Dr Tom Clark

Thank you to Tom Clark (Paterson '12) who returned to School last week to share his expertise with our Med Soc.

Tom studied Medicine in Leicester and graduated in 2019, he has just started his first Foundation Year 1 post, working in Health Care of the Elderly at the Northern General Hospital, Sheffield.
 
He shared a great raft of information with our students, including;

• What has been fun about studying Medicine at university
• Amazing friendships made with fellow students
• Teamwork, both with ones peers and also qualified doctors, all of whom are willing to offer support and advice
• Medical school studies are tough but very manageable
• There is a good work-life balance, both with studying and now with working as a doctor
• Advice regarding work experience
• How to plan and write a personal statement
• How to ‘sell yourself’
• UKCAT and BMAT exams, required as part of the UCAS application
• Choosing the right course for you (both personal preference e.g. traditional vs. PBL and other considerations regarding an application e.g. GCSE grades)
• Interviews, both traditional and the MMI format
• Electives
• Intercalated studies during your degree
• Applying for the Foundation Year Programme
• Thinking about careers and specialist training
• Fun parts of being a doctor
• Challenges and how to over-come them

One strong piece of advice was to make notes on everything that you get involved - starting from now!

• Extracurricular, Work experience, Meetings related to your application, Reflect upon every opportunity at the time, Do not rely on your memory as your Personal Statement and interview answers will be vague and generic, Have very specific points to make, especially regarding what you have learnt from all your experiences.

An engaging and interactive session - we are so grateful to our community for taking the time to return here and share their experiences and expertise.

Please do get in touch if you would like to help with our Med Soc or any other career area. We are setting up a number of Societies going forward including the already established Economics and Politics Society, Law, the Arts, Comms and Media and Engineering and DT.