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Portfolio Case 1
Why do you want to be a Surgeon?
The interviewers are looking for a well structured answer which shows dedication to speciality and motivation for core training. It is important to give a range of reasons with a personal examples of why you like it and why you are suited to surgery. Your answer should be enthusiastic but focused and unique to you.
Perhaps you enjoy using your hands to make an immediate difference to peoples disease, or enjoy making decisions under pressure. Surgery is fast moving when looking after acutely unwell patients in an emergency setting, which appeals to many people. It is also allows you to look after chronic disease, where a personal relationship is built up with your patients.
Whatever the reason why you have chosen surgery, it is important to use a personal example, and if possible a reflection/achievement related to this example. For instance here is John's answer from last year.
"I enjoy the challenge of using the practical skills I have developed, for instance, whilst I enjoy watching my consultant carrying out larger cases, I really love performing skin biopsies myself. I can feel myself becoming more dexterous each time, and improving my technique in small ways. Whilst this is a simple procedure, it has confirmed my love of surgery. I enjoy seeing a patient beforehand, and explaining the operation and potential risks before carrying out the biopsy and reviewing them afterwards. Both patients and my consultant have commented positively on my clinical manner and on how quickly I am improving technically. I am looking forward to doing this for more complicated procedures later in my career."
His answer is a good one as the example is generally applicable to core surgical training. It is specific and personal and is appropriate to his current level, an F2. He also manages to mention a small achievement, a compliment from his patients and consultant, enhancing the image that he is a surgical trainee that the consultant's interviewing him would like to have as their trainee. He comes across as enthusiastic and knowledgable about the need to care for patients before, during and after surgery.
The rest of his answer can follow a similar format
The interviewers are looking for a well structured answer which shows dedication to speciality and motivation for core training. It is important to give a range of reasons with a personal examples of why you like it and why you are suited to surgery. Your answer should be enthusiastic but focused and unique to you.
Perhaps you enjoy using your hands to make an immediate difference to peoples disease, or enjoy making decisions under pressure. Surgery is fast moving when looking after acutely unwell patients in an emergency setting, which appeals to many people. It is also allows you to look after chronic disease, where a personal relationship is built up with your patients.
Whatever the reason why you have chosen surgery, it is important to use a personal example, and if possible a reflection/achievement related to this example. For instance here is John's answer from last year.
"I enjoy the challenge of using the practical skills I have developed, for instance, whilst I enjoy watching my consultant carrying out larger cases, I really love performing skin biopsies myself. I can feel myself becoming more dexterous each time, and improving my technique in small ways. Whilst this is a simple procedure, it has confirmed my love of surgery. I enjoy seeing a patient beforehand, and explaining the operation and potential risks before carrying out the biopsy and reviewing them afterwards. Both patients and my consultant have commented positively on my clinical manner and on how quickly I am improving technically. I am looking forward to doing this for more complicated procedures later in my career."
His answer is a good one as the example is generally applicable to core surgical training. It is specific and personal and is appropriate to his current level, an F2. He also manages to mention a small achievement, a compliment from his patients and consultant, enhancing the image that he is a surgical trainee that the consultant's interviewing him would like to have as their trainee. He comes across as enthusiastic and knowledgable about the need to care for patients before, during and after surgery.
The rest of his answer can follow a similar format
Reason why you want to be a surgeon
A personal example
Your reflection on what you / why you like it
+/- an Achievement which positively reflects on you as a potential surgical trainee
A personal example
Your reflection on what you / why you like it
+/- an Achievement which positively reflects on you as a potential surgical trainee
It is a good idea to mention a variety of reasons why you want to be a surgeon. These can be research opportunities, the fact it is challenging, the interaction with other specialties, being able to interpret images and then do something about the surgical problem, and using advanced technology to name just a few.
You can end by mentioning the particular subspecialty you are interested in going into, "I hope to develop these skills and then apply for ENT, a specialty that combines my passion for ...."
You can end by mentioning the particular subspecialty you are interested in going into, "I hope to develop these skills and then apply for ENT, a specialty that combines my passion for ...."
What is your experience of teaching?
"I have always enjoyed teaching. I was professionally employed as an A level tutor during my medical student years, which allowed me to develop important skills that I have continued to use throughout foundation training, and have developed them further by taking part in the introduction to teaching course. I helped to set up a 4 month long teaching course for medical students during F1, and led a mock osce course. In addition, I regularly teach medical student informally on the wards and have received excellent feedback to date"
What ever teaching you have done, make sure you have either a certificate or written feedback as the interviewer will expect to see it in your portfolio. The same is true for anything you have put on your CV or application form. Evidence is essential, so if you have mentioned grade 8 flute, make sure the certificate is included.
