MedEntry | Are you suited to medicine?

Are you suited to medicine?

Is medicine the right career for you? Deciding which career to pursue is one of the most important decisions you will make in your life. This questionnaire will help you decide whether you are suited to a career in medicine, and whether becoming a doctor will lead to personal fulfilment.

The survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. Afterwards, you will be provided with a score and analysis.

Instructions

This is not a high stakes test, and the results are visible only to you. Therefore, try to be honest and objective with your answers rather than trying to guess what an 'ideal answer' would be.
Your answers to some questions may depend on the context, but please answer them as they 'generally' apply to you.
Answer questions based on how you view yourself compared to others of a similar age. This may involve taking into account feedback you have received from teachers, friends, family etc.
Try to answer the questions as you are now, not who you think you would like to be or who you think you should be or who you were in the past.
If you are not sure what the question is asking, make your best guess and move on.
Only the extremes of each answer are displayed (for example, strongly agree and strongly disagree). If your feeling is in the middle of the extreme answers (for example, somewhat agree), make a selection near the middle.

Example of how to answer the questions

	Not at all	Very appealing
If you have completed any work experience in a medical or related field, how appealing was the thought of working in such an environment? (If you have not completed work experience, imagine that you did).
How important to you is flexibility in working hours in your choice of a career?
How important to you is stability and security of employment in your choice of a career?
	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
My aptitude in maths, physics and science is far greater than my aptitude in the humanities.
	Only recently	Primary school
When did you first consider medicine as a career?
	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
I am considering medicine partly to please my parents / family.
	Not at all	Very important
How important is financial compensation in your choice of a career?
	Present mindset	Future mindset
Do you consider yourself to be future-oriented (taking actions to benefit you in the future) or present-oriented (doing what feels good now)?
	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
I love taking risks.
	Not much at all	Very much
When you consider your future career, how important is it that you are your own boss? That is, do you value independence?
	Not at all	Very important
How important is the status and prestige of a career to you?
	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
I am very conscientious.
People consider me to be extroverted.
I am open to new experiences and intellectually curious.
I am a very driven or motivated person.
I am a very agreeable person who considers the needs of others.
I would describe myself as emotionally labile or unstable.
I am happy when I follow the rules.
I am willing to make sacrifices for a few years, in return for future benefits.
I am easily disgusted.
My interest in pursuing a career in medicine is very strong and well-informed.
I believe I possess the required qualities (eg ability to deal with setbacks, emotionally challenging situations), personality traits and mindset to pursue a career in medicine.
Independence and freedom in my job are very important to me.
I love talking to people and helping people.
I believe that once people decide on a career, they should stick with it.
Being forced to move often due to my career is not appealing to me.
I am an altruistic 'giver'
My desire for a medical career is partly driven by illness in my family / myself.
Looking at and having to deal with bodily fluids freaks me out.
The thought of possible layoffs at work doesn't bother me.
I am partly put off a medical career due to the need to deal with wounds, blood and organs.
I am comfortable in dealing with and interacting with people of wide and diverse backgrounds (cultural, ethnic, linguistic, religious, geographical etc).
I am an extremely 'left-brained' person (logical, analytical).
When I learned human biology in primary and/or secondary school, I was fascinated by it.
I have a good understanding of what a career in medicine involves.
I am put off more by the difficulty of getting into medical school than by the medical career itself.
Most people in most professions realise during their careers that their ability to create positive change at an individual level is lower than what they expected.
I have engaged in some voluntary work and I enjoyed it.
My family is generally supportive of my interest in a medical career.
I have always been very interested in non-medical careers.
I have engaged in some paid work and would like to do more as soon as I can.
Career interests can change over the course of one's life and that is ok.
I believe it's better to excel in one field rather than dabbling in many things.
A medical career would be in alignment with my values and purpose.
	Competitive	Cooperative
I am:
	Medical practice	Medical research
My interest is in:
	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
I have a talent in leading and managing people.
People say that I am a fluent and articulate communicator.
I believe everyone should prioritise their health, wellbeing and longevity over other things in life.
I generally procrastinate or put off making hard decisions.
Most people can adapt to most careers.
I often do things I don't like to do for the benefit I gain in other areas, because life is full of trade-offs.
	Not important	Very important
Having a career which is 'meaningful' is:
	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
I am fully aware of the variety and range of career opportunities (both inside and outside heath care) for doctors.
I am generally a rational rather than an emotional decision maker.
Work-life balance is very important to me.
In fifteen years time, it will be easier for me to move from a non-medical career into a medical career than it will be moving from a medical career into a non-medical career.
I already know which specialty of medicine I would like to pursue.
If I am unable to get into medical school, I would rather study a non-medical course at university than a health-related course.
I have a strong preference for individual work rather than team-based work.
I am comfortable interacting with people with disabilities.
The cognitive style that is in STEM subjects appeals to me far more than the cognitive style that is in humanities and/or the arts.
I am very good at 'reading' people and interpreting the body language 'signals' people convey during interactions.
I am very ambitious.
I am happy, engaged and 'in flow' when pursuing activities with long term rewards, rather than those with immediate benefits.
I am socially perceptive rather than socially oblivious.
There is no career which satisfies everyone who enters that career.
Work-induced stress is part of life in any career.
	A myth	A fact
That medical careers involve more stress than other professional careers is:
That medical careers involve more hours of work than that in other professional careers is:
That medical careers involve many more years of study than that in other professional careers is:
	Strongly Disagree	Strongly Agree
I prefer to be a big fish in a small pond rather than a small fish in a big pond.
How a person copes with stress largely depends on their personality and mindset.
Expecting a career to be fully satisfying and fulfilling throughout one's life is idealistic, not pragmatic.
Having to deal with competition throughout my career would make me unhappy.
The skills that I gain training and working as a doctor can help me pivot into any new career inside or outside the healthcare system, should I so desire in the future.
I have thought long and hard about a career as a doctor.
I am comfortable in a job that requires me to be in close physical proximity to other people.