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It is not an easy decision whether to ""bite the bullet" and complete your medical school application. The challenges
are stacked up in front of you and you need to be determined enough to face them.
Even if you are convinced you want to be a doctor, you should still gain as much insight and experience of the
career as possible to give you the best chance of convincing a medical school that you would be a good candidate.
Sources of Information and Experience
There are lots of sources of information and experience that you should explore to prepare you for making your
decision and then your application:-
- Work experience/Voluntary work;
- Insight Courses or conferences;
- Websites and blogs;
- Reading books and journals .
Healthcare Experience
Work experience is a requirement for nearly all medical schools. As well as demonstrating commitment and
motivation in your UCAS form and at interview, it is a good way of helping you decide whether medicine really
is the career path for you.
You may be able to do some work "shadowing" which will give you an insight into how the profession functions
and what the day-to-day routine is like.
It is advisable to try and get experience of both primary and secondary care environments. If neither of these
is possible, then some kind of voluntary work in a social care environment may be adequate.
Top Tips in Gaining Healthcare Experience
Click Image to Enlarge
Work Experience Ideas
- Phone your local NHS Trust - many of them have specific people employed to help find students work experience;
- Speak to your GP - if they can't give you any experience they may know of another surgery that can help;
- Use existing contacts - friends, family who can put you in touch with a colleague;
- Government advice:-
- Phone the admissions department of your nearest medical school:-
- The Royal London Hospital (Ann Walden) - 0207 3777 792;
- St. Bartholomew's Hospital (Karen Potter) - 0207 6018 339.
Work Experience Contacts
- For all departments associated with London Imperial (St Mary's Hospital, Charing cross etc.) - contact Petra Salvova at
Charing Cross Medical Education Centre on 020 33111239 or
check the website.
The pre-med programme recruits in twice-yearly cycles so be ready to complete an application form around mid- late September
or during February. The Education Centre provides a spreadsheet of all available opportunities and students should organise
their placements through them;
- Chelsea & Westminster Hospital - contact Charlotte Mackenzie Crooks 020 8846 6864 or on charlotte.mackenziecrooks@chelwest.nhs.uk.
This office expects students to research their own opportunities, which may be within Chelsea and Westminster or outside. Their helpful
"Work Experience Guide for Applicants" should give you a valuable insight into the kinds of experience you should be looking for and why.
Once you have identified an opportunity you should contact the office for help to formalise your work experience placement (fill in forms);
- Voluntary Services Department at University College London Hospital - contact John Hufton 0845 1555 000;
- St John's Hospice - contact volunteer Sophie McEwen by email in the first instance at sophie.mcewen@hje.org.uk or by telephone on 020 7806 4000
ext 4049. Voluntary work with St John's or other hospices requires as long a term commitment as possible. Sophie encourages students to register
prior to or early into their A-Level course to allow time for completion of security checks. The minimum commitment at St John's is one year
with a minimum of one, three-hour shift per week;
- Royal National Orthapediac Hospital - look out for their new online application system in November 2011. Only if you have problems online
should you ring Lee-anne Chaney on 02089542300. Places are extremely limited;
- St Pancras Hospital - contact Carol Taylor 020 33173341. Regular volunteering only, minimum 3 months commitment;
- Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton - contact Sarah Brain 02084876798;
- Ealing Hospital - contact Lorraine Jones during September on lorraine.jones@eht.nhs.uk in the first instance, or 020 8967 5000 (only
available to students living in the borough of Ealing).
Many of these contacts will only consider applicants who are able to commit to medium to long term volunteering; this is because each student placed
must have a Criminal Record Check, which can take 8 - 12 weeks to complete.
You may wish to discuss your time planning and academic commitments with your Ashbourne College tutors.
Voluntary work is important even if there is no clinical contact whatsoever. It demonstrates commitment, a positive attitude and a level of
communication. It also helps you to become aware of different social groups and their differing healthcare needs.
Most voluntary organisations are crying out for help (e.g. visiting old people's homes, working in a youth centre). It is rewarding and helps develop
some of the skills needed for a career in medicine; for example, hospice volunteering gives you a valuable insight into the emotional side of
working with the terminally ill. You may also be able to volunteer in a counseling role such as Childline or the Samaritans.
Just gaining experience of a hospital environment can be invaluable experience, so getting a job as a hospital porter or support worker can be
advantageous (look on NHS jobs website, in newspapers, at nursing agencies).
