3 things I would do differently if I was studying medicine at University (AGAIN).
Date: 20th February 2025Average Read Time: 3 mins 50 seconds
I quit working as an NHS doctor full-time in 2020 and I’m not in a training pathway or following the conventional medical career.
A question I get asked A LOT is “Do I regret my decision to study medicine at University?”
I don’t because I wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for my studies but…
“Would I do it again if I had to start over?”
I don’t think I would knowing what I now know about the current circumstances surrounding job security & job allocation in the NHS.
But if you told me that I had to, there are 3 things that I would do….
A question I get asked A LOT is “Do I regret my decision to study medicine at University?”
I don’t because I wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for my studies but…
“Would I do it again if I had to start over?”
I don’t think I would knowing what I now know about the current circumstances surrounding job security & job allocation in the NHS.
But if you told me that I had to, there are 3 things that I would do….
ONE: I would remind myself that my degree is essentially a science degree but with arguably great application of practical skills & the skills I’m learning are applicable to lots of different roles/industries.
It is all too easy for us as medics studying a professional degree to think that the degree we have can only be applied to the professional role we are training for... This really isn't the case though and the skills we are gaining & developing are applicable to lots of different roles/industries. There will be things that we are learning which are very specific and only applicable to our working roles as doctors (e.g. certain practical skills as an example) but at a higher level these learnings still require us to develop other skills (e.g. communication, teamwork, precision as a few examples).
It is all too easy for us as medics studying a professional degree to think that the degree we have can only be applied to the professional role we are training for... This really isn't the case though and the skills we are gaining & developing are applicable to lots of different roles/industries. There will be things that we are learning which are very specific and only applicable to our working roles as doctors (e.g. certain practical skills as an example) but at a higher level these learnings still require us to develop other skills (e.g. communication, teamwork, precision as a few examples).
TWO: I would use my time & opportunities available to me at university to explore different industries & other careers. There are so many resources available to do this at university!
There are lots of resources available to us from a career development perspective at university and typically, it is all the other students who aren't medics who are using them to help them navigate their career decisions. There is no reason why medics can't use these services too.... This was something that I did actually do whilst I was at university and it helped me no end when it came to applying for job roles outside of medicine. I would definitely use these services more if I was going back to university and make sure to attend careers events - you don't know what you might learn (& usually they hand out freebies).
There are lots of resources available to us from a career development perspective at university and typically, it is all the other students who aren't medics who are using them to help them navigate their career decisions. There is no reason why medics can't use these services too.... This was something that I did actually do whilst I was at university and it helped me no end when it came to applying for job roles outside of medicine. I would definitely use these services more if I was going back to university and make sure to attend careers events - you don't know what you might learn (& usually they hand out freebies).
THREE: I would teach myself about multiple streams of income & establish a plan to create my own portfolio career. The thought of leaving my fate in the hands of a single employer again terrifies me.
I hadn't really considered properly as a student the prospect of having a single job to support you.... A job which pays your mortgage, food bills & everything else you need to spend money on to just survive. I hadn't realised how much control a single job could have over you if you became so reliant on it to do all these things. This isn't a problem if you enjoy your job but what happens when you don't?! This was me as a doctor in foundation training. I suddenly started to feel very grateful that I was early on in my career (and life) without many dependables relying on my income for support. The prospect of becoming dependent on a single job scared me though and steered me in the direction I've taken today where I have multiple streams of income though my own portfolio career. I would make sure to start looking into creating this for myself sooner than I did, if I had to start again.
I hadn't really considered properly as a student the prospect of having a single job to support you.... A job which pays your mortgage, food bills & everything else you need to spend money on to just survive. I hadn't realised how much control a single job could have over you if you became so reliant on it to do all these things. This isn't a problem if you enjoy your job but what happens when you don't?! This was me as a doctor in foundation training. I suddenly started to feel very grateful that I was early on in my career (and life) without many dependables relying on my income for support. The prospect of becoming dependent on a single job scared me though and steered me in the direction I've taken today where I have multiple streams of income though my own portfolio career. I would make sure to start looking into creating this for myself sooner than I did, if I had to start again.
The current system for training medical students & doctors terrifies me…
I know for a fact that 18 year old Elle would have been completely ignorant to the logistical aspects of a medical career in the NHS when I applied to university.
As a student who took pride in her grades (& wanted to stay relatively close to home), I definitely wouldn’t have liked the new random-number-generated allocation system to tell me where I was working for my first 2 years.
This could be ANYWHERE in the UK.
The thought that I might not even get allocated a job (despite spending 6 years at uni studying for one) is even more terrifying. This is a harsh truth for the current cohort leaving university with almost 1000 not offered jobs for the cohort in 2024.
This problem doesn’t just apply to new graduates… There aren’t enough training spaces for most specialities compared with applicants with competition ratios increasing from 2:1 in 2014 to 5:1 in 2024.
I appreciate that people in most other careers aren’t guaranteed work but the way in which medics are streamlined to just work as doctors doesn’t leave us with much flexibility…. or does it?
This is where we might be going wrong.
The degree we have provides us with so many transferrable skills which opens up so many options for us.
We just need to get better at discovering how & where we can apply those skills just like any other graduate out of university.
This prospect excites me and I wish I had applied this type of attitude when I was studying.
As a new Doctor, initially I just accepted my fate letting it fall into the hands of the NHS but I wouldn’t do this again if I had to repeat things.... As I've outlined in this post, I would start creating the portfolio career I’ve created now a lot sooner & exploring all the other opportunities available to me, just as others do in any other industry!
Please don’t hesitate to contact me via email (elle@gabrielletodd.com) if you have any questions about this topic or careers in general.
I know for a fact that 18 year old Elle would have been completely ignorant to the logistical aspects of a medical career in the NHS when I applied to university.
As a student who took pride in her grades (& wanted to stay relatively close to home), I definitely wouldn’t have liked the new random-number-generated allocation system to tell me where I was working for my first 2 years.
This could be ANYWHERE in the UK.
The thought that I might not even get allocated a job (despite spending 6 years at uni studying for one) is even more terrifying. This is a harsh truth for the current cohort leaving university with almost 1000 not offered jobs for the cohort in 2024.
This problem doesn’t just apply to new graduates… There aren’t enough training spaces for most specialities compared with applicants with competition ratios increasing from 2:1 in 2014 to 5:1 in 2024.
I appreciate that people in most other careers aren’t guaranteed work but the way in which medics are streamlined to just work as doctors doesn’t leave us with much flexibility…. or does it?
This is where we might be going wrong.
The degree we have provides us with so many transferrable skills which opens up so many options for us.
We just need to get better at discovering how & where we can apply those skills just like any other graduate out of university.
This prospect excites me and I wish I had applied this type of attitude when I was studying.
As a new Doctor, initially I just accepted my fate letting it fall into the hands of the NHS but I wouldn’t do this again if I had to repeat things.... As I've outlined in this post, I would start creating the portfolio career I’ve created now a lot sooner & exploring all the other opportunities available to me, just as others do in any other industry!
Please don’t hesitate to contact me via email (elle@gabrielletodd.com) if you have any questions about this topic or careers in general.
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