Improving Selection to the Foundation Programme: Pilot Announced

‘The Next Stage Review: A High Quality Workforce’ stated that ‘new work needs to be undertaken to develop more reliable and valid selection tools for recruitment’ to Foundation Programme Training. This was based on shared concerns about the current system which ranks applicants using a combined score derived from answers to a set of white space questions and an academic quartile ranking provided by the applicant’s medical school. The concerns relate to reliability, validity, comparability, NHS consultation time required, possible plagiarism and longevity.

Later this year proposed changes to the Foundation Programme selection process will be piloted in several medical schools. The changes will include a new form application form in which the ‘white space’ questions are replaced by invigilated situational judgement tests.

Situational judgement tests are designed to test applicants’ responses to work-based scenarios, and focus on professional attributes rather than clinical  ability or experience. The test items will be written by staff members from the UK’s 31 undergraduate medical schools, foundation schools and Deaneries.

The pilot will also be used to examine the scoring of candidates by their academic quartile ranking. It will replace the quartiles with a standardised scheme for medical schools to grade clinical knowledge and skills based on a student’s performance to date

If the pilot is found to provide a fairer selection method, the new Foundation selection process will be introduced in 2012/2013.

Current fourth and fifth year medical students should note that the 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 recruitment rounds will run as normal for all students using the current system of white space questions and academic quartiles.

Students who would like to express their views on the proposed changes are encouraged to do so by the Medical Schools Council.

The Department of Health document ‘The Next Stage Review: A High Quality Workforce’ can be downloaded here.

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Intercalating

Are you thinking about a career in research and/or medical education? Then perhaps you should consider intercalating a BSc honours degree or Masters degree for one year.

Degrees Offered

There are currently fourteen intercalating degrees available at Manchester Medical School:

•  Anatomical Sciences
• Biochemistry
• Biomedical Sciences
• Cell Biology
• Health Care Ethics and Law
• History of Medicine
• Medical Biochemistry
• Neuroscience
• Pharmacology
• Pharmacology and Physiology
• Physiology
• Psychology
• Masters in Research (MRes)
• Masters in Public Health 

Entry to this programme is very competive and you are urged to review the requirements of the courses well in advance of making an application and to seek advice from your tutors. It would certainly help your application if you could link some of your first and second year SSCs to one or more of the course component topics.

There is also the option of going to another university to complete this degree although the criteria are strict. Information on courses available nationally can be found in the UK database of intercalated medical, dental and veterinary courses which is available by clicking here.

Funding

Students who pay their own tuition fees will be expected to do so for their intercalated year. However, students whose Local Education authority (LEA) pays their fees will need to liaise with their LEA directly regarding funding for the extra year.

Students intercalating after year 4 of the MBChB will (if eligible) receive an NHS bursary to cover their fees.

Scholarships

Some students intercalating within the University of Manchester will be nominated for nationally-awarded scholarships from organisations such as the Wolfson Foundation, The Health Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, Arthritis and Rheumatology Council and the Jean Shanks Foundation. The Manchester School of Mecicine also has limited funds available to award some of its own scholarships.

Applying to Graduate Entry Medicine and planning to take the GAMSAT?

The GAMSAT (Graduate Australian Medical Schools Admissions Test) is used by five UK medical schools as part of their admissions criteria. If you are applying to one or more of St George’s, Nottingham, Swansea, Peninsula or Keele medical schools you will need to sit the GAMSAT.  

Traditionally the UK sitting of the GAMSAT takes place once a year in September with registration taking place between June and August. However, UK students now have an additional option as GAMSAT Australia has announced that it will offer students the option to sit the exam in March at a UK test centre.

The GAMSAT Australia test will take place on Saturday 20 March 2010 and the UK test centre will be in central London. The exact location of the London test centre will be released nearer to the test date. Registration for the March exam is now open and the cost of the exam is AU$308 (approximately £172). Registrations will close on 2 February 2010.

To find out more information about the March sitting of the GAMSAT, click here.

Information on the September sitting of the GAMSAT is available here.

Getting Started with Sci59 – an online career tool for medical students and FY doctors

Looking for career guidance? Wondering which specialties might suit you?

What is Sci59 Online?
Sci59 Online is an Open University resource to help medical students and junior doctors in training see how their skills, attitudes, preferences and aspirations map against specialties.

What does it do? 
Sci59 lists the career choices that provide a reasonable match to your personal profile and, importantly, those that have a very poor degree of match.

Based on skills and attributes that consultants believe are critical to success in their field, Sci59 takes you through over a hundred questions about your preferred work settings, decision making styles, comfort with uncertainty and so on. The process takes about 15 minutes but you can stop at any time and go back to finish the questions later. 

