Career advice - medicine or law?

My daughter has just completed her GCSE's and is considering her future plans/choices for A Levels.

She has always expressed an interest in medicine but has recently been considering law.

Is there anyone working or studying in medicine or law who could give her an insight into either of these careers?

if so, please get in touch

buy a dead rabbit and tell her to gut it

if she can do that without puking then medicine if not then law

whatever she chooses good luck to her

My daughter has just completed her GCSE's and is considering her future plans/choices for A Levels.

 

She has always expressed an interest in medicine but has recently been considering law.

 

Is there anyone working or studying in medicine or law who could give her an insight into either of these careers?

 

if so, please get in touch

You don't need to study Law at A Level to do a law degree. To be a doctor you need science A Levels to get on a medical degree course.

Which University does she want to attend at this point?

If she does not have a hugely burning desire to be a Lawyer I would suggest she sticks with medicine.

Law has become a hugely oversaturated market with too many graduates and not enough jobs. With exception of the Magic Circle City firms, most law firms are finding their fees dramatically cut and thus wages and gradings being kept low.

If you work in the Consumer / Indivudiual markets the massive cull of legal aid and heavy increases in fixed fee/no win type arrangements means that firms are seeking young, low paid, entry level grades to do the bulk of the work and only a handful of fully qualified seniors to supervise in order to keep costs down.

Even in the supposedly more lucrative corporate and commerical markets, firms which focus on insurance/defence or general litigation are feeling the same squeeze with more and more clients demanding a fixed rate/batch work/process driven service staffed by low level monkeys and a couple of more qualified organ grinders.

It really is a dog eat dog market at the moment and a young graduate fresh out of uni with little or no practical experience is going to find themselves fighting against 2 / 4 / 5 years experienced Paralegals or Legal Assistants for a training contract or in the alternative be stuck with several years of post graduation low level and low paid legal administrative, business support or clerking roles waiting for such an opportunity before they can become fully qualified.

I dont want to be a dark cloud but if she really wants to do Law, she will need to realise that these days, nobody graduates from Law School and gets a graduate salary.

Even those lucky enough to snatch a training contract could be initially paid as little as £15k - £20k.

Given the way the NHS is going I wouldn't consider a career in medicine at the moment, unless she plans to emigrate to NZ or somewhere.

If she does not have a hugely burning desire to be a Lawyer I would suggest she sticks with medicine.

 

Law has become a hugely oversaturated market with too many graduates and not enough jobs. With exception of the Magic Circle City firms, most law firms are finding their fees dramatically cut and thus wages and gradings being kept low.

 

If you work in the Consumer / Indivudiual markets the massive cull of legal aid and heavy increases in fixed fee/no win type arrangements means that firms are seeking young, low paid, entry level grades to do the bulk of the work and only a handful of fully qualified seniors to supervise in order to keep costs down.

 

Even in the supposedly more lucrative corporate and commerical markets, firms which focus on insurance/defence or general litigation are feeling the same squeeze with more and more clients demanding a fixed rate/batch work/process driven service staffed by low level moneys and a couple of more qualified organ grinders.

 

It really is a dog eat dog market at the moment and a young graduate fresh out of uni with little or no practical experience is going to find themselves fighting against 2 / 4 / 5 years experienced Paralegals or Legal Assistants for a training contract or in the alternative be stuck with several years of post graduation low level and low paid legal administrative, business support or clerking roles waiting for such an opportunity before they can become fully qualified.

 

I dont want to be a dark cloud but if she really wants to do Law, she will need to realise that these days, nobody graduates from Law School and gets a graduate salary.

 

Even those lucky enough to snatch a training contract could be initially paid as little as £15k - £20k.

How academic is she? Neither do I want to burst any bubbles but you have to be very bright to find a place to study medicine. Demand is high.

Look at the entrance requirements (widely available or even on the individual University websites) to study medicine.

I don't know about law, but if your daughter would like to study medicine, it might be worth her while getting some volunteer experience - perhaps at a hospice or with a mental health / learning disability charity. Such experience is invaluable, and would demonstrate her commitment to serving others.

Certainly working at a hospice she would be working alongside doctors, so she might get an opportunity to ask them for any hints & tips.

Best of luck to your daughter.

If she does not have a hugely burning desire to be a Lawyer I would suggest she sticks with medicine.

 

Law has become a hugely oversaturated market with too many graduates and not enough jobs. With exception of the Magic Circle City firms, most law firms are finding their fees dramatically cut and thus wages and gradings being kept low.

