More info
On this page:
Sources of info
Book reviews
Student BMJ
Some other books
Internet sites
Medical conferences
Sources of info
These days, there are loads of places where you can find information about applying to medical school. Internet, books, magazines, newspapers etc. can all provide advice (some good, but some bad!) on gaining a place in medical school.
Getting into medical school: 2009 entry
James Burnett, Joe Ruston
Published by Trotman
This is a book written by a teacher at an Independent college which is experienced at sending students to medical school. The book is short and easy to read (although you don't get much for your money!). There is also a good accurate example of an interview selection form and a bank of interview questions in the appendix which would prove a useful resource when executing practice interviews. (Although you can get similar ones on our interviews web page). However, this book does little to dispel the myths surrounding medical school admissions. It also tends to spoon feed the reader with 'ideal' answers, which I, as an interviewer for admission to medical school, would not be particularly impressed by. The book fails to impress the importance of individuality in application and supports the idea of being 'trained'. Also, it paints a very cynical, dim and unrealistic picture of the admissions process and it is very important to remember that on the whole interviewers aren't out to trick you as the book suggests. In general, although the practice interview questions are useful, it is important to remember that this book has not been written by someone who has any insider knowledge of the admissions procedure and therefore you should take the advice contained in it with caution.
So you want to be a brain surgeon?
A medical careers guide
By Chris Ward and Simon Eccles
Published by Oxford University Press
Buy it from Amazon (£16.10)
This little book outlines all the career options available to you after you qualify. It has an excellent section on the postgraduate career ladder, which would definitely be useful knowledge for interviews. The rest of the book is helpful in understanding the diverse range of careers available. Although not essential reading in terms of the admissions process, it is certainly worth buying if you have a specific specialty in mind and will serve as a helpful guide throughout your time at medical school and beyond. Clearly laid out with pictoral grids complimented by sections of text, So you want to be a brain surgeon? Provides a careers guide which supplements the often poor careers guidance offered at medical school. Overall, a good book, maybe slightly too detailed for sixth formers but definitely worth a look.
Learning Medicine
By Peter Richards and Simon Stockhill
Published by BMJ books
Buy it from the BMJ bookshop (£15.95)
This is a clear, excellently written book by a former Medical school Dean (a kind of headmaster) and a junior doctor. As a result, the information contained within it is accurate, detailed and very up-to-date. It allows the reader to picture the workings of a medical school admissions department without actually dictating to the reader what to put on their UCAS personal statement or the 'perfect' answers to interview questions (leaves you to use your brain and do that for yourself!). Gives a very good idea of the attitudes of both the staff and students at medical school through the use of 'case studies'. It is a realistic guide which will answer most of your questions concerning entry and life at medical school and beyond. Takes you on a step by step journey through life as a medic from sixth former to retiring consultant, hence giving you a very good idea of whether or not it is a career for you. The appendices contain useful, original information including guidelines outlining exactly what is expected of you as a medical student. Overall a highly recommended book - if you're only going to buy one then this should be it!
Insiders' guide to medical schools
Edited by Alex Almoudaris, Chris Ferguson and Sally Girgis
Compiled by the BMA's Medical Student Committee (MSC)
Published by BMJ books Buy it from Amazon (£16.95)
A good reference book which would serve as a useful resource when researching into universities in year 12. The guide has a concise description of all medical schools in the UK including aspects such as course structure, facilities and student life including a box at the end detailing the best and worst things about that particular medical school (according to the students). It would definitely be helpful when compiling a shortlist of universities that you would like to go and check out for yourself, but is not actually intended (or suitable) as a replacement for actually going to the open days, talking to the students and getting a feel for the place. There are chapters at the start of the book encompassing topics as diverse as choosing medicine, life as a medical student, the PRHO year, medical careers, finances, applications and choosing the right medical schools. There is a helpful (if a little complicated) diagram outlining the path of postgraduate careers and a comprehensive, accurate, up-to-date section outlining how to finance yourself on the long path to becoming a doctor. Balanced, unbiased viewpoints are given throughout leading to an honest, warts and all view of the medical school. On the other hand, the book, written by members of the BMA (British Medical Association) in some places seems to be an advertisement to join their union rather than an objective provider of information. Also, due to the very simple black and white layout, reading it from cover to cover can be a little dry. Overall, a very informative, accurate, up to date book which could prove to be a very helpful resource when deciding on where to apply. More useful as a reference text to dip into occasionally than a cover-to-cover read.
