Blood!

Yesterday I took the opportunity to do something that I've been meaning to do for an insanely long time. I'm not going to go into a whole essay about it, but it's an absolutely amazing thing to do. Something that is much simpler and less frightening/stressful than I was imagining, and it saves lives. I was reading yesterday that 25% of us will require a transplant at some point! yet a shockingly small amount of people actually donate blood.

They have stock levels, and although my particular blood type wasn't one of the most sought after it still has a massive impact. Plus the pain and resultant wound is really insignificant. I'm terrified of needles but I just found the whole process fascinating. I'd definitely recommend the experience as something everyone should consider. It's amazing how something so small can be so important! Plus I've felt amazing since the donation, i know some people feel faint, and I expected this, but I felt so great! 

Www.blood.co.uk has more information! 

XOX

Interview Response 1: Rejected

I got a response back from the first university I was interviewed for recently, and as I expected it was a no. I can't really say that I'm surprised. I've always come across really well on paper, but when it comes to an interview situation I get really nervous. I can't keep my cool so I forget a lot and don't talk about things I really should or think as coherently as would usually be required of me. Especially when I know exactly what my performance at interview is riding on. I did the same as I did when I got rejected from Kings, and didn't even want to look at my track status. But this time I actually told people, who are amazing and made me feel so much better about the situation. 

I'm feeling a little gutted, but I'm really glad I still have a chance at getting in this year. Currently I'm being considered by two different universities. I've done really well to get to this stage, as competitive as medicine is, it just feels so close that I can almost grasp it, but I'm not quite there. Hopefully one of the other universities will like me enough to offer me a place, but if not I will bulk put my application with more work experience, study for another year and hopefully get myself a masters degree and reapply, working hard on my timekeeping for the UKCAT. 

But for now it's getting close to Easter break, and I have three deadlines to meet before I can get there, and with my dissertation write up due just after, I have a lot of work on my hands. 

Here's to a busy couple of months,

XOX 

Update: March 2014

I haven't blogged for a while, so here's just a short update on how I've been. A good starting place would be to discuss how I got on at the selection centre at Warwick. Well this, despite being nothing at alike I'd imagined, actually wasn't too bad. It seemed like a mix of my Imperial interview, my 'Asda Magic' session and an exam all rolled into one. This sounds absolutely horrendous, but I actually relaxed quite a lot during the session and I think this was a result of doing it as a group. It was interesting to see other prospective medical students and realise that, very much like myself, they haven't actually got it all together and have similar concerns to myself. We're basically all trying our hardest and hoping that somewhere likes us enough to offer us a place. Which is exactly how it works when you go for an insanely competitive course. My interview was for both Warwick and Barts, but I absolutely loved Warwick university. It's a campus, something I completely despised the idea of when I came to Brighton, but seems much more appealing now. I love living in the middle of a city, and I know that I'd absolutely love living in London too, but something appeals about the sense of community there. I guess we'll see if I get an offer!

I think I blogged a lot at the end of last year about how unhappy I was as well. I think it's safe to say that things have changed here, for the better. I promised myself that 2014 was going to be the year that I would be happy, and despite a slightly rocky start, being insanely busy and recovering from the carnage that was 2013, we're a quarter of the way through and I'm  happier than I've been in a really long time, meaning I'm more optimistic and having a much more positive outlook on things. I've stressed about exams of course, and the future, but I feel so much more myself. I'm doing things that I actually just forgot that I do when I'm happy. Like singing around the house (not just in the shower), humming as I cook, smiling at strangers in the street and dancing around the kitchen (you get the idea!). I can actually honestly say I'm content, it's been a while.

Finally I finished my first semester of my final year, and despite not doing quite as well as I'd hoped, I've done okay. My exams were okay. In comparision to the average, I've done pretty damn well, but semester one exams really aren't my best part, so I'm glad my courseworks this year have been pretty good as well. I'm averaging a first overall so I'm off to a great start to try and get my 2:1 at the end of it. But with 3 deadlines in the next few weeks I'm definitely feeling the pressure! It's slightly scary to think in 3 months time I'll be done.

Wish me luck!

XOX

The End of The First Round: Shortlist to Interview

For the universities I've applied for at least, shortlisting for interview is complete. I think it's good to reflect back on the process and learn from what has gone well and what hasn't.

Firstly, I think it's okay to be immensely proud of myself in surviving this stage. So many people, some amazing applicants fall at this hurdle, and I was almost convinced that I would be one of them, so now I would be picking up the pieces and prepping myself for a 2015 entry application cycle. I'm not at this stage yet.

So far I've had 1 rejection, from King's College, London. If I'm completely honest with myself, this was one of my favourites, so I was a little bit gutted to hear this (you can read about this in my post: 'Rejection'). But they were very clear with me, so I completely understand their reasoning. My UKCAT wasn't quite high enough, so I didn't get in based on my mini-panic attack in the exam, causing me to screw up my quantitative reasoning section and miss out 13 questions. But these things happen, and despite this, I'm still doing well.

