Richard Huish College welcomed 25 doctors from Musgrove Park Hospital for a special evening designed for young people who had made applications to study medicine at university.
Attended by 17 students of the Huish Medical EnRICH programme, alongside two Bridgwater & Taunton College students and a student from outside the area, the evening involved a carousel of activities aimed at preparing them for the rigorous admissions processes involved with entry to medical school.
Dr Gamunu Ratnayake, Consultant Anaesthetist at Musgrove Park Hospital and former employee of King’s College London’s Admission Department, gave a presentation of key advice before students broke out into groups to ask a variety of Musgrove staff more detailed questions.
The students also got to practice their skills in a formal interview that replicated many universities’ admissions process. Following their interview, the students received feedback about how they performed and what they could do to improve for their real interviews.
Those applying to medicine are often now required to complete multiple mini interviews (MMI). In quick succession they will be given a different scenario or task, minutes of preparation time and then asked to perform before moving directly onto the next challenge. This can be intense, however, the students demonstrated fantastic poise under pressure in the reconstructed environment. The surprise tasks on the evening ranged from resolving an issue of a highly emotional, upset person to guiding someone in tying laces.
Dr Wesley said: “It was a pleasure to see how enthusiastic the students were. We hope to develop long term relationships with Huish and other Sixth Form Colleges to encourage local students from all backgrounds to consider Medicine as a career and to ensure they are well prepared for the interview stage of their application.”
Richard Jones, Progression and Learning Centre Manager at Huish, said: “What a pleasure to welcome such enthusiastic Medics to our college who have given their time to support the next generation of Doctors. The students certainly went away feeling very well prepared for their forthcoming interviews. We couldn’t be more thankful for the support from Musgrove staff for making the event happen.”
The Huish medical EnRICH programme, which supports those making applications to competitive vocational degree programmes of medicine, dentistry and veterinary science, is a specialist branch of the wider academic EnRICH provision Huish provides to all students.
In addition to specialist events, medical EnRICH includes guidance on UCAT and BMAT admissions tests, debates on medical ethics, seminars from visiting speakers, recommendations on wider reading, confidence building in using medical terminology and advice on e-mentoring, progression opportunities and work experience schemes, plus much more.
More information about Huish EnRICH will be available at the college’s open event on February 9, 2022. To register visit Open Event Spring 2022 – Richard Huish College.
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