The Importance of Shadowing in UK Health Science 2025
Shadowing provides students with the opportunity to observe and participate in the daily work of professionals, gaining insights into the practical aspects of the profession. In healthcare and medical fields, shadowing allows students to learn about therapists' expertise and skills, as well as their thought processes and medical techniques in different situations.
Shadowing Experience
1. Observing and Participating in Initial Diagnoses
- Students can watch how therapists conduct initial diagnoses, such as gathering patient history, performing physical examinations, and assessing conditions. They learn how to ask patients questions, observe symptoms and signs, and carry out preliminary diagnoses.
2. Participating in the Treatment Process
- During shadowing, students can observe and engage in treatment processes, learning how therapists develop and implement treatment plans and collaborate with patients to achieve treatment goals. They can also see the techniques, equipment, and tools used by therapists and learn how to evaluate treatments and adjust plans.
3. Learning Medical Record Keeping and Documentation Management
- Shadowing allows students to understand the importance of maintaining medical records and managing documents. They can observe how therapists document medical histories, treatment plans, and progress, and learn how to ensure the accuracy and confidentiality of medical files.
4. Following Up with Patients and Assessing Treatment Outcomes
- Students can see how therapists follow up on patient progress and evaluate the effectiveness of treatments, including regularly checking patients’ statuses, reassessing treatment plans, and making adjustments as needed.
5. Learning Ethics and Communication Skills
- Students observe how therapists communicate with patients and other healthcare team members, gaining insights into building good therapeutic relationships, respecting patient privacy and values, and effectively collaborating and communicating.
Importance of Shadowing for University Applications
1. Personal Statement
- In their personal statement, students can describe their shadowing experiences, detailing their time with therapists and the knowledge and skills they acquired. This showcases their interest in healthcare and their motivation for pursuing a related career.
- Students can discuss observed interactions between patients and therapists, the care and professionalism displayed, and how they applied their knowledge to solve medical problems. Such descriptions help highlight their learning ability, interpersonal skills, and professionalism, showcasing their potential contributions to the medical field.
2. Interviews
- During interviews, students can use specific examples and stories to illustrate the experiences and insights gained during shadowing. They can share challenges encountered and how they adapted and grew from them. Students can also express their enthusiasm for healthcare and their plans for future career development. This allows interviewers to better understand the student’s motivations, adaptability, and potential fit for the field.
3. Reference Letters
- Throughout shadowing, students have the opportunity to build strong relationships with therapists and demonstrate their learning attitudes and professional abilities. Therapists can mention the students’ observations and performances in their reference letters. These references provide an external perspective, affirming the student’s learning attitudes, professional capabilities, and interpersonal skills, and recognizing their potential in healthcare and medical fields.
Extended Readings
Guide for Hong Kong Students Pursuing a Law Degree in the UK
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Ready to Hear Success Stories? See Why Ascent Prep is a Student Favourite!
Michelle has excelled in academics since she was young and has been determined to apply to medical school since her third year of junior high school. She attends a local traditional girls' school that offers British A-Level courses. To lay a solid foundation for her dream of studying medicine, Michelle chose challenging subjects such as physics, chemistry, biology and mathematics. In the summer vacation after completing the IGCSE exam, Michelle interned in a cardiologist's clinic for five days through our arrangement. During her internship, she deeply realized the busy schedule of doctors and their sense of mission for the recovery of patients, which made her more determined to become a doctor.
Academically, Michelle took a UCAT preparation course during her first Christmas in the A-Level course, and learned various exam techniques under the guidance of the tutor, mastering how to quickly understand questions. She eventually scored an excellent 2830 in the UCAT exam and obtained a level 1 in the situational judgement test, which led to an interview invitation from the University of Nottingham Medical School. During the Easter period, she attended a personal statement guidance course. With the advice of her tutor, Michelle chose appropriate extracurricular activities and revised the content of her personal statement to make it more clearly express her passion and motivation for medicine. In addition, Michelle also took the BMAT exam (note that the BMAT has now been cancelled) and obtained a good score of 12.7, which exceeded the qualifying score and increased her chances of entering medical school.
