Catriona McVey is a Medicine student from St Andrews who is completing the clinical years of the degree on the MBChB at Manchester, and is also intercalating on the MRes in Medical Sciences. Here, Catriona talks about her experience so far exploring psychiatry whilst on the Psych Star Scheme.
Finding and applying to the Psych Star scheme
I have always been fascinated by the way that our mental health affects every aspect of our wellbeing, yet is often an afterthought when it comes to our health. During my fourth-year mental health placement, I loved how psychiatry as a specialty equally considered psychological and sociological aspects of our health alongside the physical, and the idea of treating symptoms that weren’t easily palpated or seen on a scan.
I started looking into opportunities to explore a career in psychiatry, and came upon the Psych Star scheme run by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. I had heard that the scheme was competitive, but decided to give it a shot and apply, as the opportunity to get a deeper insight throughout my intercalated year was too good to miss.
What is the Psych Star Scheme?
Psych Star is a year-long scheme which aims to support medical students with an interest and commitment to a career in psychiatry, offering the chance to increase your knowledge of what a career as a psychiatrist entails. In return for acting as an ambassador for the specialty, Psych Stars are awarded a generous bursary to use for career development, and paired with a mentor in their area of interest.
Psych Stars are sponsored by either the college, or a specific faculty such as General Adult or Intellectual Disability. I was fortunate to be the first ever Psych Star selected by the Faculty of Academic Psychiatry, which was a great fit for me, as I hope to be an academic psychiatrist who works in both research and clinical settings.
Connecting with new people
An understated highlight of the Psych Star scheme is the opportunity to meet role models and like-minded peers.
At the start of the year, I travelled to London to meet my fellow Psych Stars for a welcome event at the Royal College. Over noodles later that evening, and throughout the year in our meetings and on WhatsApp, we have shared insights, opportunities, and our enthusiasm for mental health with each other. I have no doubt that my peers, with different interests in psychiatry and from all over the UK, will be an important network for me in my career.
I was lucky to be assigned two mentors, Dr Ulrich Muller-Sedgwick and Dr Jane Sedgwick-Muller, who specialise in adult ADHD. This was really exciting for me, as this area is absolutely my passion, and over our first Zoom call, I was struck by how encouraging and helpful were. Over the year, they have been an incredible help in exploring new opportunities in their field.
Conferences and Congress
Conferences are expensive to attend, especially for students on a limited budget. Thanks to the Psych Star bursary, I’ve been fortunate to attend two conferences so far this year in London, which isn’t cheap to travel to when you’re based in Lancashire.
In October, I was invited to attend the General Adult Faculty’s annual conference at the College, as I had been shortlisted for their annual essay prize, on the topic of neurodiversity in doctors. As well as being thrilled to find out that I had won, I was able to learn more about different areas of psychiatry that I’d not encountered before, as well as meet some lovely psychiatrists.
The highlight so far of my year was the UK Adult ADHD Network (UKAAN) conference, held over three days in London in April. This was suggested to me by my mentors, who were presenting at the conference, and I was able to pay for my tickets and travel with my Psych Star bursary. Without the bursary, I would definitely have not been able to afford to attend, as well as take two days off work!
Learning about ADHD in so many different contexts, from pharmaceuticals to menopause to education, was incredibly fascinating – to the point that I concentrated so well I forgot about my own ADHD! It was brilliant to meet professionals in the area, many of whom also had ADHD, and were ideal role models to aspire to.
Another incredible benefit of the Psych Star scheme is that the College will pay for our registration and expenses to attend the 4-day International Congress, held in Edinburgh this summer. I’m really looking forward to attending a large variety of lectures and workshops covering every specialty in psychiatry, as well as meeting with my Psych Star peers again to share what we’ve been up to with the scheme.
A great opportunity
I am so glad that I took a chance applying for the Psych Star scheme, and very grateful to be selected for sponsorship by the Faculty of Academic Psychiatry. Over my time so far as a Psych Star, I have had the privilege to access some incredible support and experiences that never would have been possible otherwise.
I have no reservations in recommending applying to any medical student who is interested in psychiatry and mental health, as it has been an incredible highlight of my year, and undoubtedly my career.
Read Catriona’s previous posts about her experience of intercalating and coming to Manchester after two years at St Andrews.
Learn more about studying medicine at Manchester.
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