Additional Reading
Insight into Medical Courses
There are various courses run, usually by universities, which provide:-
- An insight into life as a medical student and as a doctor;
- Invaluable information to help you decide if medicine really is for you;
- Preparation for parts of the application procedure.
One of the most established courses is the 4-day Medlink course at Nottingham University. This is highly recommended for students interested
in medicine for December of their AS year. There are lectures, seminars and practical sessions covering specific medical issues as well as
advice on applications / UKCAT etc.
There are also shorter courses and seminars that may be closer to home; various options are listed below:-
- Medlink (www.medlink-uk.net/, Email: medlink@medlink-uk.info, Telephone: 01509 233 133 or 01509 235 879): Nottingham - 4-day course usually takes place in December. The new dates for 2012 are not out yet. Presentations covering a wide range of medical topics, interview workshops, practical sessions, UKCAT advice. (Focus on being a doctor);
- Premed (www.ontology.org.uk/Premed/, Email: enquiries@premed.org.uk, Telephone: 07005 947 616): Imperial - 14th April 2012 - presentations and interactive workshops;
- Medicourses (www.medicourses.co.uk, Email: bookings@medicourses.co.uk, Telephone: 01227 730 125): University of Kent - 13th-15th April 2012;
- The Scientific Basis of Medicine (www.summerschool.sgul.ac.uk): St George's - 4-day taster medicine course for Year 12 students 2nd April and 9th July 2012. Application Link;
- EPOC Conference on Improve Your Chances of Becoming a Doctor (http://www.epoc.org.uk/medical-careers/, Email: admin@epoc.org.uk, Telephone: 01707 661 107): 11th February 2012 (University College London), 3rd March 2012, (University of Manchester) and 24th March 2012 (University College London). Cost is £89 (or £85 for bookings of 3 or more). These events will help you decide whether medicine is the career for you, and will give you an advantage in your application. Medical Schools are looking for highly motivated candidates, who have done their research. They also look for proactive students who can demonstrate that they are properly prepared for of one of the toughest, yet most rewarding careers.
You will hear practical tips on getting into medical school and understand what admissions tutors, university selection
committees and interview panels are looking for. You will get advice on improving your UCAS application and interview technique.
You will also find out about the realities of daily life in the medical profession and speak to doctors and medical students
about their experiences.
The course will also help you to consider your alternatives: the academic options and alternative careers that are possible.
Finally by attending the course you will have the chance to experience a university / medical school environment.
We give students the information they need to help them to decide the best path for their future. This conference gives a
rounded, unbiased and fair perspective of medical career.
www.futuredoctors.co.uk
Future Doctors do 3 main types of courses. The first, Commitment To Medicine reviews the body systems looking at physiology
and anatomy and provides an insight into a systems based course.
The second course available looks at Clinical Skills. Both courses are available at basic or advanced level. Courses cost
between £199 and £249 for a day. The third course is £99 and is focused on improving interview skills.
Future Doctors will:-
- Provide you with certificates that can form part of your portfolio of relevant experience;
- Give you insight into what it really means to be a doctor;
- Provide you with a clear understanding of what five/six years of medical school will be like;
- Explain how training to be a GP/ Specialist in the NHS will affect you;
- Allow you an understanding of common issues in a variety of medical specialties;
- Mentor you through writing a good personal statement and performing at interview;
- Ensure that you are prepared to excel at the BMAT/UKCAT exam;
- Allow you to gain experience of the essential practical procedures and examinations that form part of the everyday challenges doctor faces.
Websites and Blogs
Wider Reading
Students should also start broadening their wider reading. You may be asked about topical medical and scientific issues in
an interview, so you should be up-to-date and well informed.
You should read a broadsheet newspaper every day and also try and refer regularly to specific medical websites or journals
e.g. New Scientist / Student BMJ (see list in interview section).
It is also recommended that you read some popular scientific books especially on more ethical or controversial issues. The
following are a good place to start:-
- Brave New World - Aldous Huxley;
- The Selfish Gene - Richard Dawkins;
- The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins;
- Language of the Genes - Stephen Jones;
- The Double Helix - Watson & Crick;
- The Red Queen - Matt Ridley;
- Bully for Brontosaurus - Stephen Jay Gould;
- The Private Life of the Brain - Susan Greenfield;
- The Man who Mistook his Wife for a Hat and other Clinical Tales - Oliver Sacks;
- Suburban Shaman: Tales from Medicine's Front Line - Cecil Helman;
- What We Believe but Cannot Prove: Today's Leading Thinkers on Science in the Age of Certainty - John Brockman.
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