After successfully being selected as a School Ambassador for Medic Mentor ( a mentoring organisation for aspiring Doctors, Dentists & Vets), and attending a conference in London at the start of the year with fellow ambassadors, I had the opportunity to organise a ‘Presidential Visit’. This meant that I could invite a practising doctor into Y Pant Comprehensive School to inspire and motivate a group of year 12 students.
We welcomed Dr Iain Kennedy (President of Publishing for Medic Mentor) on Thursday the 26th April at around 10:30am and the session with him lasted until lunchtime. The meeting consisted of him giving very valuable advice about increasing our chances of getting into Medical School and some tips on how to tackle university interviews. We then asked lots of questions varying from how to prepare for entrance exams such as BMAT and UKCAT to training to become a doctor abroad! He also then recommended specific books we should purchase to enhance our revision for entrance tests, interview preparation and personal statement advice.
Additionally, Dr Kennedy exposed us to a hypothetical situation whereby we had to answer questions on how we would have to deal with the certain situation. As well as this, we expressed what stereotypes are often given to doctors such as how they had to study all day everyday to be successful and how they needed extremely high grades. Dr Kennedy challenged our stereotypes and reassured the group that there are many routes to practising Medicine and that we all have different and valuable skill sets to offer.
Furthermore, we discussed how off putting university acceptance statistics are and how they can mislead potential applicants. He went on to encourage the group to persevere even when the going gets tough, which in actual fact is right about now!
Our thanks go to Dr Kennedy for the enjoyable session and for taking the time out of his busy schedule to visit aspiring healthcare professionals at Y Pant Comprehensive School.
