Interview Tips

I know that when I was in the process of applying to Medicine I was always so grateful for any advice that I could find that helped me with how to prepare and behave in interviews. So I'd thought I'd make a list of tips for anybody who's looking for some help for medical school interviews! The only types of interview I had were traditional interviews, so I don't know how helpful these tips will be for MMI interviews but hopefully some of them will be useful!

I also used an interview book by ISC which was sooo helpful - definitely try and get it if you can. You don't need to listen to everything they say, but it does teach you how to structure an answer and is helpful for learning new words.

1. Back everything up. Wherever you can fit it in reflect on your work experience/an experience you had/something you've read. Show them that you can think about what you've seen or read and relate it to yourself. It also shows them that you've paid attention in your work experience, got something out of it, and also that you've actually done some work experience - sometimes they don't have your personal statement! Also, if you answer a question they're probably going to ask some subsequent questions according to your answer - be able to back yourself up! Don't make things up, or mention things that you don't know about.

2. Why do you want to do medicine/be a doctor? Have your reasons and rehearse your answer. This is usually the first question they ask you and first impressions are important! Make sure that you know what you're talking about, and be able to back up what you're saying. If you say "I love that you're always learning new things", have an example from your work experience which shows how you know this!

3. Research. Know about the NHS. You don't have to know every single reform, but know generally about what's going on at the moment in the NHS and how it could affect you as a doctor in the future, or how it may affect people. Also try to throw in some key words in these answers like "postcode lottery" or "clinical commissioning groups", it shows that you know what you're talking about. A really useful website is The Kings Fund which explains the NHS reforms in a video. Also, know about your medical school! They will probably ask you questions about the course or the medical school itself so make sure you know this.

4. Take your time. If your mind goes blank or you don't understand a question ask your interviewers! It shows that you're not afraid to ask if you don't understand something, which is really important. In my interview my mind went completely blank on the question "What do patients look for in a doctor?" which isn't very difficult. However, I told them and we moved onto a new question. In the new question I mentioned empathy, and then said "And that relates back to the previous question!" You can always redeem yourself if something goes slightly wrong.

5. Smile, relax and be yourself. I was sooo nervous for my interviews but I tried to come across as happy and confident. I know that it's easier said than done, but when you come in smile and be enthusiastic! If they make a joke then laugh along - they want to find out what you're like as well as what you know. Be friendly and polite, and think of it as a conversation. If you're passionate about something - show them! If you make a point then defend it, and try to lean towards the interviewers and speak animatedly with your hands and face. Try to ask a question at the end as well - it shows that your interested!

Finally, let them know how much you want to go to their university, and try to come across really excited about it!

I really hope these tips help:)

Bye!xxx

Offer!!!!!!!

I got an offer!!!!!!

I literally am so happy right now! After these last two days of being so miserable about university and everything, I can finally relaxxxxxx!

I was out shopping with my sister, and I'd already been checking my emails every five minutes to see if I'd got an update from track. And then I randomly checked them and there it was! We were in the middle of a shop but I couldn't wait until I got home so I just typed in my UCAS login details and waited for what seemed like forever to see what it said, and there it was! I literally can't believe it ahhhhh! My hands were shaking so much wow

My friend got an offer from the same university, so that's exciting!

I still have one university left to hear from and then it's done! I'm not panicking as much now, because to be honest, all I wanted was one offer and I'm just so relieved!

Eeeeeeek still so happy!

Bye!xxx

Bad Day

I have just got so frustrated this evening.

First of all, I have my mocks this week. Today was biology and stats, and they were both just bad:( biology included a 10 mark question on something nobody had revised as our teacher said it wouldn't come up. And then stats was just a joke, I swear they just put all of the most difficult questions into one paper, it was horrible. I sort of just gave up towards the end because I was hungry and I had no clue how to approach the questions:( the last one was 12 marks with no a b c d e etc., it was just one question for 12 marks! I got an answer but it probably wasn't right.

