Pumped.

As much as I love talking about Unis, sometimes it can sound a bit, well, tedious.


*For the record, I have an offer from Hull. I'm not going to accept it. End of.


So instead I thought I'd muse a little on some of the things I've learnt by taking this gap year.


1. I will make a snobby student.


Perhaps I would've fitted in more at Oxford that I'd permit myself to think; I am going to be a complete snob. The thought of sharing a bathroom with other people (up to twenty!) turns my stomach although I think that, other than 'LADs', most people would agree but I'm even struggling to cope with the idea of sharing with seven strangers. So en suite it is for me. 


I've looked through my student cookbook and made a list of the things I'd like at Uni, including balsamic vinegar, prawns, salad and fresh fruit. Beans on toast just does not cut it.

My weekly shop, dahling.

2. People will always live within their means


Back in the days when I sold kitchens at da HB-massive I split my wages between savings and 'spendings'. Bearing in mind I was earning considerably less than I do now, I don't really remember ever feeling 'skint' or running out of money. Now, I give myself a generous monthly allowance (not including petrol, mobile phone bill, gym bill, any Uni-related spendings, car insurance or repairs!) and always spend it all. Down to literally the last penny. Adding up the amount I spend on food and drink (and believe me, I'm no gastronomist) is ridiculous: ASDA stripy strips, pints of cider black and McFlurrys are wiping me out. And that's before I add on manicures, packets of hair dye and other non-essential essentials.






3. I think I've caught autism from the kids I work with


Or rather, I think spending so much time with autistic children has made me over-aware of my own autistic-type traits. Now, whether in or out of work, I find myself using first-names before I speak to people, checking myself whenever I use metaphors or idioms and asking people 'do you understand what I mean?' I'm also hyper-aware of how much a creature of habit I can be; without my to-do lists, budget calculator and my filofax I would be lost. Without a schedule I completely fall apart. I'm hoping I'll be cured before my hospital placements kick in...






4. I am addicted to exercise


I cannot stress quite how obsessed I am with the gym. I can wax lyrical about the benefits of the gym all day long, pausing only for a sip of cherry flavoured, zero calorie,  ASDA price isotonic drink. As a target-driven person (read: neurotic) I've had to structure myself a plan for the gym, so that I actually have a well-rounded workout: 1 Zumba, 1 Spin, 1 Bodycombat and 2 runs. Even the running follows a carefully selected running programme, so that hopefully I can run 5km (without walking) by spring time, when it should be warm enough to run outside. The funny thing is, I don't feel that I've particularly lost weight/toned up yet I feel far more confident - like I have a sign that says 'I have been going to the gym! My CV system is tip-top!' Ultimately, it's more important to be fit (and able to walk up stairs without puffing!) than skinny.

Looking reem.

5. I'm not at all bitter about my gap year


Quite the opposite. This year out was probably the best option (which I avoided like the plague). I would recommend a working gap year to any Uni student, but particularly to Medics - the learning curve between last application and this has been immense, particularly for finding specific, grown-up examples for interview. Looking back, 'I worked really hard on an experiment last week' or 'I've learnt teamwork by helping out at a student club night', sounds childish compared to having actual experience of a working environment and (in my case) children, their parents, diagnoses etc.


Financially, the benefits have been enormous. Not only have I learnt how to budget properly, I should also have a comfortable nest egg in the bank by the time September rolls around. This means I've been able to choose the accomodation that I really want, rather than picking the cheapest. I've taken a stress away by knowing that although I'll try my best to budget with whatever funding I'm entitled to, there's backup cash available if I struggle, without having to ask my parents. Plus I can afford a new swanky laptop and some branded products. 


SmartPrice? Moi?

Dole.

So after the tears of rejection, the bitterness of a gap year, and the denial by writing (irrelevantly) about Derren Brown I'm finally manning up.

I'm not really one to dwell much; usually I forget that I'm supposed to be angry about ABC or that I'm ignoring DEF. I think it's kind of, well... childish?

Generally, I'd much rather get on with my life and things that are important, than cry over spilt milk. So, for now, that involves revising for my exams (dull) and lookin for jobs (frustrating) and then applying for afore mentioned job (cumbersome) by writing an interesting and potentially career-securing statement (hand-aching).

Essentially, life isn't allowed to be interesting or exciting for the next few weeks as I spend all my time perusing the NHS careers website or the local council's job vacancy page. The most exciting thing to recently happen has been a sudden acquisition of books, which unfortunately I don't currently have time to read. Among them, a book on Mental Diseases written in 1898 and a fabulous book of quotations, collaborated by the producers of QI (possibly my favourite thing ever shown on television).

