Becoming a doctor : in a nutshell. Qualifications Entry to medical school… Good GCSE’s Three A Levels Entry requirements vary between medical schools.

Becoming a doctor : in a nutshell

Qualifications

Entry to medical school…

• Good GCSE’s• Three A Levels• Entry requirements vary between

medical schools• Medicine as a second degree• Foundation course for students

without a science background

Personal Attributes

Doctors must be able to…

• Listen to their patients’ views and respect their rights

• Be honest and trustworthy• Work effectively with other

healthcare professionals• Act with competence,

compassion, responsibility and integrity

Career Path

Undergraduate education

• Medical degree (usually 5 years)

Postgraduate education• Foundation Year 1• Foundation Year 2• Specialty and general practice

training (between 3 & 8 years)

Continuing professional development

Types of doctors

General Practitioners (GPs)Generally the first point of contact for patients. Their main responsibility is to assess a patient’s health and make an appropriate diagnosis

Hospital DoctorsThis group of doctors work in hospitals and can specialise in a range of different areas of medicine including surgery, psychiatry, paediatrics, anaesthesia and general medicine

OtherDoctors can work in a range of other settings including in the armed forces, for the police or at a medical school

For more detailed information, please see the full version of the ‘Becoming a Doctor’ guide on the BMA website: www.bma.org.uk/careers/becoming_doctor If you have any further queries, please contact the BMA Science and Education department [email protected]