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Medical Students on a gap year?

Are there any medical students who have taken/are taking a gap year? If so do you regret it? I'm weighing up the pros and cons and so far the main reasons for me taking a gap year are:

-explore
-do amazing stuff
-have the time of my life
-if unsuccessful for medicine first time round can reapply

and the reasons for not doing a gap year:

-medicine course long + gap year adds extra year
-might never come back and want to be abroad forever
-costs loads
-might forget all my school stuff.
-might not enjoy it as much as i'd hoped.
-I'm really excited about going to uni and would like to get there asap
-i could do all the travelling and overseas stuff in my elective if i get into medicine

So I'm really stuck. I'm applying in september so i'll need to say on my personal statement whether I'm taking a gap year, but i really dont know! argh! help!

Reply 1

Sarky

18

I took a gap year. I deferred when i applied, but ended up not getting the grades anyway, so it was just as well i did. I spent the year redoing two of my A levels at night school and working part time. It wasn't how i planned it would be, but it worked out for the best in the end as i ended up at a different medical school to the one that was my original choice, and i grew up a lot during the year. It enabled me to save money, and i have a different outlook on life now.

Reply 2

Elles

17

not exactly what you asked for - but i'm a medical students who chose against a gap year! :p:

if i hadn't got in first time round then i might have considered one & reapplying, but otherwise, the cons weighed more strongly for me - from a financial perspective & also the boredom thing or working full time for any length of time, plus i had no concrete plans.

& as a general aside - a friend of mine applied for deferred entry & was made an offer by our uni for the upcoming year - so from finishing A levels (mid June) to starting uni (early October) in the 3.5 month holiday he went abroad & did a voluntary project. & certain medical schools have similar holidays again for the first 3 years at least - so there is plenty of time for travelling etc then.

hope this may help. :smile:

Reply 3

anita_xx

I was exactly the same as Sarky except that I didn't defer the first time I applied - I kind of wanted to, but my parents weren't keen on the idea because they thought that if I took a year off from studying I'd find it hard to/wouldn't want to go back. So I applied, got an offer, then didn't get the grades so took a gap year - spent the first part of the year retaking A levels 3 days a week and working 3 days a week, then went travelling for a bit. Like Sarky, I'm really glad now because I had a great time in my gap year, met some great people I'd never have met otherwise and ended up at a different uni to where I would've been - which I was upset about at the time, but now I'm really pleased.

Anyway, veeeery long post, but basically I'd say go for it. It won't make that much difference time wise (from personal experience, I'm devastated that I'll be graduating soon, would love to have another year to go :wink:

) and I'd be VERY surprised if you don't enjoy it that much! And as for travelling etc in your elective, yeeees, but having 7wks (which is what you get in Sheffield) during which you also have to do some medicine is nowhere near the same as having a couple of months to do WHATEVER you want!

Anyway, good luck! :smile:

Reply 4

Flicker

13

spoon1

Are there any medical students who have taken/are taking a gap year? If so do you regret it? I'm weighing up the pros and cons and so far the main reasons for me taking a gap year are:

-explore
-do amazing stuff
-have the time of my life
-if unsuccessful for medicine first time round can reapply

and the reasons for not doing a gap year:

-medicine course long + gap year adds extra year
-might never come back and want to be abroad forever
-costs loads
-might forget all my school stuff.
-might not enjoy it as much as i'd hoped.
-I'm really excited about going to uni and would like to get there asap
-i could do all the travelling and overseas stuff in my elective if i get into medicine

So I'm really stuck. I'm applying in september so i'll need to say on my personal statement whether I'm taking a gap year, but i really dont know! argh! help!

i'm not doing medicine so i'll leave that to the others to give their reasons but the point i wanted to add was that i honestly don't know a single person who has regretted taking a gap year, or "not enjoyed it" as much as they'd hoped. so you can take that off your cons!

Reply 5

~euarne~

well i am a current gapper. i applied for medicine last year, and since i was really stuck on the subject and didnt want to do anything else, only applied to 4 places (is that relevant? :biggrin:

)

i got the place, got my grades...and then went travelling in the summer and then realised what a HUGE commitment medicine is and all that. so i called university up couple of days before going and explained and they were sympathetic. so yeah, took the year out and dont think i have regretted it since. and somehow this year out has made me more eager to do what i really want to do (i know, thats a cliché, but well i think motivation factor is really important for any course, and possible more so for medicine for its a life time of commitment)

am working in public health, which can be boring at times, but is mostly great fun as you are in the middle of lots and lots of information. also weirdly enough one of the consultants in my department went to nottingham for medicine :rolleyes:

. you get to earn a bit of money which would mean its like a cushion if you are a huge spender like me.

also, you can work and travel which would make it less expensive.

as for my parents, they were pretty annoyed at the beginning - but since then it has been all fine!

so just do what you want, its doesnt always turn out as you want it to - but i can bet most people have a great time and enjoy themselves.

