Russell Group Informed Choices

The latest Informed Choices (2016-17) booklet, created by the influential Russell Group of universities, has been published. It contains guidance about applying to universities and which combinations of its "facilitating subjects" it recommends for various degree courses and careers. You can view a video about it and download the latest copy of the booklet here.

"Generation Rent"

A study, led by Pete Redfern, chief executive of the house-builders Taylor Wimpey, has said that 62% of people living in rented accommodation cannot see themselves buying a property in the next 5 years. The proportion of property owning households has fallen to a 30 year low of 62%, whilst the average age of a first time buyer has risen to 34 in London, and 30 elsewhere. Earlier this year a survey by the charity, The Equity Trust, found that 86% of renters (around six million households) do not have the minimum £8,838 needed for a 5% deposit on the average UK home. Experts say that around 250,000 new homes need to be built every year to meet demand, but in 2013/14 only 125,000 were built.  [source GTAssociates]

Downturn in wages predicted

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said that workers will earn less in real wages in 2021 than they did in 2008, with a squeeze on pay lasting for over 10 years. Paul Johnson, director of the IFS, said, "This has, for sure, been the worst decade for living standards certainly since the last war and probably since the 1920s. We have seen no increase in average incomes so far and it does not look like we are going to get much of an increase over the next four or five years either." He said that, the "outlook for living standards and for the public finances has deteriorated pretty sharply over the last nine months". Real average earnings, which factor in the rising cost of living, were forecast to rise by less than 5% between now and 2021, which is 3.7% lower than was projected in March. Mr Johnson said, "One cannot stress enough how dreadful that is, more than a decade without real earnings growth. We have certainly not seen a period remotely like it in the last 70 years." The IFS said that the biggest impact on income in recent years has been felt by younger workers. Those aged 60 and over, in contrast, have seen living standards rise.  [source: GTAssociates]

Labour Market Information: November 2016

• Unemployment is 1,604,000, down 52,000 from last month’s published figure (quarterly headline down 37,000).
• The number of claimant unemployed is 803,300, up 9,800 on last month, the claimant rate is 2.3%.
• The number of workless young people (Not in Education, Employment or Training) is 1,022,000, up 1,000 on the quarter, representing 14.2% of the youth population (up 0.1%).
• Youth unemployment (including students) is 591,000, down 36,000 on the quarter.
• There are 2.1 unemployed people per vacancy.
• The employment rate is 74.5%, no change on last month’s published figure

School leavers need better "soft skills"

An employer survey by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) found that 80% of school leavers require "significant training" in what is known as "soft skills" before being put to work. The top areas of weakness for new recruits are people skills and business skills, followed by technical skills. More than 90% of those surveyed said that their workload had increased as a result of skills shortages, with 66% agreeing it had increased the stress levels of staff and 44% that it had caused a fall in departmental performance.

Oxford comes out on top

The recently published Times Higher Education World University Rankings, ranked Oxford top, a first for a UK university, knocking the California Institute of Technology (top for the past five years), into second place. The table ranked universities on measures including teaching, research and international outlook, for example, numbers of overseas students and staff.

UK INSTITUTIONS IN TOP 200 (previous ranking)
1. Oxford (2)
4. Cambridge (4)
8. Imperial College (8)
15. University College London (14)
25=. London School of Economics and Political Science (23)
27. Edinburgh (24)
36=. King's College London (27)
55. Manchester (=56)
71. Bristol (69)
82=. Warwick (80)
88. Glasgow (=76)
96=. Durham (70)
109. Sheffield (97)
110=. St Andrews (86)
113=. Queen Mary, University of London (98)
121=. Southampton (=110)
126=. Exeter (93)
129. York (=131)
130. Birmingham (119)
133. Leeds (=133)
137=. Lancaster (130)
147. Nottingham (143)
149. Sussex (140)
158. Liverpool (157)
165=. East Anglia (=149)
172. Leicester (=167)
173=. Royal Holloway, University of London (129)
180=. Dundee (=185)
182=. Cardiff (=182) 188=. Aberdeen (=172)
190=. Newcastle (=196)
192=. Reading (=164)

Personal Statement tips for applying for Medicine

There is no one way to do a Personal Statement but here are things to consider. The information below is taken from the excellent medic portal website.

Reflect.

Reflection comes from thinking about what you’ve done and extrapolating learning points. You should follow a three step process when speaking about work experience to ensure you have reflected properly:

· Where were you and what did you do?

· What specific incident did you see? 

· What did this teach you?

Show that you understand what they are applying to.

Tutors don’t want to see statements that talk excessively about how amazing medicine is. There are times when medicine can’t help. People die, patients can be ungrateful and you might see suffering and not be able to stop it. You need to break bad news and hours are long and will take over evenings and weekends. You need to show that you understand all this, and still believe this is the right path for you! The best students manage to get across the fact that they appreciate the realities of medical school and recognise the challenges ahead.

Clarity in language and structure.

Always remember that your personal statement is one of a pile to an admissions tutor. They are busy and you are doing yourself a favour if you can show achievements clearly and concisely. Use short, sharp sentences, with straightforward language, and follow a logical progression, from motivation, to work experience, to volunteering, extracurricular activities and a neat conclusion. By making your credentials jump off the page, you avoid the risk of them being missed.

Honesty.

Don’t exaggerate the things you have done, especially in a medical context, this will be really obvious to admissions tutors, and don’t fabricate life-changing moments that meant you simply had to be a doctor. This can create a bit of suspicion, so if that is the case for you, make sure it is well backed up.

Tutors want people who are well-rounded human beings.

Medicine is a demanding degree but this does not mean that medical schools want you to give up all other interests. Rather, they want people with an outlet for stress, who are well-rounded with other interests, like sports, hobbies or regular activities. Try and state them in relation to key qualities like teamwork.