Medical Council, so graduates from any of them can work as doctors.

School leaver or graduate entry?

Undergraduate medicine takes students straight from Year 12. Monash is the only Victorian university offering this. Most school-leaver programs require the UCAT ANZ. For 2027 entry, the test window ran from 1 July to 5 August 2026. If you missed it this year, your options are a gap year and sitting it next July, the graduate route, or programs that don’t use the UCAT, such as Sydney’s double-degree MD.

Your subject choices can also affect your results, so review subject scaling by state when planning your Year 12 subjects.

Graduate-entry medicine, such as Melbourne’s MD, takes students after a bachelor’s degree. Selection uses your university marks, the GAMSAT and an interview. The graduate route takes longer, but it gives you a second chance if Year 12 doesn’t go to plan.

Selection methods vary more than most students expect. At Western Sydney University, the interview counts for 75% of the final ranking, and Charles Sturt, which now runs its own program from 2027, uses the same weighting. At Monash, the ATAR, UCAT and interview are weighted equally. A student with a strong interview but a slightly lower ATAR might do better at the first.

If your Year 12 results don’t meet your target, explore university entry without an ATAR to understand alternative university pathways.

Regional and rural pathways

Several programs aim to train doctors for regional areas, and they’re often overlooked. Students in the Newcastle and UNE Joint Medical Program, for example, can study at either university. Central Queensland University and UniSQ offer provisional entry pathways into UQ’s MD through regional programs. The University of the Sunshine Coast offers a similar pathway into Griffith’s MD. Many of these programs also have dedicated places for rural students.

How to choose

Start with the entry routes you’re actually eligible for, rather than the ranking. Then compare where you’d do your clinical placements, how long the program takes and whether you’d be happy living there for five or six years. Only then use rankings to decide between programs that are otherwise equal.

For example: a student in Toowoomba with a strong interest in rural health could find UniSQ’s pathway into UQ’s MD a better fit than moving interstate for a higher-ranked school. They’d stay close to home and train where they intend to work.

Common mistakes

The most common mistake is applying only to the top three ranked schools when two of them rarely take school leavers. Another is missing the UCAT window, which comes months before you apply. A third is focusing only on the ATAR when many programs weigh the interview just as heavily.

Also check whether bonus points and adjustment factors can affect your selection rank at your target university.

The Bottom Line

The best universities for medicine in Australia by ranking are Melbourne, Sydney and Monash, but the best one for you depends on which entry route fits your situation. Check each program’s UCAT, ATAR and interview requirements, and apply to a broad range of schools. To see whether your expected marks are in range, run them through ATAR calculator.