Wider Research & Activities for Medicine Application

I am a Year 12 student who has already completed clinical work experience across multiple wards in a hospital and is actively engaged in wider reading of books, podcasts and papers; I've also started to look at things like medical ethics and other core concepts discussed around interviews and the wider application process, but this is not my paramount focus given I'm currently at the very beginning of my medicine application process.

What I am interested in is other activities I can do to set me apart from applicants, such as essay competitions and other things which often go overlooked. I want to try do these in my first year of study so I can fixate on my A-Levels when it comes to the second year, and was wondering if anyone could point me in the right direction for programs to further build upon my personal statement and topics for interviews?

I'm aware of the Libra essay competition, but most other things I've seen thus far haven't been updated since 2020-21 when it comes to writing essays. I'm already doing an EPQ and Gold CREST award, but I have a keen interest in specific areas of medicine such as PHEM and resuscitation science -- what are some recognised programs I can use to turn this understanding / interest into something that would actually bolster my application?

Thanks in advance :smile:

- any general pointers past the things discussed here are massively appreciated.

Reply 1

TSR Hippocrates

Hey there, thanks for posting a question in the Medicine forum. :biggrin:

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Megathreads
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The "Which Medical School Should I Apply To?" Uberthread
The Ultimate 'Am I Good Enough For Medicine?' Angst Thread
Medicine A-Level subjects queries
Work Experience and Voluntary Work

2023 Applicants:
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2023 Entry
Graduate Entry Medicine 2023 Entry
Medicine 2023 entry for resit / retake / gap year applicants
A100 Medicine for International Students 2023 Entry
Medicine Interview discussion 2023 Entry
2023 entry A100 / A101 Medicine fastest and slowest offer senders
Index of Individual Medical School Applicants' threads 2023 Entry

2024 Applicants :
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2024 Entry
Graduate Entry Medicine 2024 Entry
GAMSAT 2024 / 2025 entry discussions megathread
UCAT 2024 Entry Discussions Megathread

Other application years:
Graduate Entry Medicine 2025 Entry
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2025 Entry

Useful Articles:
GCSE Requirements for Medicine
Everything you need to know about the BMAT
Work Experience as a Graduate or Mature student
Medicine Personal Statement Advice
Medicine Personal Statement Advice (Graduate Entry)
Interview Frequently Asked Questions
MMI Medicine Interview Tips
What to do after an unsuccessful first application

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Reply 2

ErasistratusV

My advice would be to read a lot (the student BMJ is useful for this) and keep up with topical medical news so you are aware of any prominent health topics.

Try to obtain part-time work as a HCA. In fact, I would go so far as to say the more the merrier provided it doesn't impact your studies.

There are various places you can submit essays, though they take some fairly strenuous effort and they would need to be good... Still, they would be worth doing. You can discuss what you learned in interview if anyone happened to ask, say, along the lines of: how would you demonstrate your commitment to medicine?

(edited 4 months ago)