"I have always enjoyed teaching. I was professionally employed as an A level tutor during my medical student years, which allowed me to develop important skills that I have continued to use throughout foundation training, and have developed them further by taking part in the introduction to teaching course. I helped to set up a 4 month long teaching course for medical students during F1, and led a mock osce course. In addition, I regularly teach medical student informally on the wards and have received excellent feedback to date"
What ever teaching you have done, make sure you have either a certificate or written feedback as the interviewer will expect to see it in your portfolio. The same is true for anything you have put on your CV or application form. Evidence is essential, so if you have mentioned grade 8 flute, make sure the certificate is included.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
'I would certainly hope to have completed my clinical training in 10 years time and have become a consultant. My hope is to become a vascular surgeon. I worked on a vascular surgery firm in my foundation 1 year and made a presentation to a national vascular conference during this time. I enjoy the technical nature of the work, and enjoyed the variety in the types of operations performed, from the more lengthy and complicated bypass procedures to the minimally invasive venous procedures, where advances are constantly being made.
I have enjoyed working in large teaching hospitals so far in my career, though i look forward to having experiences of District generals during my training. I have an interest in teaching and have organised 2 surgical teaching courses for 3rd year students at Warwick medical school. I feel that working as a consultant at a teaching hospital would give me more access to current teaching materials and allow me to develop this interest further.
I have a strong interst in research. This was first developed during my BSc, where I managed to complete a project on plasmodium falciparum, which was eventually published. I published the results of a surgical audit that I completed in June on surgical complications in orthopaedic surgery and I would certainly hope to have a breadth of research experince in 10 years time. I am interested in pursuing a PhD over the course of my specialty training. I have discussed this with a number of my seniors who have completed their own research and I realise that it can increases one's understanding of a subject and improve your clinical practice. I have considered the fact that this would lengthen my training, but still think that it would be worthwhile. However, I do not think that I would want to end up in a purely academic role as I would miss daily patient interaction.
I have played rugby at a high level throughout my school and university years and continue to play for a local side. I am under no illusion that surgical training can be arduous with long and sometimes irregualr hours. However, I believe that having some work-life balance is essential. I would do my utmost to stay involved with my rugby team on an occasional basis and as much as my work commitments would allow and would hope that I would still be running out on the odd Saturday if my knees would allow it!
I was involved in an expedition to Nepal giving medical aid to deprived and remote areas on my medical elective and am currently involved in raising funds for a charity sending medical supplies to deprived communities in South Africa. As I become more senior, I would hope that my effectiveness in such charitable pursuits would also increase.'
'I would certainly hope to have completed my clinical training in 10 years time and have become a consultant. My hope is to become a vascular surgeon. I worked on a vascular surgery firm in my foundation 1 year and made a presentation to a national vascular conference during this time. I enjoy the technical nature of the work, and enjoyed the variety in the types of operations performed, from the more lengthy and complicated bypass procedures to the minimally invasive venous procedures, where advances are constantly being made.
I have enjoyed working in large teaching hospitals so far in my career, though i look forward to having experiences of District generals during my training. I have an interest in teaching and have organised 2 surgical teaching courses for 3rd year students at Warwick medical school. I feel that working as a consultant at a teaching hospital would give me more access to current teaching materials and allow me to develop this interest further.
I have a strong interst in research. This was first developed during my BSc, where I managed to complete a project on plasmodium falciparum, which was eventually published. I published the results of a surgical audit that I completed in June on surgical complications in orthopaedic surgery and I would certainly hope to have a breadth of research experince in 10 years time. I am interested in pursuing a PhD over the course of my specialty training. I have discussed this with a number of my seniors who have completed their own research and I realise that it can increases one's understanding of a subject and improve your clinical practice. I have considered the fact that this would lengthen my training, but still think that it would be worthwhile. However, I do not think that I would want to end up in a purely academic role as I would miss daily patient interaction.
I have played rugby at a high level throughout my school and university years and continue to play for a local side. I am under no illusion that surgical training can be arduous with long and sometimes irregualr hours. However, I believe that having some work-life balance is essential. I would do my utmost to stay involved with my rugby team on an occasional basis and as much as my work commitments would allow and would hope that I would still be running out on the odd Saturday if my knees would allow it!
I was involved in an expedition to Nepal giving medical aid to deprived and remote areas on my medical elective and am currently involved in raising funds for a charity sending medical supplies to deprived communities in South Africa. As I become more senior, I would hope that my effectiveness in such charitable pursuits would also increase.'
Advice
What Approach Should be taken in answering these questions?
The difficulty of these questions are in their simplicity. They were among the most commonly asked questions in 2010 interviews. The easy solution here would be to give a generic answer of for example 'I would like to be a consultant in x specialty working in Manchester'. This would be likely to guarantee you a poor mark, whilst it would answer the question posed.
With this sort of question, it is useful to think of how to structure your answer. Such a wide ranging question merits a wide ranging answer, but you must be careful that you maintain concentration on structure.
You could divide your answer for example into clinical, academic and personal. Candidates are often reluctant to discuss personal aspirations in an interview, but of course these considerations will have a bearing on your progression as a clinician and should be considered, at least briefly.
Clinical
You must show that you are aware that a core training scheme is not a specialty programme, however, at this point, it would be appropriate to discuss your specialty aspirations, if you have one. This could be backed up by evidence from your portfolio showing that you had given some thought to building a career focussed in that particular direction. This could be in the form of papers, presentations or taster weeks for example.
