If you're in 4th or 5th year you've probably heard something about "MTAS" which stands for Medical Training Application Service (MTAS). You will be using this service to apply for your foundation school and foundation year 1 (and possibly 2) jobs after graduating from your medical student exams. If your preparation was anything like mine was, you're probably wondering what it's all about, and despite being given an hour long lecture on the process, you're still none the wiser.
Here is a quick guide to the MTAS process:
- Each of you will make your application online. Go to the foundation programme website. Here, there is a PDF document with an application timeline which gives you the dates for each process of the application.
- When applications open, you will be given a log-in for the foundation programme website. On this website you will find the application form.
- Your application is scored out of 100.
Your score is made up by...
- Your answers to the set questions (Max 60) - You will be given 7 questions and each one will be scored. Each question requires you to reflect on a personal or clinical achievement and state how this will benefit you during your foundation year jobs. You will be given example questions and answers to look at before you receive the definitive questions. Make sure you look at the styles of the sample answers and try to use the same format. (The questions will be given to you around 3 weeks before the submission deadline so start preparing your answers early!)
- Your ranking at medical school (Max 40) - your medical school will split the year into quartiles depending on your exam performance. Everyone in the top quartile receives the highest number of points (40). Everyone in the bottom quartile receives the lowest number of points (34).
On with the guide...
- There is an area on the application to write about any extra qualifications you may have. Make sure you put down any other degrees you have and also any courses you have completed e.g. ALS, ALERT, PLS.
- You will also have the opportunity to write about any audit projects you have completed or if you have received any publications at medical school you - if you are in 4th year it may be worth beginning an audit project. They are not too time costly and will set you apart from your colleagues.
- You will need to contact 2 doctors to use as references. These are preferably consultants that you have got to know over a period of time. Obviously try and use people you have impressed! Ask them for their permission and obtain their contact details. They will be asked to submit a short reference on your performance with them (you will not need to organise this yourself). It is unlikely that anyone will not agree to write a reference on you however, make sure you aren't rushing to find someone at the last moment - think back to your previous attachments.
- Lastly, you will be asked to rank the foundation schools in order of preference.
- Make sure you pay attention to the deadlines and begin the process early - you do not want to be rushing this in at the end, especially since the applications are submitted online. If you all wait until the last moment to press the "submit" button, the system will crash meaning your application may be late!
- Once you have submitted your application you will receive your score and will see your allocated foundation deanery.
After this, the process differs slightly for each deanery:
- You will be asked to rank the F1 (+/- F2) jobs in order of preference. This is generally a time-consuming process so don't try and do it all in one go!
- Remember, you will allocate your job based on your score. If you have unfortunately, achieved a lower score, you may need to be strategic about which jobs you rank highest. You will be less likely to be allocated jobs that are extremely popular if your score is low however, if your score is high, this is less likely to be a problem.
That summarizes the process. Remember to follow each step through and things should be okay for your admission. The process as a whole is highly daunting. You will hear rumours flying around for years before you even make your application !
Try to remember that the vast majority of people will get into their preferred foundation school and most people will be allocated one of their top ten ranked jobs.
Remember that people will be ranking jobs in an infinite number of different combinations meaning generally you will all be competing for different "favourite" jobs while you are revising for your medical student exams!
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