The University of Exeter Medical School BMBS
programme, prides itself on preparing the
doctors for the future. Not just for working
in our NHS here but also able to address global
challenges in health. One distinctive thing
about the Exeter Medical School is early clinical
attachments, right from the word go students
will be experiencing healthcare in primary care
(that's with GPs) but also with hospital specialists
through special study units. First thing I ever
actually did in Medical School, 9am on the
Monday morning was attend a Fertility Clinic
placement. This was before any lectures, before
I had any clue what I was expected to do but
it was a really great experience that helps
you understand what you're working towards
at the end of your five years and also helps
you build communication skills when interacting
with patients at the very beginning. Especially
as an international student that's really
important and that's one of the reasons why
I chose Exeter because it gives me a good
idea of what the NHS structure is like, what
it's like in NHS hospitals right from day
one in Year One and so it's really useful.
The doctors allow us to always get really
involved in our placements and we'll do
things like taking blood and doing historys
on patients. This is in the real world so
it's a really exciting part of our course.
Another key aspect is that you will be engaged
in learning clinical examinations skills and
learning practical skills not later on in
the course but right from day one. We think
that's both intellectually stimulating, exciting
for students but also the best way to make
sure that what you're learning and basic science
makes sense for your future job. The University
of Exeter's a really great place to learn
particularly if you like lots of different
learning environments. So we have our Clinical
Skills department which is where you can get
to grips with the more practical end and also
our LSRC department which is where you can
learn all about the anatomy and the physiology
and also there's the lectures as well, so
you're learning in a larger group environment
and a smaller group environment. Problem based
learning is a student-led facilitator supported
process where students come together to work
out what they need to know about a clinical
problem so they can understand it better.
We have first class teaching here, a lot of
the teachers come straight from the hospital,
so are consultants and doctors themselves so they not only can they give us the knowledge we
need to know but also give us their clinical
experience and their clinical tips and know-how
which are really useful once you get on to
the wards and when you get to your placements. Coming
to the University of Exeter, I was a bit worried
about making friends but once I arrived I
did get along with the local as well as the
international students. They're quite sociable
and very approachable so we all blened together.
Exeter's self-directed learning schedule has
allowed me to explore a lot of my interests
within Medicine as well as outside of Medicine.
That's given me the ability to have a really
good idea of what I want to do after my five
years here. I chose the University of Exeter
first of all because it's such a great place
to be. It's in a great part of England, you've
got the beach down the road and you've got
fields basically everywhere you look. I came
on the Open Day and it was just such a relaxed
environment to be in and all the teachers
here were so relaxed and so friendly compared
to other medical schools that I visited. There's
so many good reasons to come to Exeter Medical
School, we've got great facilities and you
will certainly enjoy your life as a student.
We can guarentee that we will prepare you
well for your future life as a Doctor.