 

If you work in the Consumer / Indivudiual markets the massive cull of legal aid and heavy increases in fixed fee/no win type arrangements means that firms are seeking young, low paid, entry level grades to do the bulk of the work and only a handful of fully qualified seniors to supervise in order to keep costs down.

 

Even in the supposedly more lucrative corporate and commerical markets, firms which focus on insurance/defence or general litigation are feeling the same squeeze with more and more clients demanding a fixed rate/batch work/process driven service staffed by low level monkeys and a couple of more qualified organ grinders.

 

It really is a dog eat dog market at the moment and a young graduate fresh out of uni with little or no practical experience is going to find themselves fighting against 2 / 4 / 5 years experienced Paralegals or Legal Assistants for a training contract or in the alternative be stuck with several years of post graduation low level and low paid legal administrative, business support or clerking roles waiting for such an opportunity before they can become fully qualified.

 

I dont want to be a dark cloud but if she really wants to do Law, she will need to realise that these days, nobody graduates from Law School and gets a graduate salary.

 

Even those lucky enough to snatch a training contract could be initially paid as little as £15k - £20k.

Totally agree, I had to work as a paralegal for five years before I gained the opportunity to qualify (and I'm still not quite there). It is a very long, hard (and expensive) slog - as I'm sure is medicine - and one which I wouldn't recommend to anyone unless they are 110% sure it is what they want to do. I suggest that your daughter keeps her options open and tries to obtain some work experience at a firm of solicitors (or one of the courts) to see if it is something she would be interested in as a career.

All depends how good you are. Research and work experience are the way forward in helping anyone decide. Depending where you are on the ladder, then I might not be as pessimistic as ecco.

Most pupils would have chosen the location and 'A' levels that the they want to do months ago.

If doing 'A' levels is a new idea consider this seriously:

- do not do them unless you are certain to get grade A or B.

- do not do them unless you are going to University or onto a vocational course.

- do proper 'A' levels at a 'proper' school.

- a generalization but medicine requires chemistry and maths/physics, the biology you need will be taught.

- there are hundreds of different kinds of jobs in medicine some are very highly paid, some don't need University.

- there are dozens of different jobs in law which are never seen on TV. You can take advantage of your maths/science/English/foreign language skills in various types of legal work.

First, think very carefully about A Level choice. I really recommend you have a look here, and download the 'Informed Choices' pdf. For medicine, A level chemistry and biology are essential, plus maths and/or physics. Further maths could be useful. Psychology, as a bonus, but have the other subjects in place first. You must demonstrate commitment to the subject. ETA: and study carefully the entrance requirements for the universities you're interested in.

I don't know about law, but if your daughter would like to study medicine, it might be worth her while getting some volunteer experience. ...

This is absolutely essential. Everyone will meet, and likely surpass, the academic entrance requirements, and the competition for places is such that selection panels will be looking for a) ways to differentiate between equally academically excellent candidates, and b) ways to quickly establish a short list.

Selection panels are aware of the difficulty in obtaining relevant work/voluntary experience, and these days having contacts available to secure placements is not as advantageous as it might appear: they're looking for evidence of the student's own motivation and commitment, not of who you know. Volunteer work in care homes, hospices and so on should be sought out as soon as possible. Hospices often have ward volunteer schemes which have the additional advantage of demonstrating very quickly whether you're cut out for working in medicine. Here's an example of such a scheme (not in Sheffield, but it gives you an idea of what's involved in a well-run scheme).

You also want to think about volunteer work beyond that directly related to medicine: the panel will be looking for evidence of self-confidence, team work and leadership skills. So evidence of studying piano to grade 8 is less important than using those musical skills to organise a music workshop for a youth group, for example. The Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme is another possibility.

Don't even consider medicine unless you are academically excellent, of strong constitution, outgoing and able to get on with all sorts of people. Sensitive flowers will wilt under the pressure.

Good luck!

---------- Post added 27-06-2016 at 09:02 ----------

... do not do them unless you are certain to get grade A or B. ...

For medicine, A* or A.

- do not do them unless you are going to University or onto a vocational course.

- do proper 'A' levels at a 'proper' school.

- a generalization but medicine requires chemistry and maths/physics, the biology you need will be taught. ...

It would be a profound mistake to not offer biology or human biology beyond GCSE.

For all entrance requirements, always assume that they're the bare essentials. Medicine is extremely competitive; if the entrance requirements say AAA, aim for at least one A*, preferably in chemistry.

Given the way the NHS is going I wouldn't consider a career in medicine at the moment, unless she plans to emigrate to NZ or somewhere.

What do you mean? It will be flooded with £350 million a week soon. There's never been a better time!