This student applied in the 2017/18 application cycle and therefore the selection process at Sheffield may have changed since then. You should read all the information a University sends you about the selection process to get the most up to date details!
Remember to check out the glossary at the bottom of the page for our explanations of all the jargon we medical students like to use!
More about this student
Gender: Woman
Ethnicity: White British
I went to a comprehensive school that doesn’t regularly send students to medical school.
Our Summary
Course: Standard Undergraduate
In-person MMI interview
Admissions Tests: UCAT
Recommended Resources:
UCAT 1250 Questions Book
YouTube videos
Top Tip: Interviews aren’t to catch you out – they’re for you to show off how amazing you are and that you’ll be a great doctor. Good luck!
Before I made my application…
When did you decide you wanted to apply for medical school?
Year 10.
How did you choose what medical schools to apply to?
Didn’t use my 5th option!
The others I chose strategically:
- 1 in a city with problem-based learning
- 1 in a city with integrated learning
- 1 which favoured UCAT scores
- 1 with low admission ratios
- All with dissection (at the time)
What types of work experience did you do?
Hospital shadowing, GP surgery, Care work (e.g. in residential care), Customer service role (voluntary), Customer service role (paid), Teaching disabled children how to read
How much work experience did you do?
A lot – I was an underdog with my background.
An afternoon a week as a hospital volunteer
Hour a week teaching disabled kids how to read
Brownies leader
Worked part time every weekend on a tourist farm
How did you find your work experience opportunities?
Through a formal scheme or work experience placement.
During the application process…
What admissions test did you sit?
University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT): https://www.ucat.ac.uk/
How did you prepare for your admissions test?
LOTS of questions!
What resources did you use?
Get into medical school – 1250 questions book. Really good.
What type of interview did you do?
MMI: Multiple Mini Interview. This type of interview usually includes several short interviews or ‘stations’ which may involve different types of questions and scenarios. This is different compared to a panel interview, which may cover the same scenarios/types of questions but be a more ‘traditional’ sit-down interview.
How did you prepare for your interview?
Had notifications on on BBC health and for the university I had an interview at. Looked on online forums for other people who had successfully got into the medical school. Researched the medical school format itself.
What happened in your interview?
I found after the first or second station I got into the zone and it was all good. Reflected on my work experiences (definitely keep a notebook/log of these!) and in general was just a happy, friendly person.
Glossary
Books: Don’t worry if you’ve not been able to find this particular book or afford to pay for it. You might be able to find secondhand copies online which are usually much cheaper, or at your local library (sometimes, libraries will order in books that you’ve requested, so check out this as a possibility too!). Bear in mind that some books may become out of date, so make sure you check when they were published, and if any changes to the relevant admissions tests/interviews have been made since then.
Online forums: Online forums can be great spaces to find advice and first-hand knowledge, but remember that it may not always be the most trustworthy source of information. Take what you read with a pinch of salt.