Are there any specialties that you would like to develop? Many specialties are so subspecialised that you may want to be an orthopaedic surgeon, but want to have an interest in arthroscopic procedures involving the knee for example. This sort of detail shows that you have given some though to your potential career path. If you do go into such details,be sure that you can give adequate reasoning behind your interest if questioned more thoroughly.
Clearly the eventual preferred destination for most clinicans is a consultant post. Would you like to work in a large, cosmopolitan environment or a more rural destination. DGH or teaching hospital. Whilst you may not have thought this far ahead and your dcision may change in future, such considerations show a maturity of thinking that will set you apart from your peers. Again, make sure you can explain this answer. For example, you may want to work in a large teaching hospital because of your experience in teaching. If you can show evidence of a teaching course you have attended or a course you have set up for medical students in your portfolio, this will strengthen your answer.
Academic
Are you interested in research? Would you be wanting to pursue an MD or PhD in future? If so, discuss how you think this will impact on your career and chosen specialty. Are you currently undertaking an MSC or other further qualification? What have been your experiences of this so far and how do these experiences affect your plans for future research involvement?
Do you have an interest in teaching? How do you plan to develop this?
Personal
Would you like to be part of a large or a smaller team? You could discuss your experiences of participating in different types of team at this stage to show your understanding of the multidisciplinary team, but also of good communication with seniors and other colleagues.
You could also discuss your extracurricular pursuits. If you are a keen sportsman/woman, would you hope to be playing rugby, lacrosse or netball in 10 years time. How do you feel this would impact on your surgical careers and are there any changes that you will have to make in the intervening period to ensure a good work life balance?
Would you hope to be participating in any expeditions abroad or volunteer work. Surgery gives a lot of opportunities abroad and if you would be keen to take advantages of these, you should make this clear. You could again link this to past experiences on student elective or current volunteer projects. This is an opportunity to show that you are a well qualified, but also a well rounded individual.
The difficulty of these questions are in their simplicity. They were among the most commonly asked questions in 2010 interviews. The easy solution here would be to give a generic answer of for example 'I would like to be a consultant in x specialty working in Manchester'. This would be likely to guarantee you a poor mark, whilst it would answer the question posed.
With this sort of question, it is useful to think of how to structure your answer. Such a wide ranging question merits a wide ranging answer, but you must be careful that you maintain concentration on structure.
You could divide your answer for example into clinical, academic and personal. Candidates are often reluctant to discuss personal aspirations in an interview, but of course these considerations will have a bearing on your progression as a clinician and should be considered, at least briefly.
Clinical
You must show that you are aware that a core training scheme is not a specialty programme, however, at this point, it would be appropriate to discuss your specialty aspirations, if you have one. This could be backed up by evidence from your portfolio showing that you had given some thought to building a career focussed in that particular direction. This could be in the form of papers, presentations or taster weeks for example.
Are there any specialties that you would like to develop? Many specialties are so subspecialised that you may want to be an orthopaedic surgeon, but want to have an interest in arthroscopic procedures involving the knee for example. This sort of detail shows that you have given some though to your potential career path. If you do go into such details,be sure that you can give adequate reasoning behind your interest if questioned more thoroughly.
Clearly the eventual preferred destination for most clinicans is a consultant post. Would you like to work in a large, cosmopolitan environment or a more rural destination. DGH or teaching hospital. Whilst you may not have thought this far ahead and your dcision may change in future, such considerations show a maturity of thinking that will set you apart from your peers. Again, make sure you can explain this answer. For example, you may want to work in a large teaching hospital because of your experience in teaching. If you can show evidence of a teaching course you have attended or a course you have set up for medical students in your portfolio, this will strengthen your answer.
Academic
Are you interested in research? Would you be wanting to pursue an MD or PhD in future? If so, discuss how you think this will impact on your career and chosen specialty. Are you currently undertaking an MSC or other further qualification? What have been your experiences of this so far and how do these experiences affect your plans for future research involvement?
Do you have an interest in teaching? How do you plan to develop this?
Personal
Would you like to be part of a large or a smaller team? You could discuss your experiences of participating in different types of team at this stage to show your understanding of the multidisciplinary team, but also of good communication with seniors and other colleagues.
You could also discuss your extracurricular pursuits. If you are a keen sportsman/woman, would you hope to be playing rugby, lacrosse or netball in 10 years time. How do you feel this would impact on your surgical careers and are there any changes that you will have to make in the intervening period to ensure a good work life balance?
Would you hope to be participating in any expeditions abroad or volunteer work. Surgery gives a lot of opportunities abroad and if you would be keen to take advantages of these, you should make this clear. You could again link this to past experiences on student elective or current volunteer projects. This is an opportunity to show that you are a well qualified, but also a well rounded individual.
These are all common questions that you can be asked. The key is to have thought about the question before the day of the interview, and decided on personal answers to each. You should not learn an answer by rote, as doing so will sound fake and score less well than a genuinely spontaneously delivered answer. However, you can't answer a question you've never considered the answer to as well as one you have practiced with your colleagues. We have included several more previous portfolio questions in our Guide to the Core Surgical Interview