General practitioners (GPs) treat all common medical conditions and refer patients to hospitals and other medical services for urgent and specialist treatment.
Training usually starts with a five year first degree in medicine. You’ll then complete two years of foundation training and three years of specialty training. The length of training can vary according to your circumstances.
NHS salaried GPs earn at least £60,000 a year. GPs who run their own practices will usually earn more. Doctors may work up to 48 hours a week. The working hours may sometimes extend beyond the normal working day to include early mornings, evenings and weekends.
You’ll need excellent clinical skills and be able to diagnose and manage multiple diseases and problems whilst dealing with the uncertainty of clinical presentations. You’ll manage time and people well, have highly developed communication and change management skills and work well in a team. It’s important that you can assess risk and take initiative in highly pressurised and emotive situations.
You could specialise in areas such as sports medicine, adolescent health, diabetes or palliative medicine, get involved in research or teach medical students or postgraduate doctors in training.
Related roles
- General practice nurse [2]
- Practice manager [3]
- Pharmacist [4]
- General psychiatry [5]
Forensic psychologists apply psychological theory to criminal investigation to help understand psychological problems associated with criminal behaviour, and the treatment of those who have committed offences.
You’ll need an honours degree in psychology to become a member of the Graduate Member of the British Psychological Society which allows you to apply for post graduate courses in forensic psychology.
Most jobs in the NHS are covered by the Agenda for Change (AfC) pay scales. After completing their training, forensic psychologists will be paid at band 7. Forensic psychologists in the NHS will usually work standard hours of 37.5 per week. Terms and conditions can vary for employers outside of the NHS.
On a daily basis you will use a broad range of skills, including a thorough knowledge of psychological theory and practice, an interest in how people think and behave and the ability to relate to a wide range of people.You'll need to be a patient, sympathetic and the ability to work on your own and in consultation with others.
Some psychologists decide to do into management and lead a team of professionals. You could decide to go into clinical academic research to support the development of the profession.You could also apply for a trainee high intensity therapist position, enabling you to work under the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies initiative.