Sample Question

ST1 Core Medical Training Interview

What have you done to show commitment to this specialty?

Recognise that the specialty is competitive
• You appreciate that this a competitive speciality and that you have a strong interest and enthusiasm for it
• You recognise that time is always short, and therefore you have been very organised by undertaking extracurricular activities that are focused on the speciality of interest

Extracurricular activity that you have undertaken
• Taster weeks
• Volunteered to attend extra clinics during your time off
• Volunteered to attend theatre /interventional suite during your time off
• BMJ Masterclasses
• Royal College teaching sessions
• Other courses relevant to your specialty
• Undertaken postgraduate examinations (diplomas, postgraduate certificates, MSc courses, and Royal College membership)
• Joined the relevant society and attended its meetings
• Attended relevant national and international conferences
• Subscribed to relevant journals
• Submitted research / letters to the relevant journals
• Undertaken other projects with the relevant teams
• Re-arranged the order of your Foundation Programme to maximise exposure to the specialty of choice

Learning points
• Whilst you may have detailed these on your application form, you must be able to speak fluently about each activity that you have undertaken and why you did it
• Specifically discuss what you gained
• Explain why having done it, differentiates you from the other candidates
• Highlight any particular hardship you have undertaken to compete for this specialty

Further points
If you are currently doing a very busy clinical post that is reducing your time available to undertake extra-curricular activities, then high-light this. However, you must accept that your competitors may gain an advantage if you are unable to find time to at least some on the list