#specialty training

[help-im-a-medstudent]

Hey this might sound a bit random but I’m med student and don’t know v many junior doctors to ask! How important would you say it is to have extracurriculars on your CV form med school? I desperately want to apply for core surgical someday but have no idea what to do outside of uni and my lecturers aren’t being v. helpful (& hard to find during covid). Any advice, as someone who’s qualified? X

Hi sorry this took me a while to answer, you sent it at a busy time and then tumblr kind of ate the notification but anyway! 

All training programmes look at more than a CV and have different scoring systems etc and from what I can tell, what you do AFTER graduating counts for more than what you do at med school. That’s not to say they won’t take anything into account (such as audit projects that you may get involved in) 

You still have to write a CV and I guess it’s the same as when applying to medical school - anything you write on the CV you have to defend as to why it is relevant to the training post that you are going for. 

This isn’t official, as I’ve had a look at a few of the training programme websites and can’t really see any official advice on it. I would say that while you’re at med school make sure you enjoy what you are doing and don’t stretch yourself with extracurriculars to “boost” your CV if you are going to burn out etc. It’s a bonus if you get onto a committee for something but again, don’t put pressure on yourself! 

If anyone who has been through the application process (or is doing more research than I am because I’m going to take at least a year before I apply haha) then please add to the post! 

Hope this helps :) 

[quilavastudy]

What medical specialty did you choose ? I remember you liked Haematology and intenral medicine rotations the most ^^"

I haven’t chosen one yet and probably won’t for another 5 years haha! I have my 2 foundation years first, where we rotate around different specialties. Then I will probably do a 3rd foundation year, because I want to locum and travel. 

I think I’m pretty set on internal medicine, so after my foundation years I’ll go into what’s called ‘core medical training’, where you rotate around core medical specialties such as gastro and oncology, which I think lasts 3 years (it was 2 years but I think it’s now being changed to 3 years? I’m not sure, haven’t looked into it much yet). After that I’ll decide what medical specialty I want to specialise in. At the moment I’m torn between gastroenterology and haematology, but luckily as they’re both accessed through the core training route I don’t have to decide for ages. x

[help-im-a-medstudent]

Hey, would you be able to explain the UK training process. I know you do F1 and F2, and then go on to further training but I’m not sure how it works. I know there’s different grades (sho/ct2/st1/registrar/etc), but I don’t really understand it or the training process, especially as it’s different for different specialities and I get very confused and overwhelmed. Please could you help/direct me to good resources?

Hi! 

This is something that really confuses me as well, so I’m not going to attempt to explain everything because there is a good chance I’ll get it wrong. I think a lot of it comes when the same “grade” of doctor has more than one title, or some of them are general terms, for example “registrar” means anyone after F2 year, but not a consultant, but then different specialties/years have other names as well. 

The number after the CT/ST indicates how many years into the specific training it is, i.e. the higher the number, the more experience they have and are referred to as “senior” registrars, so they are more likely to take cases without any input etc. 

After F2 you can pick specific specialties, for example if you know you want to be a GP, then you go onto the specific GP training program, although I admit I don’t know what the registrars are called, or you can pick “core” medical or surgical training, and specialise further on in your training. 

It’s important to note that a lot of specialities have many different routes to get into them. The GMC have this page about specialty training, and the BMJ have an explanation of doctors titles. 

Another good resource would be the Royal Colleges websites, all of which have information about how to train in their specialty. 

If there are any current doctors who can explain this a bit better/add to the resources please do! Hope this has helped you a bit :) 

[quilavastudy]

Hello! Could you explain to me how the access to a medical speciality works in your country? Thank you!

Hang on, I’m a bit confused what you mean - do you mean access as a patient, or access as a doctor, as in getting a job?

Well as a patient, you’re usually referred through your GP (family doctor). I’ve seen that in the US, people often go straight to an ob/gyn, or a paediatrician etc for a problem, but here, unless you to to hospital as an emergency or something, it’s via the GP first, and they refer you for an appointment if they think it’s serious enough. You don’t get to choose which specialty doctor you see either! (But if you end up not liking them I’m sure you can usually request to see another). 

If you mean how to get into a specialty as a doctor, it’s a bit more complicated.  It starts after your foundation years, which are the 2 years we rotate around specialties after graduating as doctors. It really depends what route you take, e.g. GP training is very different to oncology training. There’s more on it here. x 

[quilavastudy]

In those 5-8 of specialization, do you have like a stable training contract with a certain hospital or do you apply yearly for training positions?

I’m pretty sure you have a contract for the whole time with the trust that hosts your training scheme (e.g. the Leeds NHS hospital trust). You will move around to different hospitals, some of which may be outside that trust, but your contract will remain the same. 

However some specialties have a ‘core training’ first, then higher specialty training after that, but I’m not sure if you have to apply again? x

[airbud220]

Choosing the Right Place to Board and Train Your Dog

Choosing the right facility for specialty dog training can be a stressful task for any pet parent. If you choose to board and train your dog, you want to make sure you are choosing a quality facility. Here are some things to look for in a good training facility.

The first step is to look at the kennel that you will be boarding your dog at if that is the route you want to go for training. The best way to find the right kennel is to ask around. Your veterinarian or even your friends can provide insight on the best boarding facilities in your area, and you can easily search online to find reviews and testimonials from customers. It is important to ensure that your boarding kennel is certified and meets safety standards, including requiring vaccinations for all of the dogs boarded there.

After you decide that the kennel is sufficient, look at the trainers to help you decide which one you would rather have work with your dog. Reviews of individual trainers should also be easily accessible online, and you can also ask any family or friends if they have used or heard of those trainers. You want a trainer that will use positive reinforcement instead of intimidation or physical punishment when training your dog. When you board and train your dog, the right trainer will treat your dog like their own pet when working with them, and alleviate stress when you are gone. You wouldn’t want your dog to feel abandoned.

It is important to make sure you are choosing the right place to board and train your dog. Improper training or messy facilities can be harmful to your pet, and also counterproductive to the training you hope to achieve. Do your research on facilities in your area and choose wisely before leaving your beloved pet at one.

[dxmedstudent]

What determines which field you can specialise in? Thank you for answering all the questions we throw at you.

You can specialise in whatever you want! During December of your FY2, you are free to apply to any speciality. Obviously, it may help if you have any previous experience from jobs you’ve done. Or extracurriculars from med school that really show how interested you are in your chosen speciality. This is more important for competitive specialities. But many people don’t know exactly what they want to do, or change their mind halfway through and retrain. And that’ OK, too. I’ve met plenty of both. I don’t mind at all. I unfortunately have a decent pile of questions I’m still working on answering; some require more reflection or effort than others, so I have to pace them out. But my aim is to answer all of them eventually :)

[dxmedstudent]

When can you specialise and when do you have to do the mrcp?

You can specialise after FY2, and there’s more than one part to the MRCP but you have to complete them before the end of core medical training, as you can’t technically be a registrar without them. If you haven’t, you just end up with a slightly longer core training period, though, you don’t get kicked out of being a doctor. You just spend an extra bit of time being an SHO. So don’t worry!