Hi, I moved to London for a year!

What are you doing in London?

I am studying. For this academic year (2020/21), I am a student at the King’s College London (KCL), reading an intercalated BSc in Primary Care. Intercalated?? The UK medical schools allow students to intercalate for a year, whereby you take a year out of your medical studies, to pursue a degree in something else and graduate from that degree. These degrees are usually related to medicine, there are some exceptions though – e.g. the Imperial College London offers a management intercalated course.

How can you get a bachelor degree after only one year of studying?

My course at KCL is specially designed for intercalating medical students – everyone on my degree has finished at least two years of medicine and therefore, one could argue these years count as two years of any other bachelor degree.

So in the end, you will end up with two degrees?

Yes. I will receive a bachelor degree from Primary Care this academic year and after I finish medicine, I will acquire another bachelor degree from Medicine and Surgery (traditionally, the medical students from British Medical Schools graduate with a bachelor MBChB degree, whereas the MUDr degree in the Czech republic is in fact a masters degree.)

What is “primary care”?

Primary care is the first point of contact patients usually have with the healthcare system, e.g. general practitioners or dentists. This year, I am studying the structure of primary care in the UK, its management and funding. Additionally, I have a clinical placement at a GP practice once a week. At the end of the year, I will be handing in a research project.

So are you going back to Sheffield after this year?

Yes, I will be moving back to Sheffield next summer to progress into the fourth year of my medical studies.

Have your studies also moved online?

Yes and no. All my lectures have moved to online after two weeks of face-to-face teaching. I still have (and will have throughout the lockdown) my clinical placements face-to-face, for which I am very grateful for!

How are you coping with the lockdown in London?

Quite well, thank you! I have been quite busy with my university studies (I am not used to writing so many essays!). Social life-wise, I have great flatmates and a couple of friends from my secondary school and Sheffield here, so I have someone to grab a pint with. (For the times when it is allowed J) My flat aims to do something nice every week, now it is cosy movie nights but we did manage to visit the Tate Modern just before the lockdown and the photo below is from there.

All in all, I am doing very well and living in London during a pandemic is definitely something I probably will not experience ever again, so let’s keep the adventure going!