October 19, 2023, by School of Medicine

An Ex-Student’s Guide to MPT

Hi, MPT students,

I hope you are enjoying your university experience so far.

My name is Zouhra Aabida, an ex-MPT student at UoN. Maybe this might sound cliché but joining UoN was the best decision of my life. I will always be grateful to those people who have been part of my journey from the admission office, to my professors and personal tutor to the friends made. They all contributed to making my experience unique. I’ve never been the smartest kid in the class, but at UoN you have multiple chances to show off different parts of your personality, your determination, your creativity, and your passions and they will all be greatly appreciated. I felt that I didn’t even have time to start as I was already graduating and shaking hands.

They say that university will be the best experience of your life. And they didn’t lie.

Here is a small guide of what I would do if I were starting all over again, hoping that it might help you.

• Enjoy the first year and take the time to explore meet new people make friends and learn how to live independently.
• Around Feb – April of each year the career team opens the Spring and Summer internship Schemes. Kickstart your career with some experience in the field of your studies to learn what you like, ask the career team to support you with CV and Cover Letter writing, they are always super helpful and happy to help.
• Take the first summer of the 1st year and have some work experience.
• September – October of 2nd year be ready to apply for some job experience because many high-level companies promote their year placement and summer internships for second-year students that will be returning to university this is the sweet spot you don’t want to miss it!
• In 2nd year, take advantage of the Job Fair that starts in October to increase your network and meet more people who have connections with the roles and companies you are most interested in. (the event of course is also open to 1st year)
• Consider taking a gap year for the job experience if you get an offer from a company, and come back to complete your studies later if possible. This will be immensely helpful after graduation.
• Rather than taking multiple extra activities and participating in different societies, focus your attention on particular skills that you can gain from the extracurricular activity and master them across the years at uni, if you complete successfully 3 courses you will earn an Academic Award on it. If you join a sports society think about how you can grow in your role of responsibility, showing support will be a plus on your resume. I personally took the Digital Marketing Academy DMA program during my final year in collaboration with UoN and Trent University, I achieved a Google Digital Marketing certificate, and this helped me achieve 2 internships through the internship scheme mentioned above.
• 3rd September- October period grad schemes for big pharmaceutical and other Healthcare companies open, see if you are interested in any position and look forward to applying if interested. If you are looking forward to a master’s that’s a good moment to start your application.
• However, keep in mind that this will be your final year therefore focus on the assessment, aim for high achievement, and enjoy your experience with friends before everyone takes separate paths.
• Don’t be anxious live in the moment.

I think having an awareness of time and what are the opportunities that surround you at university is the right path to success after graduation.

For students who would like to have work experience abroad check out the Passport Career website.

I hope I have been helpful, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, I am happy to help.

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