Secondly, one of my universities started giving out offers. At first I was like oh yeah, okay it's not that bad, there are several more batches. But then I just started overthinking (of course) and panicking about everything blah blah blah, grrrrr.

And last of all, I just did some revision for my bio and chem mocks tomorrow and I just felt as if nothing was going into my head at all! I feel as though I've been working all year but nothing is going into my head no matter what I do. It doesn't help that I'm extremely competitive and hate when people beat me, so I always anger myself by stressing that my teachers are going to think I haven't tried or that I don't care.

I just don't like this A2 year, I want it to be over and to just get my grades! Or I just want some motivation:( either one would be great! Plssssss

And all this uncertainty just makes it worse - I could be in this exact same position next year, just waiting for offers/rejections, not knowing if I'm going to uni.

I've just realised that all of the recent posts on my blog hae been so negative... Sorry for the rant! I just needed to release my stress somewhere hahaa. I promise I'll get back to being positive soon!

Bye!xxx

Another rejection

So today I got another track update, and it was another rejection sadly! I was kind of expecting it, as I hadn't heard anything from this university since December, and I had a feeling I was below the GCSE cut off (all because of my stupid B in English Language).

Anyway, I'm not too upset about it, but I'm getting really scared now because I've realised that the next two track updates will be from universities where I've actually had an interview - way more scary. I think I might faint when I get my next track email.

I'm not loving this new thing on track where it says the update before you've had time to scroll down to it - I'd rather be oblivious for a bit longer:(

Anyway! I've got to keep on working - I will get 3As in the summer!

Bye!xxx

Demotivated

Waaaaa I have my mocks coming up in the first week of March, but I just can't help but feel so demotivated whenever I try to revise. I think it's because I haven't heard anything from my universities, so I feel as though I'm working for nothing, even though obviously I'll still need the grades whether I reapply or somehow get in the first time! It's so frustrating because I want to revise but everything distracts me:(

If I get 4 rejections then I'll be motivated because I'll want to prove that I can do it and get into Medicine, and if I get an offer then it's obvious I'll be motivated - I'll want to meet the offer!

I've even started googling tips on how to get motivated... Oh dear.

Anyway, I should probably stop procrastinating by writing this blog post and get back to work.

Bye!xxx

Work Experience

So I said in my previous post that I'd take you through my process of applying for work experience at hospitals, and what I did for work experience.

If you're in year 10, 11 or 12 and considering studying Medicine, I literally urge you right now to get some work experience in a caring setting - whether it's a hospital, care home, school for disabled children - just get something so that you can find out if being a doctor is for you!

I didn't decide that I wanted to study Medicine until January of my year 12 year, and so I only had 9 months to try and get as much as possible. I applied to my local hospital for work experience, and then emailed loads of London hospitals about trying to get some work experience with them. All of these attempts were unsuccessful though, and I didn't manage to get any hospital work experience:(

So I turned to some different options. I went on a trip with my school to Lourdes with the HCPT, where I volunteered with looking after disabled children for a week. Then I got some work experience volunteering in a childrens hospice throughout the summer - I only worked in the kitchen but it just got me used to the caring environment and introduced me to a new medical environment. I also managed to get a week of work experience working in a school with disabled children. This was my favourite piece of work experience and I absolutely loved it. I got see the physiotherapists working with them in the hydrotherapy pool, and see how their teachers communicated with them. I also got to speak to the doctor who worked at the school and he gave me some really helpful advice. If I end up taking a gap year next year, I definitely want to go back and get some work experience there again.

And then in October, after I submitted my UCAS form, I got a stroke of luck! My auntie's friend offered to give me some work experience at a hospital in London. It was only for a day but it was SO useful. The amount of experience I got from just one day of working there was amazing, so if you get a week in a hospital you're soooo lucky. This meant that I had something to talk about in my interviews that wasn't on my personal statement, and it meant that I actually could speak about my hospital experience. It also really reinforced the fact that I wanted to work in a hospital, and got me really excited about wanting to be a doctor. I also got to speak to a medical student, a consultant and a registrar whilst I was there and so I was able to speak to people who were at loads of different stages in their medical career. So even if you get work experience after submitting your UCAS form, don't worry! It will help you so much in your interviews and then if you have to take a gap year you can talk about it then as well!

