Personal Statement:Medicine 84

Why do you want to study this course or subject?

The decision to apply to medicine is not one I have taken lightly. It was one which took careful deliberation as to whether I had the skills required to succeed in the profession, whether I had the ability to put others before myself and whether I felt I could take the responsibility of others' quality of life into my own hands. I have come to the conclusion, however, that I do, I can and I will.

I arranged a week of work experience at a local children's hospital where I gained the understanding of some of the skills that are vital to a job in the health care profession. I witnessed doctors explaining to very young children the procedures they are about to undergo and reassuring them that everything was going to be all right. I also realised that it is just as important to empathise with relatives of the patient just as much as the patient themselves. Sometimes, it seems, visits to hospitals can take a worse toll on the friends and family as it can be very emotionally tiring to see someone close to you looking sick and uncomfortable.

I organised a day in an ophthalmology department. This involved seeing patients that had long-term vision problems, children that had been referred from eye tests at primary school and people referred from casualty. Throughout the day I was allowed to observe and talk to a range professionals throughout the department from a senior ophthalmologist to an ophthalmic surgeon. I saw a few difficult patients and it was interesting to see how the staff handled them; repeatedly asking their questions in a calm, controlled manner.

How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

This year, becoming more involved in the school community, I have started peer tutoring a first year mathematics class containing pupils of severe learning difficulties, I have found this really useful in developing my own communication skills. I actually find it really rewarding, the children start to look up to you and come to you for help. I am a member of the school’s charities committee, playing the role of Treasurer I have a level of responsibility and have to be accurate and efficient when it comes to number crunching. I am also a sixth year buddy, my job is to look after a number of the new first years; answering any questions they may have and being a friendly approachable character. Finally I am also a member of the school’s eco group, we come up with ideas of how to make the school more energy efficient and put them into action.

What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

I currently volunteer at a local charity shop for two hours a week, this has really improved my confidence when dealing with complete strangers as they approach you for help a lot, not always for help, sometimes the customers just want a friendly chat. I have also just received a letter confirming that I have a place for the Mark Scott Leadership For Life Award; I hope this will help build upon my teamwork skills and I cannot wait to be involved in a project that will benefit the local community. Earlier this year I attended the residential Scottish Space School 2009 summer course. I believe it was good preparation for what it will be like in the years ahead at university and I found that on top of learning to work with people I do not know it helped improve my social skills in the various social events in the evenings.

Away from my academic life one of my favourite hobbies is swimming. It is something I find really easy to unwind doing but it is also something I really enjoy and am good at, I was a member of a swimming club for about 8 years the last two of which I won the “swimmer of the year prize”. Although I don't go to the club any more I plan to do a lifesaving course and enquire about helping out there an evening a week. I currently attend a British Sign Language level one class. Although originally this was purely so I could communicate with my step-brother more, I actually really enjoy the class and it is something I hope to pursue to levels two and three.

How personal statements have changed?

The current personal statement format, with three 'scaffolding' questions, was introduced by Ucas in September 2025. This personal statement was submitted before then, using the old essay-style format. It has been carefully edited into the three-question format, with all of the original wording kept.

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