The resulting personal profile ranks 59 specialties (including General Practice) against your expressed preferences, but also shows on which of 12 dimensions there were the strongest matches between you and a specialty. 
Your results are stored, so you can refer to them again. You can also print off the results in various formats. Your user name allows you to answer the survey three more times, so that you can compare results as you progress through your training. 
 
What it doesn’t do
Sci59 aims to provide food for thought and prompt further research – it does not tell you what to do!

Use Sci59 results alongside information, advice and guidance from other sources,such as Royal College websites and the NHS Medical careers website . We would also strongly recommend that, in order to get the most out of using this tool, you seek help in interpreting the results with colleagues, educational and clinical supervisors or careers advisers.

How do I access Sci59 Online and find out more?

Access is available through username and password only.*Student members of the BMA can access Sci59 via the BMA website. Click on careers guidance tools -  or from the Open University  website.

( *student membership of the BMA is free for the 1st year.2nd year introductory rate -£33.00.Subsequent years – £39.00 a year)

Calling all medical students: NPSA offers prize for essay on patient safety

The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) through the National Reporting and Learning Service (NRLS) is offering an annual prize for medical students studying in the United Kingdom on patient safety.

Three prizes will be awarded at the annual Patient Safety Congress. The winner will receive £500 and the two runners-up £200 each. 

Eligible doctors are encouraged to submit an original essay of up to 2,500 words on “The world of patient safety through the eyes of a medical student.’’

The essay must be the student’s own work.

The closing date for submission is 15th December 2009.

Please send  your essay, by email to Barbara Wilde, PA to Dr Kevin Cleary, Medical Director, NPSA. E-mail address: barbara dot wilde ‘at’ npsa dot nhs dot uk

Calling all junior doctors: NPSA offers prize for essay on patient safety

The National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) through the National Reporting and Learning Service (NRLS) is offering an annual prize for junior doctors practising in the United Kingdom (foundation year one up to specialist registrar level) on patient safety.

Three prizes will be awarded at the annual Patient Safety Congress. The winner will receive £500 and the two runners-up £200 each. The winning entry will also be published in BMJ Careers.

Eligible doctors are encouraged to submit an original essay of up to 2,500 words on “The world of patient safety through the eyes of a junior doctor.’’

The essay must be the doctor’s own work.

The closing date for submission is 15th December 2009.

Please send  your essay, by email to Barbara Wilde, PA to Dr Kevin Cleary, Medical Director, NPSA. E-mail address: barbara dot wilde ‘at’ npsa dot nhs dot uk

 

2010 Foundation Programme Recruitment is Underway

Enrolment has opened

Click here and enrol. You must enrol before you will be able complete an application form. Applicants will be able to submit an application online between Monday, 12 October and 12.00 midday (BST) Friday, 23 October 2009. Applications received after this time will not be accepted.

2010 Foundation Applicant’s Handbook on website

We recommend that applicants read the 2010 Foundation Applicant’s Handbook before applying. It includes a wealth of handy tips and advice on completing each section of the form, a list of FAQs and an example reference. Click here to download a copy. Each section of the form is available to view as PDF documents. Click here to view these.

Podcast on how to apply to FP 2010 now available

This year, the UKFPO has also produced a podcast to accompany the Applicant’s Handbook. Narrated by UKFPO’s foundation doctor advisor, Dr Naomi Brown, it is essential listening for all FP2010 applicants Click here to download the podcast.

Foundation Programmes available to view

A list of foundation schools and programmes they are offering for 2010 is available now to view. Click here to go to the listing. More information about each individual foundation school is available from their own websites.

Which specialty? New NHS careers website can help you decide your future career path

The NHS Medical Careers website was officially launched August 2009 and is a four-step career planning guide designed to assist you in understanding your options for choosing your future career as a doctor in the NHS.

The website provides ”a resource for making informed decisions when planning a career in medicine and related fields.  Register online to start building your personal profile, using self-assessment exercises and the detailed information about what options are available. This website will take you through the four stages of career planning. Comprehensive data on each medical specialty includes workforce statistics, competition ratios, growth areas and projections about future opportunities. A bookmarking tool allows you to save key facts about specialties that interest you.”

There is also a useful section for current medical students on choosing clinical placements, electives, work experience and how to make the most of your personal and professional development.

Foundation application form slides from BMA Careers Conference, Manchester, March 2009

Slides from the talk given at the BMA Careers Conference held at the University of Manchester on 24th March 2009 can now be found at:

The Foundation Application Process – An Introduction