One year in, how have you found the NHS graduate scheme so far? Can you tell us a bit about your projects?

I have loved the NHS graduate scheme so far and am really enjoying exploring the world of HR. I really enjoyed my first placement which was with the inclusion and health and wellbeing teams. I feel like I have learned so much over the past year and have gained such valuable experience from this placement.

I worked on several projects over the placement but my favourite was a project around eliminating the gender pay gap at the trust. Within this, I led a small team as we took actions to improve flexible working opportunities, reduce inequalities in clinical pay awards and improve professional development opportunities for women at the trust. This included setting up a women’s network to enable women to connect with each other and share their experiences.

Alongside working full time, I have also been studying for two educational qualifications. I recently completed one of these - a postgraduate certificate in Healthcare Leadership - and am continuing to study for my postgraduate diploma in Human Resource Management over the next year.

I am currently on a two month placement working with the Integrated Care Board (ICB) on their organisational change programme called Commissioning for Improving Lives Together. This project aims to improve organisational culture and enable the organisation to become a more effective strategic commissioner. I am project managing the launch event on 14 October which aims to bring everyone together to reconnect and understand their roles moving forwards.

How do you feel the skills from BSc Health and Medical Sciences have helped you in your placements so far?

My HMS degree equipped me with the skills needed to be successful during my first year on the graduate scheme. For example, within my pay gap project, we initially conducted lots of data analysis to identify pay discrepancies across different roles and demographics. I was able to use the data analysis skills I had learned during my time on the course to do this. Furthermore, the course gave me a strong understanding about health inequalities and the social determinants of health which I could apply to the context of women in the workplace. This knowledge helped me recognise the broader factors contributing to the gender pay gap and propose targeted strategies to address these.

The organisational and academic skills I gained from my HMS degree have also enabled me to be successful whilst studying for my postgraduate qualifications. Specifically the time management skills that I gained during my degree have helped me to balance working full time and studying for two postgraduate qualifications.

Do you have any advice for those considering the course or those about to start it?

I would absolutely recommend the HMS degree. It is such a varied degree that set me up so well for the NHS graduate scheme. Everybody on the course and teaching the course was always so helpful, providing guidance and support whenever it was needed.

My advice to anyone starting would be to try to stay on top of the workload as much as possible and make revision resources as you go along so when it comes to revision you are able to revise and don’t have to spend time creating resources. Also, just make sure you enjoy it! Your time at university will go by so quickly so make the most of it!