Bianca Ungureanu

What does a day in your life look like?

Now that I have started the clinical medicine portion of my degree, I spend most of my time on placement in hospitals or GP practices. A typical day begins with commuting to our current hospital with my friends. We usually have one or two lectures taught by doctors with an interest in medical education.

Following this, I either engage in independent studying or attend to my base ward, where I participate in a variety of learning activities. These include shadowing doctors or other members of the multidisciplinary team, practising clinical skills, taking patient histories, and occasionally attending and scrubbing in for surgeries in the operating theatre. One day each week, I either attend lectures at the medical school or at my GP practice for the year.

How did you know the University of Birmingham was the right choice for you? 

I visited the university and stayed on campus during the National Access Summer School offered by the university and fell in love with the combination of a big, buzzing city with many things to do and a quiet but active, beautiful green campus.

UoB is a large university with numerous amenities conveniently located nearby, including supermarkets, accommodation, all the university buildings, a comprehensive gym and sports facilities, food outlets, cafes, green spaces, and even a hairdresser and a stationery shop on campus.

Additionally, the city centre is just an 8-10 minute train journey from the University station on campus, so it is very easy to access everything that this incredibly diverse city has to offer.

From my summer school stay, I knew that this is the type of place I would thrive in during my degree.

What is student life like for you?

I feel fortunate to have built a very fulfilling student life. I believe the combination of studying what I always wanted, meeting new people on placements, finding hobbies I enjoy that I now do regularly, going out with friends, mentoring younger students and working part-time in medical research is more than I ever hoped to get out of my university experience.

I realised I would love to work part-time in academic medicine after I qualify as a doctor, which I didn`t even know was an option when I started my medical degree. In my 3rd year, I also finally found an active hobby I enjoy after being convinced I`m just not the type of person to enjoy physical activity, and even started learning a new language through the university's Free Language course.

Overall, my university experience has been filled with personal and professional growth beyond my degree that has made me a happier, more confident person.

How has the university helped you throughout your studies? 

The University is very well connected with many industries, and as a result, I've had lots of great opportunities I took advantage of throughout my studies that have helped me both work on my personal development and become more confident, as well as really build on my CV.

I have applied for and secured a paid internship in either medical leadership or research every summer I have been here, and these opportunities have led to many exciting things, such as publishing research papers, attending conferences, and even presenting at a national conference in Newcastle.

I`ve also been working as a mentor with the Outreach department since my first year and secured a job as a Basic Life Support teacher in my 2nd year, teaching an accredited BLS course to our 1st year healthcare students as part of a peer-lead BLS course that has been running at UoB for over 20 years.

What top tips would you share with future students? 

• Apply to as many opportunities as you can at the start to find what truly interests you
• Take small steps, building on your CV early
• There really is a society or sport for everyone - never stop trying to find the one that resonates with you! I only found mine at the end of my 3rd year but I`m so very glad I did
• Explore the green places Birmingham has to offer
• Invest time in your wellbeing - learn new skills, learn how to cook and eat a nourishing diet and do things that make you happy
• Be kind and take care of yourself!