I also spoke to somebody who worked in the NHS, an anaesthetist, my GP and other medical students to see what life was like as a doctor and to get some more information about different roles. I would definitely advise this, because it's so useful to hear things from different people's perspectives, and it'll give you some ideas for points to make in your interview.

I hope this has given you some good pointers for where to start looking for work experience. You definitely should try and get some volunteering work as soon as possible, and then try to get something in a hospital or other caring setting! And use any contacts you have, don't be shy!

Hope this helped!

My Story

I thought I'd just take you through the story of me deciding that I wanted to study Medicine, because trust me I wasn't born wanting to be a doctor, but it just kind of crept up on me over the years!

I first really thought about working in a hospital when I decided I wanted to be a midwife in year 9 or 10. I got all of the information about it from a school careers fair and was really set on it for a while.

But I first began wanting to study Medicine when I was in year 10 (15 years old). I was watching a TV show about paediatric brain surgeons - I can't remember the specific name of it, but it was really good! And I absolutely loved how they worked. I loved the explanation of the diseases, seeing the effect that the surgeons had on their patients and their families, seeing how they worked with the skull and the brain during the procedures, and learning about the innovative treatments that these doctors and scientists had come up with to treat the neurological diseases that these children suffered from. It made me think - maybe I could do that! So from then and for the next few months I decided that I wanted to be a brain surgeon just like the doctors on that show. I went on a trip to King's and did a medical day there, and it was really fun!

However, this whole dream came to an end when I went on a trip to Cambridge with my school. One step in there and I was like "I only want to go here! I don't want to go anywhere else!", and since I wanted to go to Cambridge so much I decided that maybe I should just apply for a course where I'd have a good chance of getting in. And I didn't really think that I would be able to be successful if I applied to Cambridge for Medicine, so I decided I wanted to study Natural Sciences. Or maybe Biochemistry at Oxford? Or what about just Chemistry? Or Biology? Or Archaeology? Literally I was set on Oxbridge.

So I did my GCSEs, and worked really hard because I wanted to get those grades so that I could apply for Oxford or Cambridge. And I got good grades! I was really pleased with them overall and so I continued with my Cambridge dream. I knew I wanted to study something sciencey but I decided to keep my options open for if I did decide to study Medicine, so I chose to study Biology and Chemistry at A level.

So, I started year 12 studying Biology, Chemistry, Maths, French and Drama, but dropped Drama because 5 AS levels really was just too much. I went to the talks they held about Oxbridge and got really excited about the thought of studying at Cambridge! But as year 12 went on I kept putting myself off of the idea of Cambridge and I became less sure that it was for me. As I studied AS Biology, I noticed how much I loved learning about protein synthesis and the structure of proteins, and I decided that Biochemistry was for me.

And then in January 2013, I randomly came across Junior Doctors: Your Life in Their Hands on BBC3. And once again I fell in love with the idea of being a doctor. The whole evening after I watched it I just couldn't stop thinking about wanting to be like those Junior Doctors on TV! I know it sounds stupid, I mean you can't exactly decide your career from watching a TV show? But it just made me start thinking - maybe I could be a doctor after all! I'd got over the idea of going to Cambridge now, and so that wasn't putting me off the idea of wanting to be a doctor at all! I looked into it more and started really wanting to study Medicine. I spoke to my friend who was planning to do Medicine and she encouraged me to do it. I realised that I wasn't actually that passionate about Biochemistry, and now when I think about if I had to do that instead of Medicine it makes me really sad.

And so that's when it started. I started panicking about AS results, and whether I had enough work experience and extra-curricular activities! And since I only had about 9 months to get all of my work experience sorted it really was a panic. I'll tell you more about applying for work experience in my next post.

Thank you for reading! I hope you found my Medicine story at least a bit interesting:)