So medicine is about biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, right? So why is there such an emphasis in the
UCAT on understanding large blocks of text? It goes without saying really but all of these disciplines of science rely on our ability to communicate not just through equations and numbers but also through language. The fundamental role that language has in shaping one’s potential to be a prodigy in medicine is recognised by the second section of the UMAT® Exam exam titled ‘Understanding People.’ In this section students have the laborious task of reading large extracts, often from literature written many decades ago, only to be asked one or two questions about the text. If you are sitting the UMAT® Exam then it can feel like a deliberate ploy to consume precious time that could be used to finish more of reasoning and problem-solving questions—at least it did for me!
One strategy of moving through these questions faster is reading the question before reading the text so that you know exactly what you are analysing the text for. But you will find that even if you get through this section of the UMAT® Exam unscathed then there will be plenty of uses for language based skills to shine on the journey through medical school and into a role as a doctor. So don’t throw your Shakespeare texts out just yet! There is much value in not just scraping by but really exceeding in English—what is it?
Let’s get straight to the point: the cost of studying a degree in undergraduate medicine and even graduate medicine (should that be the case) is not free or cheap. Even though doctors do so much good for the public they are still expected to contribute to the cost of their own education—reasonable expectation? That is for another blog to answer.
But can English help with the cost of study? It was a question I would definitely have asked flippantly when I was doing year 11 and not really excelling in English. Indeed the only reason I decided to take English (very) seriously was that it is a compulsory contributor to the ENTER calculation (now ATAR) and my peers weren’t very good at it. So in order to outcompete my peers for Dux of the school I decided it would be a good strategic move to focus on English. It did pay off in numerous ways but none more significant then the skills I developed for writing persuasive, (hopefully) engaging and honest applications for scholarships that were offering thousands of dollars to their eventual recipients.
I did an undergraduate degree in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Melbourne after I attained my Victorian Education Certificate (VCE). I had to move from rural Victoria to central Melbourne to undertake the study. That included funding accommodation, food and a more active lifestyle as well as the university tuition fees. I was easily going to have to pay upwards of $20,000 per year for living and study expenses, which is a substantial amount of money—even if one is able to secure Youth Allowance or some other Centrelink assistance.
So I decided to put the writing skills I had developed to use on applications for any scholarship I could find that I was remotely eligible for. What having faith in my communication skills meant was that I wasn’t afraid, or even too lazy, to sit up and explain in writing why $20,000 would a significant burden to my ability to engage with an already rigorous higher education bachelor degree. These scholarship applications take time and often require answering multiple questions, so I am certain that if I didn’t feel comfortable with my communication skills then I would probably have made excuses to avoid doing it. Over the four years of the undergraduate degree I completed I secured over $50,000 in financial assistance through scholarships; couple this with a manageable amount of part-time work through the same period and I found myself at no disadvantage to my peers in terms of how much time I could spend studying, continuing to play sport and the like.
Now and then I tell people I want to be a writer. Sometimes I tell them that I already am. Whether I do or not it is a fun thing to do to elicit the awkward response from people. Most people stop for a second and then say, “Oh okay, cool, have you ever had any work published?” For a long time it was a really hard question to answer because to be truthful I haven’t. Recently I was talking to a friend who is a psychologist about how VCE® Exam English taught me (indirectly) how to write effective scholarship applications. She looked at me for a second and said, “Well there is your answer to people who ask if you have ever been published as a writer!” She didn’t elaborate so I clarified what she meant. “You want me to say that I haven’t been published but I did pay for a bulk of my engineering degree through writing?” I asked as I laughed—trust a psychologist to put some ‘positive psychology’ spin on it!
She was right though. Writing has paid for a bulk of my undergraduate degree and has since paid for much of the Master degree in Philosophy that I am doing now. So I look back on myself struggling with writing essays and creative pieces in the classroom in VCE® Exam. So many times back then I wanted to scream at the words for being so easy to speak but so difficult to put onto paper in a clear and coherent way. I am thankful now for my competitiveness; deciding to take English seriously has been the greatest financial decision I have ever made.
