Graduates' Experiences

On this page, you will be able to read graduates talking about their transitioning experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. To protect our participants, all the names below are pseudonyms.

If you are a graduate, university staff or employer and would like to share your thoughts with the research team and a wider audience, get in touch with us here.

Claire | March 2023

Medical school is a second coming of age. In ‘Dear Life’, Dr Rachel Clarke describes the process identity deconstruction and reconstruction; to mould students to become fit for medical practice. I have long wondered what this means for pandemic (soon-to-be) graduates like me because our identities and experiences have been shaped so profoundly by a certain virus and the measures enforced to contain it.

When I first entered medical school, I looked up to the seniors, with their stethoscopes, heading up to the wards. They looked so self-assured. A fellow classmate told me how their clinical years were “where the magic happened”. Fast forward to my final year, and I am supposed to be a doctor in less than four months. The countdown has truly begun. I have been told that I am ready. But, even though I have passed every test, my grades mean little on the wards. After all, when it comes to medicine, the difference between theory and practice is profound.

I used to worry about whether my education would prepare me enough for internship, especially at a time when it was effectively altered beyond recognition. However, my faculty adapted very quickly to the pandemic and provided us with a very innovative student-centred education.

As restrictions continue to be lifted, I am excited for the future. To all the graduates who have persisted in the face of drastic upheaval, I look forward to our future. Maybe that is where the magic happens.