Nervous for first year? I’ve just completed it!

By Adnan Y

When I finally received my confirmation to study medicine after results day, I felt a huge sense of relief and excitement. However, having put so much into the application process and revision for exams, I realised I had not thought much about what my experience of university would be like. I didn’t know what to expect: how demanding the course would be, what routine I would make, or whether I would make friends easily. Now, with my first year nearly completed, I want to share a bit of my experience as a first year medical student.

My Experience of First Year 

I feel that my experiences have been shaped by a few unique circumstances. Firstly, I have a twin brother who also studies Medicine at the same university as me! This made it slightly less intimidating when walking in on the first day of Welcome Week, as we walked in together. Also, I live at home, as my commute to university is not too long. I was initially worried I would find it hard to meet people, as I assumed everyone living in accommodation would have formed groups before the first day of university. However, I quickly realised that many other students commute, and even those who lived in accommodation were really friendly. The truth is that everyone is in the same boat. My advice is not to be nervous and to talk to others!

I highly recommend making the most of Welcome Week. This is usually a week before lectures formally start where you have introductory classes to your degree and events such as Freshers’ Fair. It is a great chance to meet your cohort and get to know your course. Freshers’ Fair is also a great opportunity to discover new societies and make new connections outside of your course. Looking back, I wish I had joined more societies earlier - I held back because I wasn't sure how I’d manage my workload. But now I would say if something interests you, sign up! You never know unless you try. 

Once lectures began, I had no idea what to expect in terms of teaching style, workload or how I would take notes. At school, I was very much an independent learner and learnt most of the content I needed for exams outside of lessons. To be honest, that hasn’t changed much - I have found that a lot of my learning comes from reviewing lecture content on my own and using additional resources. I would say that it’s worth talking to other students in the year above to get to know how they approach revision as you may get some ideas that work for you. For example, for taking notes, I experimented with handwritten notes, Google Docs, and finally decided on using Notion after hearing about it from students in the years above. Notion is an online, organisational site where you can organise your notes, calendars and plans in whichever format you like and I have found it to be great as my main place to store all my uni content. My tip is to try out different study methods until you find the one that works the best for you.

An example from Adnan's Notion page

Overall, I have really enjoyed the medical course at my university (Anglia Ruskin University). I have found the content mostly very interesting and I have really enjoyed developing my practical skills. I also find the timetable well-structured. On Monday, we have clinical skills in the morning followed by anatomy dissection in the afternoon. From Tuesday to Thursday, we have three 45 minute in-person lectures in the morning, and on Tuesday afternoon, I have hospital placements. Then on Friday, we have online lectures. The weekly lecture load has been lighter than I had initially expected - I did not realise we would have most afternoons off! This has allowed me to stay on top of all lectures and prepare in advance so that going into lectures, I have a good understanding of the key concepts.

My favourite part of university has been the clinical exposure we have gotten. Our weekly clinical skills sessions have been one of my favourite parts of the course - learning how to take patient histories or cannulate (even if blood exploded out of the model arm on my first attempt!) has made me feel like a proper medical student. I have also really enjoyed our hospital and GP placements. Applying what we have learnt in lectures to real patient interactions has been both exciting and rewarding. I think one of my highlights of first year was my final GP placement, where I was able to take patient histories independently and even helped contribute to form diagnoses. It really boosted my confidence and was the first time I felt somewhat like a proper doctor!

My Ultimate Tip 

Ultimately…first year is full of unknowns - but that is what makes it exciting! My tip would be to stay open to new experiences. Whether it’s joining a society you know nothing about or making friends with people totally different from you - say yes more than no! Some of the best experiences I have had this year are from opportunities I was originally reluctant to take on. So be open, be brave, and don’t be afraid to try something new!