Sunderland University
Overview
St George’s, University of London is a specialist healthcare university based in the thriving, multicultural hub of Tooting, South West London. The medical school, unlike many newer ones, remains within the St George’s Hospital itself instead of having its own campus. The university only offers healthcare-related courses, such as medicine, paramedic science, biomedical science, physiotherapy and occupational therapy, therefore is great for finding like-minded individuals to be friends.
University Life
Life at St George’s is very much what you choose to make of it. There are plenty of societies and clubs available, ranging from cultural societies, sports, film and history, as well as several opportunities to create new societies. The local area of Tooting is vibrant and multicultural, with several affordable food and drink options around, including Tooting Market and Broadway Market. Just a 5-minute walk from Tooting Broadway, the university is only a short hop from central London. The St George’s campus is located within the Hunter and Jenner Wings of St George’s Hospital, a teaching hospital since 1733.
Social Life
The social life at St George’s is excellent, despite it being a small university. The university houses a huge SU bar on the second floor, which is converted into a club several times a year for events such as St Patrick’s day and Christmas Disco. Tooting is also packed with pubs (with a wide range of prices), restaurants and shops. The university has a very tight knit atmosphere, with several societies and students often holding paid teaching positions for anatomy and clinical skills, which provides a fantastic opportunity to get advice from older students whilst working.
Interview
Interviews at SGUL are MMIs that consist of 6-8 stations of 5 minutes. The stations are a mix of scenarios with actors (e.g. breaking bad news), personal reflections, reflections on medical advances, situational judgement and ethical analysis of cases and situations. Strong knowledge about the university and its history can always provide a good talking point. The interviews begin in November/December and run a few months, before starting again for clearing. St George’s holds back a set number of places every year for clearing as they acknowledge potentially good doctors may slip through the net at other schools in the original round of applications.
Tips
For those wishing to apply to St George’s, showing that you’re a rounded character will be key. Strong academics, a decent UCAT score and good quality, active experiences in caring environments will all help, as well as a firm knowledge of the university and its history (e.g. Edward Jenner and the smallpox vaccine, John Hunter and surgery, and more recently Mr Henry Marsh’s advances in neurosurgery) and the local area of Tooting (which is very multicultural) are desired. Further information on specific requirements can be found at the following links:
A100 (MBBS 5) https://www.sgul.ac.uk/study/courses/medicine
A101 (MBBS 4) https://www.sgul.ac.uk/study/courses/medicine-graduate-entry
Will Ansley - 2nd Year Medical Student at St George's Univeristy @willansley22