I had an interview in November at Imperial College, London. I love Imperial as a university, and it's always been one of my favourites. The university has such good standing, and the course looks absolutely fantastic, and completely in tune with my method of learning. The interview itself was strange, and looking back at it now, I wasn't entirely prepared, which is majorly because I didn't really know what to expect. I think some questions I answered really well, others I got flustered and could have answered much better (the kind of answers you consider half an hour later whilst sitting on the tube!). So I guess my standing in comparison to the other applicants will determine if I get made an offer of a place. I should find this out within the next month, which is both incredibly frightening, but also exciting.

Last week, I got an email notifying me I had been shortlisted for interview for the graduate scheme at the university of Warwick. Warwick also looks absolutely amazing, the campus looks so pretty, and the fact that the scheme is entirely for graduates is really appealing. The selection process is a selection day, completely opposite to my experience at Imperial, however I'm hoping the competitive side of me will come out enough for me to appear charismatic, without seeming too overbearing. I have longer to prepare, therefore after my exam, I'll have time to properly research the process and mentally prepare myself for the process, to give myself the best possible chance.

So the day I found this out was absolutely amazing, so to add to my excitement, I got an email from Barts and the London, informing me that they were also considering my application, based on my performance at the selection centre at Warwick. This is amazing. For those who know the medical school selection procedure, Barts and Warwick work together to select candidates to offer places to, however, you only get considered by both, if you are shortlisted by both.

From going from being convinced that I wasn't good enough, 3 of the best universities, and 75% of my choices, have disagreed with me enough to want to take me further. This is really exciting.

The next stage is the interview stage. I'll keep you updated as I go along, and hopefully I'll make it past this stage!

XOX

'Invitation to Selection Centre'

These keep coming when I'm in public places :D
The rise of modern technology means that you can check your emails anywhere, and I very much struggled to keep it cool when reading this over my lunch today.

Yes, I have a second interview, which is amazing, because despite myself not think I'm good enough or that I've done enough to get into medicine, not one but 2 medical schools think differently enough to take my application to the next stage. This is absolutely fantastic. I'm trying not to get really excited, but my dream is feeling closer than ever, and I'm really happy about it. I have a bit more time to prepare this time too. I have over a month until the date so I'm feeling much more relaxed about it than the one I had before. It's a completely different situation this time, I have to go to a selection centre, rather than just sit in front of a panel and talk. This has good and bad points. I always dread these kind of interviews, I hate the not knowing what to expect. However, taking what I can from the group interview I had for my job, seeing my 'competition' motivates me to really try hard to show the assessors my worth. I'm hoping this is what will happen this time. I'm also feeling more confident based on the fact that I've already had an interview, I know a little bit more about what to expect, and I can draw from what went well and what didn't go quite as well to really tailor my performance this time. I'm in a pretty good position.

Anyway, before I can even stress about this, I have exams to pass!

Busy, busy month!

XOX

Rejection

I found out a little while ago that I got rejected from one of the medical schools I applied for. Now this isn't down to anything I did, I just got out-competed, and there wasn't really anything I could have done about it. I got an explanation: My UKCAT wasn't high enough. I had a really good UKCAT, but due to the amount of applicants, I was just below the cutoff, an extraordinary high 772. The downside is, that out of all of them it was my favourite, so I guess you could say I'm a little but gutted about it.

So how did I react? I read the email, remained completely emotionless and didn't tell anyone for about 3 weeks. I've still only mentioned it to one person.
I didn't really expect this, I'm doing okay, I just thought on the inevitability that this would happen, I would feel somewhat different. I thought I'd be more upset, and definitely much more vocal about the whole situation. People keep asking me about how my application is going, and I've just been replying with I haven't heard, not necessarily a lie, I'm still waiting to hear from 2 of my universities, but also it is in this case.

I've coped by focusing my efforts on my uni work, I need to do well, because, as far as I'm aware I'm still a viable candidate for 3 out of my 4 choices. To get into any of these, I need to maintain my high grades, which means copious hours spent in the library and trawling over my coursework, reading countless journal articles and reading for my project.

I'm also continuing volunteering. I'm back at the health clinic tomorrow, and I'm genuinely excited, I've really missed it. I also have my first safespace shift of the year lined up, which is something else to look forward to. I'm lining up a new potential volunteering role as well, working for a scheme that monitors standards of healthcare in the local area and works on patient feedback, which would help me learn so much more about the workings of the NHS, this is potentially really exciting.

On top of this, I'm working on applications for my back up - an MSc in Cardiovascular Science, which is offered by 4 universities in England. Surprisingly the application process for this is more detailed and stressful than going through UCAS for medicine!

So how would I recommend coping with being rejected from a medical school?
Firstly it's important not to see it as the be all and end all of everything. It's gutting to get rejected, but it's a normal part of the application. You have 3 other choices to focus on, therefore work hard and learn from the experience, to better display yourself, should you get an interview for any of the others. If you get rejected from all 4, then look at the feedback given to you by the medical schools to enhance your application next time. If it was your UKCAT, work harder to improve your score. Do more volunteering, more paid work, anything to give you a wider idea of what medicine entails. And remember to apply to your strengths. Different medical schools have different selection criteria, therefore apply to the schools that look for aspects of your application that are particularly strong. Try not to be discouraged.

