MEGATHREAD - The Official 2014 Medicine Interview Preparation Thread

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Can anyone help me on this ethical question :

Female infertility treatment is expensive, has a very low success rate and is even less successful to smokers. To whom do you think it should be available to?

Reply 1541

Helenia

Original post by Eva.Gregoria

I didn't come across any junior docs in my work exp and if I did I wasn't aware that they were :smile:

So how can you know that you want a particular job (which is why you are applying for medicine) if you have no idea what that job actually involves? What would you say if they asked you that?

Reply 1542

JennaK

Original post by SiMan

Ahh okay! Thanks. I though defaults as in things you already have, like default settings lol.

Haha, no problem and stop overthinking! :tongue:

I'm actually not sure how I would answer the defaults part though... I mean, the whole 'I'm a perfectionist' thing is a bit overused but then again, you wouldn't want to say something really bad about yourself lol.

Reply 1543

SiMan

Original post by JennaK

Haha, no problem and stop overthinking! :tongue:

Yeah I know! But I discovered I genuinely do have a problem of being a bit over-competitive at times. And so have incorporated this with my previous exp. :tongue:

But have no idea how I'll do it if they ask me for 2.

Reply 1544

SiMan

Original post by Helenia

So how can you know that you want a particular job (which is why you are applying for medicine) if you have no idea what that job actually involves? What would you say if they asked you that?

That is a good point. However know thinking about it, I wasn't really introduced to any junior doctors. Just consultants and registrars, and some odd med students in my work experience.

Reply 1545

Helenia

Original post by SiMan

That is a good point. However know thinking about it, I wasn't really introduced to any junior doctors. Just consultants and registrars, and some odd med students in my work experience.

Registrars are still technically juniors, just less junior than others!

Reply 1546

Eva.Gregoria

Original post by Helenia

So how can you know that you want a particular job (which is why you are applying for medicine) if you have no idea what that job actually involves? What would you say if they asked you that?

Are all applicants supposed to shadow junior doctors? I shadowed a consultant neurologist, I didn't know it was a requirement that you were supposed to shadow junior docs... :confused:

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(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1547

SiMan

Original post by Helenia

Registrars are still technically juniors, just less junior than others!

Ahh of course! Specialists in training... that makes sense, thanks. :redface:

Reply 1548

Helenia

Original post by Eva.Gregoria

Are all applicants supposed to shadow junior doctors? I shadowed a consultant neurologist, I didn't know it was a requirement that you were supposed to junior docs... :confused:

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It's not a requirement, but it certainly can't be a bad thing, and would give you a very different idea of medicine compared with shadowing a consultant, especially in a specialty like neurology. Genuinely, if you have no idea what junior doctors do, how can you possibly know that you want to be one or that you'll be a good one?

Reply 1549

SiMan

When giving examples of a skill, such as, "Give an example of when you displayed leadership."

Can you just give one example or should you incorporate at least two short examples to show your skills effectively?

Reply 1550

Eva.Gregoria

Original post by Helenia

It's not a requirement,

but it certainly can't be a bad thing, and would give you a very different idea of medicine compared with shadowing a consultant, especially in a specialty like neurology. Genuinely, if you have no idea what junior doctors do, how can you possibly know that you want to be one or that you'll be a good one?

But its simply not possible for every applicant to shadow a junior doctor, of course in an ideal world where that's possible its great. But it isn't, and even the medical schools acknowledge this by highlighting that in the instance where hospital work experience isn't possible, hospice or care home voluntary experience could suffice (although hospital experience is more beneficial).

I was even incredibly lucky to be able to shadow a consultant neurologist, I had contacted at least 25 hospitals and even had to be placed on waiting lists to be able to get a place. I also don't think I necessarily need junior doctor experience to be able to know how to be a junior doctor, in that respect I would need paediatric work experience to become a pediatrician or surgical work experience to become a surgeon. Most people simply adapt and learn as they go along which doctors should be capable of doing anyway and which I have already demonstrated in other areas which I can talk about at interview.

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Reply 1551

Aniaa

Original post by SiMan

an example meaning you should give only one!

Reply 1552

Aniaa

Original post by Helenia

So how can you know that you want a particular job (which is why you are applying for medicine) if you have no idea what that job actually involves? What would you say if they asked you that?

you can't shadow everyone. I guess everyone know more or less what it takes to be a doctor.

Reply 1553

mubashir9995

Original post by purple and gold

skype id is purpleandgold3 :smile:

Just added you :smile:

Just tell me a date and time when you want to do a mock interview and I'll let you know if i am avaliable

Reply 1554

mubashir9995

Guys is there a skype group for interviews?
or are people just asking each other if they want to do one (like me :biggrin:

)

Reply 1555

Helenia

Original post by Aniaa

you can't shadow everyone. I guess everyone know more or less what it takes to be a doctor.

They really don't. This is probably why so many doctors end up cynical and disillusioned, or leaving.

Eva.Gregoria

I also don't think I necessarily need junior doctor experience to be able to know how to be a junior doctor, in that respect I would need paediatric work experience to become a pediatrician or surgical work experience to become a surgeon. Most people simply adapt and learn as they go along which doctors should be capable of doing anyway and which I have already demonstrated in other areas which I can talk about at interview

Are you deliberately misinterpreting what I am saying, or are you genuinely missing my point?

You don't need to do it to "know how to be a junior doctor," that's what medical school is for. The point is that it is a good thing to have a clue about what you are likely to be doing for the first ~10 years of your career before you commit to it. Your initial post about this was so naive I just had to wonder if you really knew what you were letting yourself in for.

If you get in, you probably will be able to adapt and get on with things, but will you really know that it's what you want to do? Will you be happy with it?

Reply 1556

0612

Original post by Helenia

They really don't. This is probably why so many doctors end up cynical and disillusioned, or leaving.

Are you deliberately misinterpreting what I am saying, or are you genuinely missing my point?

Hey!

Why don't you just leave the poor girl alone and stop badgering her, no one goes into medicine without having prior knowledge of what it entails.

I find your message a little uncomfortable to read! :angry:

Reply 1557

Eva.Gregoria

Original post by Helenia

No one can truly know if they will be happy doing something unless they actually try it, can they? From shadowing a junior doctor, it might seem very exciting and exhilarating to me but unless I actually become one, I can never truly know. And no one else can either. A majority of consultants and GP's today probably didn't shadow junior doctors and some who applied decades ago might have not even applied with any relevant work experience, yet they were able to adapt when needed.

Also the point is being a junior doctor takes all of what, 2 years? It would be much more beneficial to shadow a consultant or GP surely as these are the career paths that all junior doctors would end up in and possibly work in for decades.

I don't want to argue with you but the point remains that we cannot all shadow junior doctors, there is not enough to go around and it would be a lot more eye-opening to shadow a consultant who might have a bit more experience and a lot more advice to give.

Reply 1558

SiMan

I have to say, Heleina is making a very valid point that is being missed out completely here. Sure you can have an idea of what a 'doctor' does, that may be through your work experience or general reading.
However I too gave it a thought of which junior doctor I had shadowed in my experience. And the realised the chances are that I did, and I did as I had shadowed and spoke to trainee consultants aka registrars, which are technically 'older' junior doctors because they still haven't reached consultant level. As soon as you graduate, your life as a doctor initally begins as a junior and that's the experience which carries you on further. So the experience of a junior is important AND chances are you would've encountered one in your experience but may have not known them as junior :tongue: