I am Miss Bailey, Head of Careers and Widening Participation Department at Medic Mentor, and subsequently, one of the people reviewing the sheer volume of applications to our Virtual Medic Mentor Medical Society!
Before giving away my secrets, I thought I would share with you why I am writing this blog. I am so passionate about helping and supporting people and this stems from my extensive career in the training, education and recruitment industries over the past 15 years or so. Until working my way up through the ladder to hiring employees for big companies like Nando’s and Jaguar Land Rover, I never really appreciated what an exceptional application form looked like, and what it is like shortlisting from over 300 applications for 10 jobs! Sitting on the other side of the recruitment line really opens your eyes up to what an exceptional application form really looks like! I anticipate a large amount of applications to be selected for the committee of the Virtual Medic Mentor Medical Society, so I wanted to share my tips for success with you!
- Before you start typing your answer
If you are new to Medic Mentor, and even if you have been a student with us for a while, refresh your knowledge on us, by reviewing the content of our website! As part of the committee, we are looking for knowledgeable students who appreciate the vast support of programmes and initaitives on offer to aspiring students. Often, students (especially new Medic Mentor students), will look to you for help and guidance in this area, and will expect you to point them in the right direction. The more involved you are, the more competent you will be, because you will have first hand experience and be the most prepared applicant! So get as involved as possible, for your own benefit, and this demonstrates your committment to Medic Mentor and the MM community.
- Assessing your current skill set
Being appointed into the committee will of course develop new skills for you, but what skills, knowledge or experience might you already have that you can use to support your new role? Think of a short example that you can reflect on in your application form and show how you feel this will help you if you are appointed.
- Review the duties of the roles
If you are interested in a certain role/roles, the way to make your application stand out is to mirror phrasing that appears in the descriptions. You may find an experience you have had would provide the perfect example of why you would suit that particular role.
- Prepare your answers for the questions
Approach compiling your answers in the same way you would prepare for writing your UCAS personal statement! Write a draft of your answers and perhaps ask a family member for feedback before committing to click send. In fact, I would go one step further and ask a Medic to look at it, because after all, the central committee who are reviewing your applications are all made up of doctors, vets and dentists. The same applies for your UCAS applications too.
- Deadlines!
The application deadline is 30th April at 5pm. You have worked hard on your application, but any applications that are received beyond the deadline are sadly not looked at. If it helps to ensure you submit your application on time, set a reminder for 4pm on 29th April 2020! This alarm will give you plenty of time to review your application, one final time before submitting!
I want to end this with wishing you all good luck! I genuinely am looking forward to reading the applications. I know this will be a hard decision because you are all amazing students! This committee will be influential and amazing, and I look forward to seeing the work you do!
If you have any questions, post them in the comments section below. Good luck everyone!