When speaking yesterday with a respected physician colleague, she shared with me the importance of honing one's transferable skills and the pivotal role of a career coach in helping individuals develop these skills. So, the next question for me was, what are these transferable skills that are so important to develop :)?
Oxford Reference defines transferable skills as "skills that are developed in one context but which can be used in other contexts" and are proficiencies that are helpful life and career skills to possess. Examples of transferable skills include written communication (e.g. emails, essays, personal statements, letters of interest or intent), verbal communication (e.g. interviewing skills, oral presentations), nonverbal communication (e.g. eye contact, movements, posture), teamwork, leadership skills, and organizational skills (e.g. time management, prioritization). When advising students/residents for success, the end goal may seem to be medical school admissions or residency matching (which are definitely the ultimate goal!), but I believe the more important aspect of serving as a coach/advisor is to help provide individuals with self-awareness (e.g. why do you want to do what you do, who are you, what are your strengths and weaknesses, what brings you joy) and help to develop a skillset that is immediately utilizable and also transferable to future professional settings.
Hence, envision the following scenarios....
You are a medical student...
and are unsure about your path through medical school and how to poise yourself to be competitive for your specialty of choice...
and are struggling in medical school
and are unsure of your optimal specialty fit...
who received upwards of 15 interviews but has found yourself unmatched and now in SOAP or post-SOAP...
You are a high school or college student (perhaps premed/pre-health)...
and are unsure about whether you should pursue medicine or an alternate career...
and are unsure about whether you are competitive for medical school...
and are unsure about how to best navigate the path towards medical school...
who is interested in osteopathic medicine and would like guidance regarding how to best pursue osteopathy/become an osteopathic physician
who needs guidance regarding how to apply to/interview for an osteopathic (DO) and/or allopathic (MD) medical school (or other health care specialty)..
who has not received any medical school interview offers after submitting your primary/secondary applications...
who has had interview offers but had not received any acceptances after interviewing...
You are an International Medical Student or Graduate...
and are unsure of your pathway and searching for guidance through medical school, board preparation and accountability
and need support with the United States NRMP residency match process...
You are a resident...
who has chosen to leave your specialty/residency program and restructure your career in another specialty/program or alternate career...
The questions I would pose would be...
Could these scripts be re-written? Or could these situations be addressed in a way that decreases stress for the student/resident? If so, how?
Could honing one's transferable skills help in some of these situations?
Can specific, experienced, personalized guidance lead to better outcomes in terms of finding one's best career fit and achieving success (e.g. medical school admissions, residency matching, alternate career selection)?
I would posit yes to all of these questions!
Optimizing one's transferable skills and preparing appropriately can make all the difference in achieving a successful outcome. For example, by carefully constructing and having one's ERAS/AMCAS/AACOMAS/TMDSAS application reviewed/"pored over" prior to submission, optimizing one's personal statement, preparing for and practicing with mock interviews (e.g. traditional, virtual, MMI), and by planning early and systematically for medical school/residency success, the above situations may have been mitigated or avoided.
Based upon the above scenarios, as premeds and medical students introspect and determine how best to present themselves to medical schools or residency programs, insights from someone who has experience in what it takes to make it in medical school and also how to best highlight your strengths can be invaluable. Perhaps more importantly you will gain life long transferable skills.
The Forbes article titled " Should I Hire a Career Coach?" reinforces the benefits of having an individual to help guide you in your career path, provide honest (and more importantly, experienced) feedback, and serve as an accountability guide. However, thoughtfully deciding to obtain a career coach and researching carefully to find the individual who can best provide you both with valuable guidance and teach you transferable skills is important. Ideally, if you have someone at your college, medical school or residency program who is able to provide you with experienced, step-by-step guidance, I would recommend beginning the journey with them early and continuing to keep in contact with them throughout the process.
However, if you are searching for more personalized guidance geared to your success than is currently available to you, please reach out. I have started this new journey and role in order to continue to help students achieve success. I have walked the walk through medical school, residency, and clinical practice, and know the challenges it entails. I want to ease the journey for those who have chosen to pursue this noble profession. Since working individually with premedical students, medical students (DO, MD, International Medical Students/Graduates), residents, and even physician colleagues, I have been humbled by the opportunity to help them in their journey by serving as a sounding board, advisor, and coach to enhance both their transferable and career-specific skills. I have also been humbled by the gratitude they have expressed to me for being there to share both my personal and professional experiences. My recent background includes over 15 years in medical education and 5 years as the Assistant Dean of Students at A.T. Still University, School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona where I provided guidance regarding academic/board preparation, career/specialty selection, residency application, and NRMP Match/SOAP/Post-SOAP guidance. I additionally created and served as the Director of the ATSU-SOMA Faculty Advising Program and served and interviewed for the Admissions Committee for 8 years. Since then, I have served as the Founder (and Coach :)) of MedStudentCoach and have continued coaching medical students as well as premedical students and residents/physicians to help them hone their transferable skills and also achieve success!
Such individual guidance and support is a small investment in your future and can be the difference in terms of whether you are successful in achieving your career goals (e.g. matching into your specialty and/or residency program of choice, being admitted into medical school, discovering the specialty/field/path that brings you joy [whether it is medicine or an alternate career]). Perhaps more importantly, having someone "in your court" can be priceless as you traverse the next steps of your medical career journey.
Please visit medstudentcoach.com for more information about me, the services I provide, and my blog.
I would be honored and humbled to work with you and support you in your goals for career success. Please contact me at rupalvoramd@gmail.com or 602-295-0298 to set up a meeting to see if working together would be a good fit!
Wishing you all the best,
Sincerely,
Rupal Vora, M.D., MPH, FACP
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