Considering a career in medicine, or know someone else who is?
LifeLab, the Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton (UoS) and University Hospital Southampton (UHS) are committed to offering valuable work experience opportunities to young people both in-person and online. Take a look through some questions you may be thinking of below to find out more.
Why is work experience important?
Work experience allows you to gain insight into careers, develop skills, and discover what inspires you. Whatever area you’re considering this is a great chance to find out more about yourself and learn about your strengths, interests and abilities. Work experience allows you to:
- test out career ideas you may be thinking about.
- improve skills such as teamwork or communicating in a professional field.
- show your commitment and enthusiasm for future personal statements and CVs.
Through work experience here, you can explore different paths and areas such as research, teaching and healthcare professions, gaining an insight into interdisciplinary working.
At the university and hospital, you’ll not only learn about the academic side of these fields, but also see how cutting-edge research translates into real-world healthcare and education for all ages.
You’ll have the opportunity to observe and interact with professionals who are making a difference in science, medicine and education every day.
What work experience opportunities are available?
There are four different route you can take:
LifeLab’s in-person work experience
- open to young people who have done an activity with LifeLab (through school, the ‘Experience Medicine with LifeLab Summer School’, the Youth Panel or the Young Researcher Training Programme).
- up to one week of in-person work experience arranged by LifeLab.
- runs throughout the year.
- experience a range of different career options, spending each day with a different professional at the hospital or university.
- contact lifelab@soton.ac.uk to apply.
University of Southampton Faculty of Medicine’s in-person work experience
- for those wanting in-person work experience, but have not been to LifeLab.
- offered by the university’s Faculty of Medicine for anyone aged 14 and above.
- runs throughout the year.
- our flowchart will help you find out how to apply.
University Hospital Southampton virtual work experience
- UHS run a virtual work experience programme in partnership with LifeLab.
- open to Year 12 (lower sixth) students living in the UK, studying A-Level biology and are interested in studying medicine at university.
- runs at specific times in the year: Aug, Oct half term, Feb half term, and during the Easter Holidays.
- over two days students will experience work at the hospital, as it is happening, through Microsoft Teams. Sessions include live surgery, outpatient clinics, and talks from doctors and medical students.
- register your interest and find out more.
Widening Access to Medicine Taster Course with virtual work experience
- three-day course for Year 12 students intending to apply to study medicine at university through a widening access programme or contextual admissions route.
- jointly run by the Faculty of Medicine and UHS.
- includes two days of virtual work experience.
- runs during the Easter holidays.
- find out more and apply.
I’m worried I don’t have the skills to do work experience. Should I still apply?
Absolutely! Work experience is a challenge to yourself and an opportunity to learn. It will probably be out of your comfort zone, as you may have never been in a working environment before. Try setting yourself some goals to achieve before going in. Examples include:
- communicating with others effectively
- working with others confidently
- learning how to solve problems by approaching them with a different perspective
Have other students enjoyed the experience?
Yes! Here are some insights into what other young people thought of it:
“Throughout the work experience, I was aware of the challenges facing doctors when working long hours and facing stressful situations. But speaking to the doctors and hearing them overcoming these obstacles really inspired me. I understand that a career in medicine will not be easy, but after my work experience, I am even more determined and motivated to pursue a career in this rewarding field.”
– Fizra, virtual work experience
“I gained an insight to the different roles and units within the University. I think it helped me understand the different roles that can contribute to new discoveries with the hospital, not just for medicine at UHS, but for different research projects around the world. I love how every day was a new placement for me, so I could grasp the importance of each role people play within the Faculty of Medicine, which shines a new light on the importance roles that people may not know about.”
“I think the most useful part was talking to different scientists about their journey to the UHS. It really helped me understand that there are several ways of entering different specialties, and the explanations about their practical work within lab research helped me understand the variables that are needed to take into consideration in order to perform an experiment. It shows how much perseverance and passion is required for lab research, because it’s not easy at all since there will be many failures and errors, but it made me realise that’s part of being a researcher, whether in the lab or the office. It made me appreciate even more the work of what goes on behind the scenes from the clinical roles within the hospital, and how much diversity there is within the different roles.”