Future-Focused Enrichment Opportunities and MedSoc

For our Sixth Form students, Thursday afternoons offer an extensive co-curricular enrichment programme which complements their academic studies and helps them to look beyond School life and towards the future. 

The aim of our enrichment programme is to extend students’ education and personal growth beyond their academic courses. It comprises a wide range of choices designed to give the opportunity to develop new interests, learn new skills, gain new experiences and broaden knowledge. 

One of the enrichment options that students can choose is tailored towards those who want to pursue Medicine, Dentistry or Veterinary Science after leaving the High School and aims to prepare them for a successful application to any of those three subjects. Monday lunchtime sessions, called MedSoc, are also offered for those who can’t attend the enrichment session on a Thursday afternoon. 

The concept behind both the Monday and Thursday sessions is to prepare students as thoroughly as possible for both applying to courses in Medicine and excelling in them. 

Led by Biology teacher and Medical, Dental and Veterinary Science Applications Advisor, Mrs Peart, the sessions have two main focus areas; 

1. To make sure that students know exactly what the Medical, Dental and Veterinary Science application process entails due to its complex nature involving lots of different aspects such as results, admissions tests, interviews and personal statements. 
2. To give students an overview of the individual principles that medical schools are looking for through the teaching of medical ethics. The sessions focus on the four basic pillars of medical ethics and apply those to Veterinary Science where possible. Students are encouraged to review case studies and discuss current affairs in relation to medicine and the latest developments through the lens of medical ethics. 

Mrs Peart also aims to prepare students for public speaking in preparation for the interview process – a key part of the application process to any Medical, Dental or Veterinary Science course. 

This term’s poster competition has been integral to this aim; the students were given a one-word title from which they were tasked to create a science research poster to showcase to peers and teaching staff over a buffet lunch at the end of term. 

Using the them of ‘time’ as a starting point, students created posters on topic such as ‘How Does Oral Health Affect our Physical Health as we Age?’, ‘The Biological Clock’ and ‘The Brain as an Internal Timekeeper’. 

After completing the project, one student commented that “I’ve always had an interest in science and just knowing the reasons behind what happens in our body, and it’s been so interesting to research into what scientists are currently doing now”. 

This fantastic enrichment opportunity allows our students to explore a subject they’re passionate about whilst looking ahead to the future and gaining the key skills needed to excel beyond life at Loughborough High School.