So, as an excuse to read I'll be peppering this with quotations. Hopefully philosophers regularly mention the dwindling job opportunities in the NHS.

Options

My biggest worry is what universities want from a gap year. It's mostly about proving your commitment and medical interest, which is easier said than done. Whilst at school, universities can't expect students to have committed more than a few hours a week volunteering, or maybe a week or two work experience placement. But a whole year to play with? That's a lot of potential.

Half our time is spent trying to do something with the time we have rushed through life trying to save - Will Rogers

The common preconception is that gap year students go travelling. Backpack. One way ticket. Hostels. Bar work. Diphtheria. You get the picture.

Which would be perfect, except travel requires money. And money is gained through work. So, work, save, leave, right? Well, apparently nothing is hated more by application reviewers than 'I'm planning on doing this...' or 'I'm hoping to do that...' They want concrete evidence. Preferably you've already done it. Or you're submitting your statement whilst trekking through the Borneo jungle. Or at the very least booked a plane ticket.

Which is difficult, when the application is written over the summer, directly after leaving college when nobody's had a chance to make any money yet... Ah.

And on a practical note, medical interviews can range from November through to April time, with very little warning. Meaning being abroad risks a last-minute trip home for an interview. Nightmare.

Sooner or later we must realise there is no station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip - Robert J. Hastings

Another option is work placements abroad; there's plenty of fabulous opportunities to work in schools and hospitals all across the world and reflect/contrast with the magnificant yet underappreciated institution we call the NHS. But these all cost money. Big money.

One company emailed me to ask if I was interested in their 'Gap Year Medics' scheme which sends prospective medical students to hospitals in India, Tanzania or the Caribbean islands for work experience. Places start at £990 for two weeks in India up to £2490 for four weeks in the Caribbean. Sounds like very expensive volunteering to me.

As somebody interested in Medical Anthropology (watch any of these and you'll see why) I can see the benefits of excursions like this. But unfortunately, not all of us can afford it.

You don't seem to realise that a poor person who is unhappy is in a better position than a rich man who is unhappy , because the poor person has hope. He thinks money would help. - Jean Kerr

So the only other really feasible option seems to be working. Obviously a health-related job is ideal; medical schools want students who have at least tried to understand what life as a doctor consists of.

Health jobs seem to be difficult to find - obviously many, many careers require degree-level education so they are scored out. Others accept non-qualified candidates on the condition that the relevant qualification is studied for after joining (Dental Nurses work this way for example.) Clearly most gap year students don't have the time available to commit to this.

Not everything is ruled out; common jobs for 'non-qualified' people tend to include Nursing Auxiliaries, Health Care Assistants, Phlebotomists and various technician/assistant/ward bitch roles. The other big employer tends to be care homes for care assistants and NA's.

Personally, I've developed an affinity for working with SEN children so I've also been looking into Teaching Assistant work in Special Needs schools. It appears now that jobs many people think of as 'unqualified' actually can now be studied for e.g. Teaching Assistants. And for everything else experience is nearly always essential, at the very least listed as 'desirable'. 

Coupled with the factors of high numbers of unemployed graduates, NHS job cuts, increased numbers of under-18s studying NVQs and increased numbers of prospective medics taking gap years means application is looking bleak. Nearly everything I've applied for I've barely been qualified to do, and if so, experience (which is impossible for me to have) is highly desirable.

Full time healthcare employment would be ideal for me, not only for the extra income and kudos on my statement but simply I feel so motivated and energised all the time, I couldn't cope with working part-time in a retail-type role and sitting on my ass for the rest of my week.

The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity - Dorothy Parker.

And if I can't find a job..?

I'll work unpaid. And take extra hours in my retail job. And fill the rest of my time with nourishing, interesting, stimulating things. Like reading and writing and exercising.

One could even argue that unpaid work would be more appealing to an admissions tutor that being paid for it. But they would probably be the ones who are going to the Caribbean for work experience.

About the only thing that comes to us without effort is old age - Gloria Pitzer

When I was a young man I observed that nine out of ten things I did were failures. I didn't want to be a failure, so I did ten times more work - George Bernard Shaw

* And if you do have any exciting and unique ideas for spending a gap year I'd be interested to know; not to steal them off of you but I do enjoy hearing good ideas
** The title of this blog is a pun. Before you ask.

