---header.jpg)
Gaining experience for applying to Medical School
Gaining relevant experience is a key part of your application to medical school.
Where to start
Relevant experience is essential for applying to medical school. You will need to be able to show how you have developed interpersonal skills.
You'll also need to understand what makes good patient care. Patients often feel vulnerable, angry or distressed, and you鈥檒l need to know how to respond.
However, your experience doesn't have to be shadowing a doctor or in a clinical setting.
Stay up to date
You also need to keep up-to-date with developments in healthcare through the press. You could start by looking at:
Is your current experience relevant enough?
If you gained related experience while at school, you鈥檒l need to get more recent experience. This will reflect your continued dedication to the profession.
If your experience was overseas, you usually need to gain UK-based experience too.
You鈥檒l need a good understanding of the NHS. This is particularly true for accelerated/graduate entry courses. It helps then, to get experience within the UK system.
More information
The following give more information on what is seen as relevant experience.
- -includes the .
- - advises doctors on how to run a work experience programme. Can be helpful for candidates when asking for work experience with a GP.
See our Healthcare page Gaining Experience section for more relevant opportunities.
Where to find experience
Healthcare and care work roles
Many medical school applicants volunteer in healthcare or take part-time care work roles. This involves contact with vulnerable people of different ages. It also exposes you to challenging situations.
Care work gives you an understanding of people 鈥榠n crises鈥� outside traditional healthcare settings. This could be with, for example, the elderly, homeless or at-risk people.
Care work can develop your listening, empathy and communication skills. This can enable you be a more effective practitioner.
Examples of relevant experience in a medical or health related field include:
- hospital
- in a hospice or residential/nursing home or for an individual
- community work with disabled adults or children
- shadowing doctors or other medical/health staff
Paid opportunities
Find paid opportunities on the following sites:
- - log in to find internships, placements and part-time jobs. Often advertises personal carer, care assistant and support worker vacancies
- - includes part-time jobs
- 鈥� advertises part-time care assistant and similar roles
- Recruitment agencies often have temporary and part-time vacancies in social care
- - includes part-time vacancies in social care
- - occasional part-time care assistant vacancies
- Probation and social work - see jobs section for part-time care and support vacancies
Voluntary experience
You can find relevant voluntary experience at:
- - based in the Students鈥� Union. They have a wide range of relevant volunteering projects. You could volunteer with refugees, the elderly, or children. You could also work with disabled people or those with mental health problems.
- - opportunities across the UK in a wide range of opportunities. Includes disability, drugs and addictions, health and social care, mental health, the elderly.
Some volunteering opportunities are available in the NHS. Contact to find out what is available or see links below for opportunities in the North East.
Our Volunteering pages also have opportunities and organisations offering overseas projects. There is usually a cost involved in these. An online search will also bring up many more organisations. We recommend doing your research before handing over any money.
Opportunities in North East NHS Foundation Trusts
Listed below are work experience, volunteering, and shadowing opportunities we are aware of. These are from local health providers. Other local GP practices and NHS trusts may offer extra opportunities.
Clinical pressures and COVID19, means some Trusts are not accepting work experience applications. Make sure you check details and eligibility criteria, as these are subject to change.
- . Placements are subject to availability. See also opportunities
- – work experience with Northumbria Healthcare
- - includes virtual opportunities and volunteering
- – volunteering opportunities
- – work experience and
- – volunteering opportunities
- – volunteer information
- - volunteer opportunities
- – work experience and
Shadowing and hospital experience
Shadowing health professionals can provide valuable experience. You will be observing rather than conducting patient interactions or procedures.
Making contacts gives suggestions of potential contacts to approach. details local health teams you could contact about shadowing.
Hospitals sometimes offer shadowing. Pressures on staff mean that they can’t always provide the level of supervision to meet demand. Placements may only last a few days and sometimes take place in term-time.
Some hospitals have a specific staff member who deals with placements. If so, they will prefer that you didn’t contact consultants directly.
Check the / for information. If you can't find this information, ring the hospital switchboard. Ask to speak to the placement co-ordinator.
Other relevant experience
Taking part in other experiences such as those listed below can be valuable. You can include them in your application. It is how you reflect on these experiences and communicate this that is important.
- - is an alternative to work experience for aspiring medics aged 16 and over, who are living in the UK. This is a free interactive video platform. It provides insights into the role of a GP and the wider primary care team. Registration is required.
- explore different medical specialties.
- The GMC and NHS England free insight into a patient's journey to GP practice.