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The graduate-entry medical student: Challenges to transition through medical school

Simon Tso

Dr Simon Tso

Asim Yousuf

Asim Yousuf

Nina Owen

Nina Owen

Mike Smith

Mike Smith

Summary of project

Medical students spend between four and six years to complete medical school training. This process can be challenging and stressful. We have conduct an interview-based study exploring Warwick graduate-entry medicine students' experience of their medical school training. 21 Warwick graduate-entry medicine students were interviewed. The data was analysed constant comparison. The data generated from the interviews helped us understand the challenges anticipated and experienced by graduate-entry medicine students as they progress through medical school training and their development of professional identity. The findings from this research may assist medical educators and student support services to devise strategies to ease graduate-entry medicine student transition through medical school training so that students can be better prepared for their student journey and focus on acquiring the core skills, knowledge, competencies and mindset required to become doctors.

Completion date

August 2013

Project Team Members

Dr Simon Tso (MB BChir (Cantab), BSc (Hons), MRCP (UK), FHEA, PGCertMEd, DPMSA) is an Academic Clinical Fellow Medical Education at UHCW and Associate Clinical Teacher at Warwick Medical School. His medical education research interests include learner support and simulated learning.

Mr Asim Yousuf was previously involved in microbiology research after graduation from Exeter University, but left to persue Medicine at Warwick in 2010. His current research interests are in developing clinical education and diagnostic imaging at UHCW.

Ms Nina Owen is in the final year of her MBChB at Warwick Medical School, having came to the university to retrain as a doctor after working as a state-registered Biomedical Scientist in Histopathology. She has a 1st Class Honours BSc in Applied Biomedical Sciences, which she attained whilst in full-time employment and training in histopathology in the NHS. She has a keen interest in research and is hoping that she will be able to combine these skills with her fascination for orthopaedic surgery in her future career.

Mr Mike Smith is in his third year of graduate-entry medicine at Warwick Medical School, having graduated in BA Natural Sciences in 2009. His areas of interest include medical training and emergency medicine.

Academic Output
2014

Tso S, Yousuf A, Barnett M, Kidd J. The diversity of graduate-entry medicine students in a UK medical school. (Accepted as poster presentation, ASME 2014, Brighton)

Tso S, Yousuf A, Barnett M, Kidd J. Understanding the process of transition through graduate-entry medicine and the challenges involved. (Accepted as oral presentation, ASME 2014, Brighton)

2013

Tso S, Kirk E, Yousuf A, Owen N, Smith M, Kidd J. Graduate-entry medicine students’ perception and attitudes towards health advice requests from family and friends. (E-poster presentation, ASME 2013, Edinburgh)

Yousuf A, Owen N, Tso S, Kidd J. Disabled medical students: a consideration of barriers expected during transition from pre-clinical to clinical years. (E-poster presentation, ASME 2013, Edinburgh)