Dr. Aniqa

Tell us about your career path so far?

I applied from an FY3 year.

When and why did you become interested in radiology?

Only during my FY3 year! It was the shortest route to specialising (without being a GP), a 5-year run through programme, and scope to work part-time as a consultant (especially with the rise of teleradiology). For me, no medical field is 100% perfect, but life balance is extremely important to me whilst also maintaining a rewarding career where I can still make a significant difference, and I believe radiology could cater to that.

Were you set on applying to radiology or did you apply as a backup or to multiple specialties?

I applied to Ophthalmology as the only other alternative.

How did you find the application process?

Very confusing and incomprehensive from the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) website and Oriel. But once I got my head around it it was much simpler than I expected.

Walk us through your portfolio

My portfolio really wasn't that great at all. I had the bare bones and minimum as I was a last minute applicant. I never imagined I'd apply to radiology for 2022 entry because of unforeseen personal circumstances that arose during FY2 that threw all my plans off whack. But I managed to pull a last minute application together. A taster week, audit and teaching evidence is a must - rest assured you do not need crazy fancy international conferences or prizes to be a "worthy" applicant, just ensure you meet the criteria for the radiology portfolio mark scheme. Luckily, FY2 requires audits and teaching as part of the annual Horus ePortfolio so that was very useful to pull evidence from for my radiology application. Doing a taster week in radiology is a MUST, and I'd highly recommend doing a simple radiology audit using an RCR template during the taster week to add to your portfolio and show further commitment to specialty. Ensure you get formal and signed evidence for everything you include in your application.

Did you receive your self-assessed score or did it change when it was verified?

My score changed during the verification process, however I appealed and got my self score of 5 in the end.

How long did you prepare for the MSRA for?

I revised for 1 month, initially around 2 hours a day. In the last 1 week before MSRA exam, I crammed in around 6 hours a day (I took 1 week off my locum job to cram!).

What resources did you use to prepare for the MSRA?

I only used question banks. I used Emedica and Passmed (and the UKFPO website official papers for the SJT aspect).

How did you find the exam on the day?

Simple and very doable in regards to the science aspect (I personally thought the science level was easier than that of final year medical school exams, but that's probably because i had 2 years of actual clinical experience from FY1/FY2). I've always struggled with SJT since medical school and found it quite difficult in the MSRA, but was pleasantly surprised when results were released that it was not as bad as i thought. So my advice is, keep going and keep doing as many Qs as you can! Pro-tip: for SJT is always rank the 1st and 5th as a priority, and then tackle the middle 3.

What resources did you use to prepare for interview?

I solely used RadCast (it was the ultimate God send!). I purchased the medibuddy interview resource too, but did not think it was useful at all especially as RadCast covered all of the content and more comprehensively. I discovered RadCast only 10 days before my interview hence prepped for just 10 days, and watched all their videos relating to the interview section. Then, I practised solely on my own in front of the mirror to perfect my answers as I realised the questions would most likely be thematic, rather than on the spot questions that were outside the box.

How was your interview on the day?

Exactly as how RadCast tutored and predicted within their programme. On the day it was a Teams interview with 2 consultant radiologists asking Qs for 15 minutes covering the 4 sections as outlined. They were both very friendly and the process itself was smooth.

Did you get a job where you wanted?

I got my second choice of deanery.

Anything you would have done differently if you applied again?

Purchased RadCast sooner! And I would have practised my interview questions with a friend to sharpen my answers.

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