Duties of a doctor
Guidance from the General Medical Council
Published by the General Medical Council Found at the General Medical Council (link opens in new window)
Click on ethical guidance and then on guidance link for a list of headings. This is a series of booklets published by the GMC which is provided free of charge to all doctors and medical students in the UK. The GMC is a regulatory body for doctors (a sort of government) and it makes sure that all the doctors in the UK are adhering to professional guidelines and investigates claims of malpractice. These booklets/the information on the website contain a sort of 'rule book' for doctors and explain what should be done in certain ethical situations. I know it all sounds a little bit dry and I admit that this information is not the best read. But it is freely accessible on the web and contains some information about ethics and good medical practice which could potentially be really useful when preparing for interviews. Go on, read them and you'll be two steps ahead of everyone else and will positively glow at interview!
Passing the UK Clinical Aptitude Test and BMAT
By Felicity Walker-Buckton, Rosalie Hutton and Glenn Hutton
Published by Law Matters Publishing
Buy it from Amazon (£11.73)
Passing the UK Clinical Aptitude and BMAT
Written by a fifth year medic, a psychologist and a specialist in recruitment
and selection, this book is a comprehensive guide to the modern UK Medical
school admission process. It explores and talks you through and explores why
you want to study Medicine and have a career as a doctor. It then goes on to
discuss your written application and interview offering useful tips and advice
along the way. Finally, it discusses and explains the UKCAT and BMAT. It
provides you with a foundation to ensure you are prepared for the entire
Medical school application process. It breaks down the two tests into logical
and clear sections allowing you to work through the types of questions you will
face and the rationale behind them. It is filled with example questions
allowing you to have a go at your own pace but also understand how you might go
about solving them. This book is an excellent guide and useful companion to any
prospective medical student.
Student BMJ
www.studentbmj.com (link opens in new window)
This is a wonderful website for prospective medical students. The student BMJ is a publication produced by the BMJ (the British Medical Journal) and is a journal written especially for UK medical students. Medical students receive this publication every month and it contains a wealth of information from elective reports to X-ray interpretation to news on current medical issues. The articles are generally extremely well written and I am confident that it is reasonably easy to understand at the stage of Year 12. It definitely beats trawling through back issues of the Lancet to get news on current medical breakthroughs. The website is colourful, well laid out and easy to navigate. I'm sure interviewers would be very impressed if you are able to say (and mean it) that you regularly read articles in the Student BMJ as it's parent, the BMJ is one of the most famous and important journals in the medical field. 100% recommended and many of the articles may be viewed online for free!!!
Some other books
Below are some other books that potential applicants (and medical students) may find useful. Some are biographical, some are non-fiction and some are fiction. Take a look in your library! If you know of any more, let us know via our comments page.
- The Dressing Station: A Surgeon's Odyssey. Jonathan Kaplan.
- Contact Wounds: A War Surgeon's Education. Jonathan Kaplan.
- Limits and Lies of Human Genetic Research. Jonathan Kaplan.
- Complications: Notes from the Life of a Young Surgeon. Atul Gawande.
- Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science. Atul Gawande.
- Bedside Stories: Confessions of a Junior Doctor. Michael Foxton.
- Bodies. Jed Mercurio.
- Hippocratic Oaths: Medicine and Its Discontents. Raymond Tallis.
- Mount Misery. Samuel Shem.
- The House of God. Samuel Shem.
- Cancer Ward. Aleksandr Isaevich Solzhenitsyn.
- The Trouble with Doctors: Fashions, Motives and Mistakes. Ann Dally.
- Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers. Mary Roach.
- The Intern Blues: The Timeless Classic about the Making of a Doctor. Robert Marion.
- Dr. Iain West's Casebook. Chester Stern.
Internet sites
There are lots of internet sites out there where you can get information. Especially useful are medical admissions forums, which can be found on the links page.
Medical conferences
There are lots of these conferences available to go on which are often heavily advertised in schools. These are often expensive residential courses. They are useful as a couple of days can allow you to acquire a lot of information but remember they don't tell you anything that you can't find out elsewhere so before you part with your hard earned cash think very carefully about how much you want to go on them. Here's a thread from newmediamedicine.com (link opens in new window), so you can find out some opinions on these courses. Some people find them useful; others don't.
Also, your local medical school may put on an open day for medicine, which may be free; and if it's not you could always persuade your school to pay!
This list is by no means a definitive guide of the information out there, it's just the tip of the iceberg. Remember most of the advice is at a cost, so try and use web-based facilities as much as possible which tend to be free.
