School careers event provides insight and connections
Jennifer Connell, dedicated Careers Adviser for Liverpool School of Medicine, shares her top tips on making the most of a March which will connect student doctors with clinicians representing over 60 specialties.
The Specialty Taster Evenings will run online from Monday 21st until Thursday 24th March, with a different set of specialties featured each evening. Student doctors can register for free via Handshake, the University’s careers platform, and are welcome to attend as many evenings as they wish. The student intranet (link) provides the links to book and details of the specialties appearing.
Jennifer explains, “This year’s event has been organised with all students in mind, whatever year you are in, whether you already have strong preferences towards a particular specialty, or haven’t started exploring yet."
It’s an opportunity to tap into a network of consultants and trainees from partner Trusts who will provide an insight into what it’s really like to practise in their specialty.
The silver lining of an online setting
Jennifer has experience running careers activities both in person and online, and in fact the School had its first taster of an online careers event in November 2020 (link).
“Students and clinicians alike commended the relaxed and informal atmosphere online, which was conducive to good discussions. One student fed back how much they appreciated the face time with the “usually very busy clinicians who answered really insightful questions and dedicated a lot of effort and time to it”.
In turn, the clinicians were impressed with the relevancy of questions from the student doctors, noting how well researched and informed they were.
Running the events virtually makes it easier for clinicians to dial in and take part from across the region and beyond, with one who will be joining us from Uganda.
“This year, we will use a ‘speed dating’ approach”, explains Jennifer, “whereby the students will be divided into Zoom breakout rooms and visited by groups of specialty representatives at 20-minute intervals.”
“Our nuclear medicine representative, Dr Ruth Brown, is looking forward to the event, commenting that,
It sounds like a brilliant idea, and something I know I would have benefitted from early in my career.
A little research goes a long way
Jennifer describes the opportunity as a ‘fact-finding mission’, a chance to get a taster of the wide range of medical specialties available to you, ask questions and begin to find out if a specialty could be a good fit.
It is also a great way to help build your network. Jennifer says, “The key to effective networking is research, and preparing a little in advance is always a good idea when presented with an opportunity to connect.
Many of the clinicians in attendance will be our own Specialty Leads at the School of Medicine. So you can look them up on the University’s website, LinkedIn, Twitter or ResearchGate, or simply Google them.
Find out a little about the specialty through its Royal College website (link), or learn more through the exclusive catalogue of Speciality Videos, available to Liverpool student doctors on Panopto (link).
What it is you really want to know
Throughout the Taster Evenings, students will have the opportunity to put their burning questions to clinicians. “If you are feeling self-conscious at all,” Jennifer advises, “remember you can use the chat function in the Zoom breakout room rather than ask out loud.”
To help you get started, Jennifer has prepared a document of example questions (link) but students are of course welcome to think of their own.
“This event takes place only once over the academic year and will help introduce you to specialties you may not come across during your placements, or even during your foundation years.” says Jennifer.
Attend as many of the evenings as you can, and listen carefully to the clinicians’ responses to questions from other students, as they may well include questions you hadn’t thought of yourself.
“Take notes and bring an open mind. Every evening will cover a lot of ground. A specialty that you only have a small interest in now, or even one that isn’t currently on your radar, could be one that gathers real momentum.
You may look back at March 2022 as the point at which you began to make one of your most important career decisions!
If you already have a specialty firmly in mind, use the event as an opportunity to ask a question which you think may be harder to get answered with your own research alone; or to explore an aspect of practising the specialty that you haven’t previously paid attention to.
“At the end of each evening, jot down a brief answer to the question ’How will I use the insight that I have gained to move forward?’
Lasting benefits
The insights gained from opportunities like this can have a real impact on shaping your future career and in helping you decide on actions to focus on now, as a student doctor, that will reap rewards in years to come.
Students from last year noted how the event was useful in suggesting training courses or reading that are worthwhile pursuing.
Others noted how they gained contacts for potential placements, while one student viewed it as an opportunity to "see which specialties I enjoy throughout the years and if I can shadow anyone in those areas’.
Another shared, “I will take on board the advice about things I can be proactive about now to help support my portfolio when it comes to applying to specialities in years to come’.
Liverpool student doctors are invited to book onto the event early via Handshake. See the student intranet (link) for booking links and further information.