Yes - another work experience thread....

[ekivell]

Hi all

I know, I know another seemingly pointless and annoying thread about work experience/volunteering. I thought about hijacking someone elses thread but thought it best not to!

As with everyone here I am thinking that it may be time to change career. Currently a lawyer (yep its as boring as its sounds). I have been thinking for a while about studying medicine but the difficulty being that I can only really apply to the Kings GEP (Arts graduate and established family life in London area). Anyway thats beside the point. I am currently preparing for possible 2009 entry and have enquired about some volunteer work at local hospitals. A specific area of interest for me is, however, pathology (yes I guess I could be considered morbid) and I am trying to find ways into getting something related to this. Several problems: Not sure where to look and obviously being full time employed and working like a crazy person I have minimal time to dedicate to this - its not that I don't want to its just that well work is crazy so weekends are probably the only time I could honestly commit to something.

My questions are:

1) Is it worth getting some kind of "work experience" in the area of pathology or is this trying to be too specific too early. Would I be better off just doing general volunteering work etc.
2) If it is worth it does anyone know where the best place to start looking for such experience would be?

Thanks in advance for any ideas!

[469er]

I did some work experience in a mortuary, which was really interesting. You have to jump through hoops a bit - they want to be sure of your motivations. I had to produce my CRB, several references, and they wanted me to have personal indemnity insurance - fortunately I was self-employed, so had it anyway. I just wrote a letter to the coroner's office, and set the dates up over the phone.

For me, it was not so much because I have a special interest in pathology, but because I thought it would give me an idea of whether I could cope with the more difficult parts of medicine. I had never seen a dead person before, and figured that medical school probably wasn't a smart place to find out I couldn't hack it after all. Aside from that, though, it was really a very very fascinating experience. The technicians will teach you a lot about anatomy, and depending on which pathologists do PMs, you may get a first class teaching experience, as hands-on as you can handle! It's not an easy experience, although you acclimatise amazingly quickly, but a very worthwhile one. PM me if you want to know more. (No, not *that* sort of PM...)

[sgclark]

ive done stuff with at a gp surgery, pharmacy, out on visits with a district nurse, i volunteer on a weekly basis at a day center for the elderly, i am a fundrasier for the injured jockeys fund, i volunteered at a cambodian orphanage for a month after i graduated and i am currently working as a theatre support worker!!! really exciting, i wrote to loads of hospitals and just kept ringing them until they got back to me,
my advice, just do anything and then you will meet more people that can offer you other stuff, and be persistant, hospitals etc are busy places. the squeeky wheel gets the oil and all that... hope that helps