
Dee Wright, Charity & Events Manager, Hospital Saturday Fund, presenting £10,000 to Lucie Thiele, Development Manager & Liz Crowdey Medical Electives Manager at the Imperial College London towards their Medical Elective Bursaries.
About Imperial College London
Imperial College London is in the top ten universities worldwide with an international reputation for excellence in its teaching. With over 4,000 students and 2,000 undergraduates studying across north and west London and partnered with a wide range of NHS trusts, hospitals and clinics, the college’s renowned research programme puts students at the forefront of cutting edge medical developments.
The MBBS degree course
The Imperial College London’s Faculty of Medicine is one of the largest in Europe, exposing students to a wide variety of learning experiences. For that very reason, places on the MBBS degree course (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery) are highly sought after. The college receives around 3,000 applications for the 400 places and successful students become amongst the next generation of talented medical professionals.
Experiencing healthcare worldwide
The degree programme lasts for six years, with the final year including a compulsory elective placement anywhere in the world, typically lasting up to 7 weeks.
The benefits of traveling abroad for elective placements are huge. It gives students the ability to improve their clinical knowledge and develop skills in challenging medical environments. It’s also a rare opportunity to experience and learn about health issues and challenges worldwide.
Extra support for students
The college has the budget to offer travel grants for up to 10% of 400 students each year, leaving the majority of students struggling to meet the financial demands of their placement with barriers including costs like flights, accommodation, and visas. On top of this, as workload increases leading up to final exams, students are unable to raise funds themselves with little time for employment.
For this reason, students are unable to take advantage of this opportunity and are forced to undertake their placement in London, missing out on a life-changing experience.
The grant
With extra funding, the college would be able to give Medical Elective Grants by accepting proposals and selecting students for bursaries based on a panel decision.
The Hospital Saturday Fund awarded the Imperial College London with a £10,000 grant, funding bursaries allowing 10 additional students the chance to go on transformative overseas placements.
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