Sangam Malani

Medicine

Prior to coming to Sheffield, I did the International Baccalaureate Diploma and was the salutatorian at my alma mater – consistently performing well in my studies. I spent my summer interning at a local General Practitioner’s clinic and as part of the internship I went to the Kwae River Christian Hospital in Sangkhlaburi to extend help towards the migrant population on the Thai-Burma Border. This hospital treats the poor-socio economic group that regularly comes to it, many of whom have no nationality and no regular source of income. And it was this trip which reinforced in me the will to help such people; who have limited access to health care as a result of being un-registered refugees.

I chose the University of Sheffield as it had all the things I was looking for in a university. I was primarily drawn towards the University of Sheffield as it was a member of the Russell Group of leading research intensive universities and I really liked the medical research the university undertook. The fact that I would get a chance to conduct research of my own in the second year was a major deciding factor.

Additionally the university was ranked amongst both the UK's and world's Top 100 universities by the Shanghai Jiao Tong (SJTU) and Times Higher (THE) World University Rankings and since I didn’t personally know anyone who studying in Sheffield, these rankings helped me make my decision.

Other factors include, the Union's "Sheffield Volunteering" scheme being one of the country’s most active and well-recognised student volunteering schemes which has won various national acclaims over the years and the University's Faculty of Pure Science boasting an association with five noble prizes.

The two week long intensive clinical experience I received at the Northern General Hospital and the Royal Hallamshire Hospital had the most enjoyable part of my first year, studying medicine at the University of Sheffield. The clinical placement took me a step closer to my dream as I was not only able to apply my knowledge in a real situation but was also given the opportunity to increase the awareness of my own strengths and areas of growth. I learnt a lot during the two weeks; I acquired the generic history taking skills whilst simultaneously realizing that patients often have certain personal boundaries that one needs to respect. I learnt how to talk to patients who were nearly five times my age and how to ask them sensitive questions. I realized that importance of trust in a doctor-patient relationship. And I finally gained insight into the role that psychosocial factors play in a patient’s health and I realized that care of a patient with a chronic illness requires not only clinical but also social attention.

The course implementing problem based learning and clinical demonstrations into lecture based learning helped me realize that medicine is not just about pathology, physiology, pharmacology and histology. Medicine is about incorporating all that knowledge in a way which would allow one to help their patient in the best possible way. And this I believe is the most valuable aspect of my course.

I love asking questions and digging deeper into a subject! The fact that all the professors are always eager to help makes learning more fun. When answering the questions, the professors often show you the broader picture and that often makes everything that prior to that moment didn’t make any sense, make perfect sense. And for me these, “Oh, I get it now!” moments that make studying my subject at the University of Sheffield most enjoyable.

In 2010, the medical graduates from the University of Sheffield were 16th in the rank order of mean scores of application and in 2011, the graduates were 12th and this year, they were 3rd behind Imperial and UCL and equal with Brighton and Sussex. This shows that the quality of education has been improving over the years and I would regard this as a major benefit of an education from the University of Sheffield.

The best thing about life at the University of Sheffield is that there is always something to distract you from being homesick. From volunteering programs to G.I.A.G (Give it a go) events to a robust nightlife, Sheffield has it all!

I have high aspirations and one of my prime objectives is to get my name on the Notable Alumni list. I intend to become a world renowned doctor not only for my skills but also for the causes I support. The latest campaign that I supported was the Thailand flood-relief campaign and in the future I wish to support many such causes. I also hope to join the doctors without borders program after medical school. This will not only allow me to give my best to my patients but it will allow me to improve my community and our world.

The advice I would you give to prospective students coming to Sheffield is that starting university would first day at school all over again! You will have to let go of your mom and dad’s hands, you will have to venture out into an unknown territory and make friends with strangers all over again. But there will be one major difference this time around; you will know the reason that brings you to this threshold again, you will know what your dreams are and what you aspire to be! So do not be afraid and do not think of university as taking one huge step! Instead, continue taking those small steps that have got you this far because those small steps will make big ones.