I hear from the medical school I got an interview for next month and the other schools should give me a decision as to whether or not I get an interview in the next couple of weeks.

Wish me luck!

XOX

New Year and New Beginnings - Reflections on a Not-so Terrible Year

I'm procrastinating from my cell pathology coursework by writing a blog, but seriously I wanted to round off this year. I've gone through the last couple of months thinking this is one of the worst years I've had so far, so in that instance, I'm going to be really glad to see the back of it. But whilst I'm being reflective, this year has bought so much and I've learnt so much from it. Firstly this year has bought the most changes since the year I left home and moved to Brighton, and although I've been so focused on the bad, this year has also given me some absolutely amazing experiences. The major one of these is travelling to the other side of the world entirely alone. I went to Thailand, a truly beautiful country, and definitely one of my favourite places, and working in a hospital, we'll I couldn't have done anything better. I saw surgery, travelled around, learnt about another culture. If it could change anything about the experience the only. Thing I could think of is that I would go for longer. I also went to Spain, and instead of just sun soaking, I got to interact with locals (in Spanish of course!) learn about the local area, and see it as more than just a place with a beach and heat, and actually appreciate how great Spanish culture is. 

This year is also the year that I really got to know myself and what I wanted out of life. Travelling bought ith it a lot of self discovery and widening by understanding of what I could do, as well as giving me a more realistic perspective of what I've got imprinted into me what I already wanted to do. But most of this actually came from realising what I don't want as well. I'm not content with just coasting through life and doing exactly what's expected of me, I want something extraordinary. I started this year volunteering in a project for homeless people, and this in itself was absolutely amazing. I then built on this with more volunteering experiences, working in a family centre and as a first aider for one of the most influential organisations in the world. With this I get to work with different people, experience scenarios that I couldn't have imagined, and spend my Saturday nights doing something other than vegetating in front of the television. I wouldn't have it any othe way. Anything I write down couldn't accurately describe the value of volunteering, therefore if you don't do it already, I'd encourage you to try! I ran 10 miles for charity back in October too, which was absolutely fantastic. If you know me, you'd know I'm not the most active person, therefore this was a massive achievement for me just to finish it, as well as raising over my target for the British Heart Foundation, an absolutely amazing charity. 

This year is the first year I've properly felt like an adult, my decisions (on the most part) have been much more responsible. I've also learnt that sometimes it's okay, and completely necessary to put myself first. I've also learnt it's important to take what you want out of life, there's absolutely no value in sitting on the sidelines, and I haven't regretted any of the decisions I made, to do something maybe slightly insane! (Particular reference to bungee jumping in Thailand!) I've gained so many amazing memories, things that I'll always treasure. 

In terms of new experiences, I applied for medicine this year. This is something I've been planning (and dreading!) for a long time, and I'm really excited I'm actually doing it, even if I don't get in, I'm going to learn so much from this experience, and in that scenario, I'll be bringing in next year in the same situation, hopefully whilst also studying for a masters degree, living in some city somewhere, of which I don't even know where it is yet.

This year has also been great in terms of friendships, not only have I met some amazing people and made some amazing new friends, I've also been able to deepen my friendships with some of the people I was already friends with. I've really learnt this year to appreciate the people around me and I feel really content in this aspect of my life, because I know whatever happens, they have my back. I'm really lucky to have all of them. 

So what does 2014 bring?

I'm starting 2014 in a great position, I live in what is the most beautiful city in the country, studying for a degree in a subject I'm passionate about. I'm starting this year single, for the first time really since 2007, but I'm surrounded by absolutely amazing people, so I'm not at all feeling lonely. I have a job, which allows me to talk to people and get money for it, and I'm still volunteering, meaning I get to continue building on these amazing experiences. This year I'll find out if I get into medicine, and graduate as a biomedical scientist. This year I'm going to move to a new city and gain new experiences, meet so many new people. I want to travel more this year, with going to Dublin at Easter, going away this summer seems a likely possibilty too. I'd like to finally get to Germany this year, visit the Christmas markets in Berlin (drink lots of jäger :D). I want to visit Iceland, see the northern lights, I wouldn't mind visiting Asia again either. I also want to sit on a beach somewhere abroad (pebbles in Brighton are great, but not quite the same thing!). I know that I probably won't do all of this, but I like the ability to dream about it. I'll also be doing the nuts challenge in March, an army style assault course, so will be training for this! 

Last year I made a list of resolutions to keep to, I'm not going to do the same this year because in reality I just have one:

This year I'm going to be happy.

(And maybe get fitter, take more photos and better control of my finances etc. :D)

I hope you all have a fantastic 2014, and bring 2013 out with a (metaphorical) bang!

XOX