How to Become a Doctor [Infographic]

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So You Want To Be A Doctor?

If you want to become a doctor, it’s important to know all the steps involved if you want to achieve your goal. Many people will want to become a doctor to save lives, because you can work anywhere in the world, and of course because it’s a well-paid and stable job.

Of course, qualifying to become a doctor isn’t easy and it requires a great deal of hard work. No matter where you study to become a doctor, you’ll be required to study several modules in many varieties of medicine.

Learning to become a doctor requires variety in learning and all courses will involve problem-based learning and lecture-based learning. Problem-based learning puts prospective doctors into real-life medical scenarios to see if they can find a solution. Lecture-based learning is important as well, but problem-based learning helps students to react in pressurised situations, which is what being a doctor is all about.

All your training will hopefully turn you in to a great doctor and make all the hard work worthwhile. The life of a doctor is unpredictable and a doctor won’t always be able to refer to a textbook to form a diagnosis, and they will often have to use their experience to diagnose patients, when information is unclear.

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HOW TO BECOME A DOCTOR

WHY BECOME A DOCTOR?

Save lives.
Get respect from members of the public.
Have a high level job of stability.
There is always a need for doctors.
Accrue invaluable knowledge.
Medical qualifications work across borders.
Multiple opportunities.

WHAT IS INVOLVED IN DOCTOR TRAINING?

Numerous modules in many varieties of medicine are covered. These include:

Anaesthetics
Emergency Medicine
General Medicine
General Surgery
Gynaecology
Obstetrics
Paediatrics
Psychiatry
Trauma

DOCTOR TRAINING METHODOLOGIES

PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING

Students are divided into smaller groups.
Encouraged to actively collaborate & determine a solution for a real-life medical scenario.

LECTURE-BASED LEARNING

Students get the opportunity to listen to & learn from leading clinicians & medical academics.
Recommended reading is suggested in between lectures.

PRE-CLINICAL & CLINICAL PHASES

Students undergo 2 to 3 years of theoretical learning.
They then enter a clinical course for 3 years.
Gives students a solid foundation of understanding & knowledge before being placed in a professional healthcare setting.

INTEGRATED CURRICULUM

Clinical & non-clinical modules are taught at the same time as each other.
Sometimes a great initial emphasis is placed on non-clinical modules, or a 2:1 ratio of clinical to non-clinical learning.
Eases the transition from a learning into a working environment & gives students vital hands-on experience from an early stage.

HOW MANY YEARS TO BECOME A DOCTOR?

This entirely depends on how specialised & advanced a role is required, but it is not uncommon to spend a decade of your life studying medicine.

Direct Route
- Enrolling in a medical school where a degree typically takes 5 years.
Alternative Route
- Study medicine at graduate level after completing another science-related degree of 2.1 classification or higher, typically taking 4 years.
Foundation
- After a medical student obtains their degree in the UK, they continue to a Foundation Programme (FP) for 2 years.
GP or Specialist
- In the 2nd year of the FP, doctors can apply for enrollment in a GP or specialist training programme.
- The GP training programme takes 3 years.
- The specialist training program takes 5 to 7 years.