Careers Advice for Postgraduates:
Dr M Parmar Clinical Tutor CGH
Choosing a career or considering a career change can be easy or an extremely complex process involving great deal of time investment. Most of you will have an intuitive feel for what you want to do. However for those who need a little guidance, I hope the following is useful. In the simplest terms the three main processes involved in careers advice are: 1. Knowing yourself 2. Knowing what information is out there 3. Bringing the 1 & 2 together Knowing yourself: Be honest with yourself and put down in order of priority aspects of your personality such as: Motivational drives (e.g. I need a challenge, proving yourself to others, power and money (and how much), caring for the sick, elderly, frail or children or indeed minimising contact with patients! Management, teaching or simply getting to the top as quickly as possible). Your ambitions both in your career: Direct clinical care: GP, surgeon, research, public or occupational health. Radiology, pathology etc…) Medical related but non-clinical work (e.g. medical insurance, medical indemnity, broadcasting, medical journalism) Non medical career, The City, Law, Accountancy are often sited as alternatives. Your ambitions in your personal life (e.g. family, lifestyle, travel, working abroad, hobbies or other commitments and interests) Your strengths and weaknesses, how you operate under stress, your attention to detail. Ask yourself what would you do even if you were not being paid to do it? What do you really enjoy doing? There is no doubt in my mind that if you really enjoy doing something, then it seems less and less like work and no matter what hurdles are placed before you, you will be prepared to challenge these to get to get to a desired end point. If you need help then there a structured questionnaire that might be able to help you highlight aspect of your personality. You will have to pay for these but the may provide some insight. However you or those that are close to you know you best so explore these first.
Information: Knowing what is out there: There is a lot of information out there and part of the problem is knowing where to look and how to use it with the greatest efficiency. 1. A basic principle should be to talk to as many individuals as you can that are working in the area that you are interested in. Talk to at least two and aim to get as broad a perspective as possible. The relevant speciality Royal College Tutors or educational leads at your local hospital are a starting point, as are the Clinical Tutors. 2. For general medical career information go to the GMC & BMA website. For specific speciality information most of the speciality Royal Colleges will have descriptions on the career-path for trainees in that speciality. Start with the BMA or GMC site and they will link with the various speciality Royal Colleges. BMJ Careers holds a career fair each year. Details are on their website bmjcareers.com. 3. Some of the Royal Colleges sites give information as to the projected job prospects in that speciality. Use these only as rough guides as the government ultimately is the monopoly employer of the vast majority of doctors and as such manpower planning is thus fairly unpredictable and bends to the winds of political policy. 4. If you are a medical student or just graduated then your university careers office or their own university career website should be visited. Bringing the 1 & 2 together: Only you can do this. However there are tools available to help you such as Sci45 questionnaire. These have a cost and are limited in their validity. They can however provide a focus from which discussion can evolve. Career Counselling: Some individuals have chosen a speciality but are having second thoughts or difficulties. The thought crosses their mind that the grass may be greener elsewhere. The key is to analyse in detail the underlying reasons for the dilemma. Invariably these are complex and are often a mixture of work related and personal issues. One needs to tease out those issues you can do something about, decide if you want to do anything about them and if so and get help in addressing them e.g. passing an exam, interview practice, greater clinical experience. These need to be contrasted with issue you may not be able to do too much about e.g. don’t like the senior I work with, general working conditions, the work is not as interesting as I thought it would be, I can earn more working in the City. The balance then is very personal as to whether to stick it out as it may get better or try something else. Either way, the process described above is a fundamental starting point. I am always around for a chat. May I suggest, however, that much career advice in the first instance is gained from those around you in your immediate work place.