Have you grabbed your (free!) ticket to the medical careers event of the year? On Wednesday 6th November, consultants and trainees from 50 specialties will descend on Cedar House ready to share all the ins and outs of what it’s really like to practise in their clinical area.
Whether you’re already dead set on your future career path, wide open to all possibilities, or somewhere in between, the School of Medicine Careers Fair will arm you with new knowledge and all-important contacts to help shape your plans.
The event is open to student doctors in all years, including intercalating students, and we can guarantee there’ll be something for everyone.
Dr Matt James is Supratheme Lead for Patient in the Community Setting for the School as well as a practising GP. He’ll be there on the night to fly the flag for primary care.
“I've been a GP partner for 18 years, have a specialist interest in MSK medicine and am involved in postgraduate and undergraduate education since qualifying as a GP in 2003.
A GP never knows what is going to walk through the door next. A career in general practice keeps you on your toes with its variety providing a constant intellectual challenge. A GP practices the art of medicine to address the physical, psychological and social causes of ill health.”
Dr Matt James
Also in attendance will be Dr Saz, Consultant in Sexual Health & HIV Medicine.
“I’m a consultant in GUM and HIV medicine at the Royal Liverpool Hospital. I completed core medical training and spent time working overseas prior to the 4-year specialty training, which included the investigation, diagnosis and management of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV in inpatient and outpatient settings. This was not my first specialty, but it is my last!
GUM/HIV is a great specialty; varied, rewarding and exciting. It attracts friendly, enthusiastic staff, has a strong MDT approach, and involves caring for a range of patients from teenagers to older patients.
GUM/HIV doctors have varied and holistic work and the variation within the specialty allows people to shape their career to their interests such as research, public health, health inequalities and contraception. It is known for a collaborative, inclusive and fun culture. Many people have not heard of the GUM/HIV medical specialty, so come and ask me about it! If you’d be interested in being a part of setting up a society in this area, come and have a chat about that too!”
Mr John Taylor and Dr Saz
Mr John Taylor graduated from Liverpool School of Medicine in 1993 and is now a Consultant Trauma and Emergency General Surgeon.
“What I find most rewarding about my specialty is the variability and uncertainty about what is coming through the door next.
Come along and ask at the stand to find out about the sort of person you need to be to be a good surgeon.”
Mr John Taylor at last year's careers fair
Dr Stuart Cohen is a consultant dermatologist at Broadgreen Hospital and Specialty Lead for Dermatology at the School of Medicine.
“I’ve never enjoyed working overnight, so it was natural for me to consider dermatology!
It’s an endlessly varied specialty with now an estimated 6000 different conditions that can affect the skin.
We see all sorts of patients from neonates to the very elderly. There are opportunities to subspecialise and, for those torn between medicine and surgery, why not combine the two as a dermatologist? Come and say hello if you’d like to find out more!”
Dr Rhodri Smith is an ST4 specialty registrar in Clinical Genetics.
I have not taken the most typical route into clinical genetics, but I am glad that I did. I graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2016. Prior to this, I gained a BSc in Genetics, an MSc in Genetic Epidemiology and a PhD in the Genetics of Psoriasis. Following this, I took up a postdoctoral role researching the genetics of schizophrenia before deciding to pursue a career in medicine.
After I had completed my foundation training, I started my ACF in rheumatology, aspiring to be a clinical academic in rheumatology which would complement my previous career as a scientist looking at genetics of autoimmune disease.
It wasn’t until later in my ACF training that I really began to consider clinical genetics as a career, so I contacted my local genetics service who invited me to join them for some multi-disciplinary meetings and sit in on some clinics.
Having been inspired by what I saw, and knowing that I needed more on the job experience if I was to give myself a chance of success, I resigned from my training post to take up a fixed term fellowship in clinical genetics.
Resigning was a big decision but with the support of my family and colleagues I took this leap of faith and was successful with my second application for clinical genetics training the following year.
I am now in my second year of specialty training and have absolutely no regrets.
I would encourage anyone who is considering clinical genetics as a career to get in contact with their local department to explore things further, and of course come and have a chat at the careers fair!
Discover more
- The School of Medicine’s Careers Fair for 2024-25 takes place on Wednesday 6th November, 18.00 - 19.30 at Cedar House.
- Sign up on Handshake (link) and contact Careers Adviser Jennifer Connell at careers.mbchb@liverpool.ac.uk with any questions.
- Dive into resources and information to help you launch your clinical career on Careers Support (link).