Fundraising for the Children’s Brain Tumour Research Centre

If you enjoyed doing charity work throughout your time at school, there’s no reason to give up this passion once you arrive at university! In fact, when I arrived in Nottingham two years ago, I was amazed at the variety of options available; whether you would like to donate your time or raise money, there …

When Things Don’t Go To Plan… A Levels Result Day

With results day coming up, tensions can be running high, and the sense of trepidation might seem unbearable.  While I wish you the best of luck, it would be unwise to not approach the day with a sober sense of caution and sensible preparation.   You must consider well in advance what you plan to …

Third year of medical school

My name is Hayley and I’m a fourth-year medical student. So, third year is quite a drastic change compared to the first two years at Nottingham- you’re no longer stuck in the lecture theatres! Third year is essentially split into two halves, the first half (September- February) is working on your BMedSci project; the second …

Mission Zambia: Outreach Trip to Mwandi

Every year, during the summer holidays, a group of medical students from the University of Nottingham journey to Mwandi, Zambia in southern Africa for three weeks. Mission Zambia is a student led, not for profit organization, which strives to fight homelessness, poor healthcare and lack of education in rural Zambia. Over the next five years, …

Together We Will Overcome Addiction – My week at the Betty Ford Centre

I have had an interest in the Disease of Addiction since a placement on the Liver Ward at the Royal Derby Hospital during my first clinical placement at medical school. I found working with the certain alcoholic demographic — typically low socio-economic status, disenfranchised and at the edge of society — extremely rewarding. Typically they …

Summer Days: How to spend your holiday before Results Day

“Biology students, your time has finished, please put your pens down”. For me, these words were sweeter than any I’d heard in the past month, one consisting mainly of industrial tea consumption, mountain ranges of past papers forming across my bedroom floor and bedtimes that made waking up feeling like crawling out of my coffin. …

Running the London Marathon (Part 2)

It has now been a week since completing the 2017 Virgin London Marathon for Team Heads Together. My legs are feeling normal again and my toes still attached. Running a marathon is really tough! The method in my madness was to break it down into four sections – pretty much running four 10km runs. Marathon …

Placement in psychiatry and running the London Marathon (Part 1)

Dan Townley, one of our final-year graduate entry medical students, describes his placement in psychiatry and shares how it motivated him to run the London Marathon to help raise awareness of mental health issues.  I felt a little unsure about what to expect from my placement in psychiatry – perceptions undoubtedly shaped by my limited experience …

Life as an international student

Accents, bad stereotypes and a culture shock; the typical ABCs of being an international student. Coming from Singapore, a tremendously westernized country, I did not believe I would struggle with any of these when I moved here to study medicine. That’s where I was wrong. Food Life is so different here from back home in …

Interviews *Cue dramatic music*

February… Peak of winter and interview season! Some of you must be preparing anxiously for your upcoming interviews. I had my interview for Nottingham in the middle of February. The wait before the interview was full of panicked preparation. It didn’t help that I was quite clueless about MMIs but fret not, here’s a breakdown of what …