To ensure that Michelle can fully express herself in the interview, we recommend arranging three targeted mock interviews to ensure that the areas that need improvement can be accurately improved. Finally, Michelle received an interview invitation from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong through the Non-JUPAS application. Her efforts finally paid off and she successfully received admission notices from the University of Nottingham and the University of Hong Kong.
After sharing Michelle's case, for students who aspire to enter the medical school, starting preparation one to two years in advance can indeed significantly increase the chances of success. Michelle's story not only inspires other students, but also proves that with planning and hard work, pursuing your dreams is achievable.
David attends a top secondary school in the UK and has excellent academic performance, with all 9s in GCSE and all A* predicted A-level grades. His dream has always been to become a doctor, and he has worked hard to achieve this goal. However, David unfortunately encountered a setback in the interview for a British medical school in January. The failure of the interview for his first application to a medical school made him depressed and anxious, and he began to doubt his abilities and future. At this time, his father contacted us at Ascent Prep for advice and suggestions.
We first comforted David and encouraged him not to give up his dream. Although he missed the chance to apply for medical school at a British university, the start date of medical school in Australia is half a year later than that in the UK, so he still has a chance to enroll. We suggested that he consider switching to medical school in Australia. In order to help David overcome the difficulties in the interview, we analyzed the reasons for his failure and found that although he was knowledgeable, he was flustered in the interview, especially lacking logic in judgment and problem-solving questions. We developed a personalized coaching program for him, including mock interview training and various coping skills, such as the STAR rule, responding to open-ended questions, and demonstrating passion for medicine and personal traits.
Through these intensive trainings, David's interview skills and confidence have been significantly improved. He also used the summer vacation when he returned to Hong Kong to retake the ISAT and UCAT exams and continued to practice under our guidance. At the same time, he continued to work as a research assistant at HKU, enhancing his medical experience and understanding of medical biology. Eventually, David successfully obtained admission notices from three Australian medical schools, including the University of New South Wales (UNSW). This proves that as long as you persevere, you can overcome challenges. His experience inspires other students pursuing their medical dreams, demonstrating to them the importance of persistence and hard work.
Brian is a student with a passion for medicine and his goal is to attend one of the top medical schools in the world. In order to realize this dream, he not only worked hard in his studies and achieved excellent results, but also actively participated in various extracurricular activities to comprehensively improve his abilities. Brian observed in the hospital’s cardiology department for a week and participated in the BSMS Virtual Work Experience, which allowed him to gain an in-depth understanding of the medical field through technological simulation. He not only learned the skills and qualities required to be a competent doctor, but also experienced the close relationship between doctors and patients.
After learning about Brian's goals, we encouraged him to set his sights on the University of Cambridge Medical School, whose outstanding reputation in medical research and teaching quality are impeccable. We also advised him to apply to other G5 medical schools such as Imperial, UCL and KCL. In order to improve his BMAT score and interview skills, we arranged a 15-hour BMAT preparation course ((Note that BMAT has been cancelled), which provided systematic training by experienced tutors, including problem-solving skills, test-taking strategies and time management. We also conducted several mock interviews for him, specifically targeting the interview style of Cambridge University, and designed relevant questions to help him prepare and better deal with academic and ethical issues.
Brian submitted his UCAS application in mid-October, took the BMAT in November, and received an interview invitation from Cambridge University in December. He was successfully accepted by Cambridge in January and also successfully obtained interview invitations from ICL and UCL. In order to reduce his financial burden, we encouraged him to apply for the Hong Kong Excellence Scholarship Scheme, which offers a scholarship of up to HK$300,000 and can support outstanding students to study in well-known overseas universities. In the end, Brian not only achieved high scores in the BMAT exam, but also was admitted to Cambridge University Medical School and KCL. He finally chose to go to Dowling College, Cambridge, England to pursue higher academic goals and realize his dream.