Gap Yah Girl

I've spent the last week or so deliberating what to write as my next blog; I didn't have anything productive to write about my new-found gap year and I wanted to write a blog about the Derren Brown tour - but then realised I should wait to mention his new TV show in it as well (Miracles for Sale, Easter Monday, Channel 4, 9pm)

You can also watch the trailer here - I'm not hiding the fact I completely and utterly adore this man.

I'm doing it again; avoiding the subject. Right, so what I really need to talk about it my gap year. Two words that, six months ago, I would've chuckled at the thought of. I look back with mild embarrassment at how confident I was at getting in to University, and why wouldn't I? I had good grades*, a shedload of work experience, a strong personal statement. I felt like, compared with other people I knew of, I wanted it so much more; I felt so passionate about my reasons for studying Medicine, my interest in becoming a doctor.

*On the subject of 'good grades' I came out of school ecstatically happy about my GCSE's. It came as a shock when I realised that my grades would just scrape in University requirements, some would've disregarded my application completely such as Birmingham. I had 5 A*s (in the core subjects) and 7 A grades.

Initially

I'm not going to lie, as much as I was expecting it, receiving the 'rejection' email from Bristol still made me cry. I felt awful; I'd let myself down. All I could think about was those hours and hours I'd spent in preparation; writing my UCAS statement, arranging and attening voluntary work and work experience, carefully reading and cutting out articles for my scrapbook, researching universities. Wasted. All that excitement.

Essentially there was little 'wrong' with my application; yes, I probably should've applied to other universities, given different answers to questions. It's just difficult to stand out when everybody else is equally brilliant.

The Plan

It's a simple one really; get a job. I'd have loved to go travelling - but it's finding somebody to go with, somewhere to go. And with Medicine you really need to be in the country to attend interviews, which could be any time from November until April.

I'm hoping to find something in a healthcare/educational setting. Maybe a Teaching Assistant for SEN children, or a nursing auxiliary, or a health care assistant, or a care assistant in a nursing home.

I've started looking and applying, but it's difficult to judge the time frame at the moment.

Opportunities

After the initial 'oh, so did you not get your grades then?' people seem quite understanding about my failure (I use that word sarcastically). Mostly, people seem very good at pointing out the positives. Jordan and my work colleagues cheered me straight up "but you'll have so much free time working a 9 - 5?!" said one. "Oh, I bet you'll be able to do loads of interesting things in your free time" offered another.

Which is true. Mostly I'm excited about joining a gym - I have no intention to lose weight; I want to get fit. I'd love to re-learn German or start afresh with Spanish. I'm keen to investigate my interests in cognition and mental disorders further. A few people suggesting I write a book, but I might interpret that as putting more effort into the blog.

Most of all I'll have a whole extra year to think about Medicine and really refine my reasons for wanting to study it. I'll be developing new clinical and non-clinical skills and awarenesses through work. I'll have time to read for pleasure. And the money to enjoy myself.

Overall, I'm beginning to quite look forward to a year out. Not exactly a year to 'discover myself', but a year to appreciate some of the things I've overlooked whilst I've been studying hard, my tendancy to be short-breathed after running a flight of stairs being one of them. I'm not going to pretend that the thought of re-applying, of attending more interviews and potentially ending up in the same position this time next year doesn't terrify me. But at least I have something to look forward to along the way.

Happy Easter =)

And as another aside- somebody this week asked what the 'point' of this blog is. I thought it was fairly obvious from the sub-title but please let me clarify; essentially I'm keen to support students into higher education (particularly science and healthcare subjects). This blog is somewhere public for my ramblings to be posted, where other applicants may glean something. Maybe an idea for a project, a book to read or just a new perspective on applying. And I also enjoy writing.

The Icebreaker

Right, so I'd like you to all go around the room and tell us your name and something interesting about yourself.

Hi, I'm Shannon and I couldn't get into University this year because of the 'intense competition'.

Which is true.

1) My name really is Shannon
2) I applied to study Medicine and unfortunately haven't gotten myself a place
3) The competition for a course like Medicine is ridiculous.

Which is why I want to start blogging about it - offering bits of advice that I was given, show others how difficult securing a medical place can be and discussing options if things do go a little, well, tits up. 

Obviously I've already applied so I won't be going through that stage for a little while yet... but I'm sure we'll get round to it.

Right, icebreakers done now's the part where everyone 'umm's and 'ahh's for a bit until somebody thinks of something intelligent to say.