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Inspiring tomorrow's surgeons: the benefits of student surgical society membership☆?
Rele Ologunde1, Sohaib R Rufai2, Angeline H Y Lee3
1Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.
Objectives:
To assess the perceived value of medical school student surgical society membership and its effect on determining future career aspirations.
Design:
Cross-sectional survey.
Setting:
Three UK medical school student surgical societies.
Participants:
Undergraduate and postgraduate students.
Results:
Of 119 students, 60 (50.4%) completed the survey. Of the respondents, 62.3% indicated that the surgical society had increased their awareness and knowledge about the different surgical specialties. Of the respondents who had decided on a career in surgery before joining the society, 67.6% stated that participating in society events had better prepared them for the career. Plastic surgery (13.3%), general surgery (11.7%), and neurosurgery (11.7%) were the 3 most popular specialties for future careers. Surgical skills workshops (21.9%), conferences (21.1%), and careers talks (16.4%) were chosen by students as the most useful career-guiding events organized by surgical societies.
Conclusion:
Participation in medical school surgical societies is perceived as a valuable part of undergraduate and postgraduate medical education in aiding students to decide on future careers.