*also, somehow if you can show you have something meaningful planned for your gap year - something with relevance to medicine, you might get more interviews and stuff, but please dont quote me on that*
xxx

Reply 6

Asphyxiating

2

Hi, can't say my gap year was pointless in any way although I don't believe I am using my time as productively as I really should! The whole drive behind my gap year really was to get into medicine so I did lots of volunteering and work experience until about febuary but I hadn't really planned the aftermath unfortunately! There's still a bit of volunteering but at the moment i'm just working part-time and trying to finish my driving lessons hmm i'm thinking of learning guitar, while I can, and hopefully in the summer I will be au pairing in France to advance my french, while I remember it, lol Possibly interrailing in June as well but so far that's all I got! The only reason I haven't been travelling exotic places is cos i've been to a lot of the places in the far east and I moved around a lot when I was ickle.. also that travelling alone doesn't particularly appeal to me.. plus there are places I want to go but there'll be plenty of summers to go. Right now I want to learn stuff that I might not have the chance to later on hmm anyway, I wasn't ready at all to go to uni if I wanted to last year so I'm still glad I took a year out, plus I would've been doing a course I probably would not have enjoyed at all.

Anyways you don't have to decide now if you are going to take a gap year , most unis don't mind deferring you later on if you ask nicely but check this with the ones you apply to. Gap years will hardly be a waste of time, most gappers seem to benefit in one or another, and it gives you the chance of doing anything you like for a year :biggrin:

You will have the best gap year if you plan ahead. Good luck x

Reply 7

Flicker

13

Asphyxiating

Hi, can't say my gap year was pointless in any way although I don't believe I am using my time as productively as I really should! The whole drive behind my gap year really was to get into medicine so I did lots of volunteering and work experience until about febuary but I hadn't really planned the aftermath unfortunately! There's still a bit of volunteering but at the moment i'm just working part-time and trying to finish my driving lessons hmm i'm thinking of learning guitar, while I can, and hopefully in the summer I will be au pairing in France to advance my french, while I remember it, lol Possibly interrailing in June as well but so far that's all I got! The only reason I haven't been travelling exotic places is cos i've been to a lot of the places in the far east and I moved around a lot when I was ickle.. also that travelling alone doesn't particularly appeal to me.. plus there are places I want to go but there'll be plenty of summers to go. Right now I want to learn stuff that I might not have the chance to later on hmm anyway, I wasn't ready at all to go to uni if I wanted to last year so I'm still glad I took a year out, plus I would've been doing a course I probably would not have enjoyed at all.

Anyways you don't have to decide now if you are going to take a gap year , most unis don't mind deferring you later on if you ask nicely but check this with the ones you apply to. Gap years will hardly be a waste of time, most gappers seem to benefit in one or another, and it gives you the chance of doing anything you like for a year :biggrin:

You will have the best gap year if you plan ahead. Good luck x

all good points :smile:

but i am curious as to how you can have an unconditional firm and insurance - if it's unconditional it's unconditional, you don't need an insurance and you can't hold it anyway!

Reply 8

~euarne~

allisandro

all good points :smile:

but i am curious as to how you can have an unconditional firm and insurance - if it's unconditional it's unconditional, you don't need an insurance and you can't hold it anyway!

yeah...thats what i thought! but well i only got one offer :redface:

. may be its unconditional but not firm? oh i am very confused today :biggrin:

(well most days)

Reply 9

paulgunter

at the end of the day do what you want to do.....if you dont do it now, the chances of doin it will get smaller and you will regret giving up the chance. You definately wont regret going on a GAP year if you are going to travel.....its an amazin experience and neer come across any1 who felt it was wasted time. Yeh it does cost a lot but you definately wont be able to do much after uni!

Think about it carefully, dont regret anything in life.

Reply 10

Flicker

13

paulgunter

You definately wont regret going on a GAP year if you are going to travel.....its an amazin experience and neer come across any1 who felt it was wasted time. Yeh it does cost a lot but you definately wont be able to do much after uni!

Think about it carefully, dont regret anything in life.

you won't regret a gap year even if you don't travel!

i've worked for 12 months and it's one of the best thigns i've ever done. as well as getting experience not only of the field but of having a proper job i've met lots of people, and earned some money.

Medical Students on a gap year?

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