It’s wonderful to see that you are now a graduate from the health profession. The way is yet far because your journey just began.
You need to do a compulsory One year internship in Nigeria. But getting to be an intern is now like passing through the eye of a needle. I have some tips to guide you in getting internship faster in this great country.
From the many months I stayed before God remembered me, I
was able to garner up some important experiences that can help
the JUST-GRADUATED here.
1.BE OPEN TO ANY INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES ADVERTISED.
A. Avoid streamlining/narrowing yourself to a particular hospital or state or zone(South west,South east)….it’s risky except you have connections in high places.
B.Never reject any hospital at all because it may be where God
has planned for you, but because you have refused…. you will only rigmarole for months only to land in that hospital you rejected initially.
2.DON’T BE SO SALARY-CONSCIOUS OR MONEY CONSCIOUS.
A. Guys, the struggle is reeeeeaaaaaaaal.
~When I graduated freshly, I analysed what the salary structure
of the teaching hospital where I trained was.It was small
compared to other federal teaching hospitals and so I deferred
applying there. Guess what?? My coursemates applied that year
and the following year,most of them got house job and
I was left out.I was still in the rat race….. for about a year.
~don’t analyze salary structures and miss out on the right timing
of your compulsory one year internship/housejob.
B.That same year when I graduated,the teaching hospital where I
was trained advertised and sale of forms was a whooping
#5000.I said ‘ah’…..I can’t ooo!!I had the wherewithal to pay that
money but was so afraid to take that risk,but my mates were
paying the money and in fact I didn’t want to do internship
there.And so I missed out on the job. Almost 70% of my mates
were employed.I remained in the struggle.Please,if it requires you to pay for forms, please do oooo. Don’t do what I did .
>>have you read the amazing part 3 of my struggle for internship? >>
3.MAKE FRIENDS OF YOUR COLLEAGUES.
A. In one interview I attended, more than 800 doctors were
invited…. just for 120 spaces. And I had to stay around my
colleagues interacting with them ,itchy to hear of any other
hospitals advertising. I quickly exchanged numbers(you never can tell whose assistance you may need),and thru such interactions and exchanges ,I increased my opportunities of applying in farther places. It paid off!!!
B.Keep in touch with your mates for vital information,don’t be
proud of asking questions.
4.MAKE FRIENDS OF YOUR LECTURERS AND CONSULTANTS.
A.It’s not a thing of Joy to our lecturers or consultants when they
hear we have not started internship after a long while of
graduation. My candid advise is that you should make friends with your consultants or lecturers or top officials in the hospital. You have them on facebook. Why not add them up?Familiarise
yourself and with time, open up on your ordeal. You may just
need his or her recommendation to get Internship.
B.It’s a time for you or your brothers or sisters or parents to
remember or recall someone from the past(a family Doctor,a
Scientist friend, a Politician-friend,a former classmate of your dad or mum, now a Chief Medical Director, HOD etc)who may be of help to you. VERY IMPORTANT!!!!Kindly disturb them… Keep knocking.As females you may encounter those who want you to give your bodies first before they assist you… Well, you gotta turn that offer down…. It ain’t for you.
5.REVISE YOUR BOOKS.
A. Whilst you are doing all these, revise your books.Yes!Most
hospitals have a percentage for ‘merit” and a percentage for
‘connection”.You can fall under the merit group, if you revise your books well. Don’t depend on anybody at all.You just may be key to your own salvation from the struggle.As you meet top persons, humbly telling them how they can be of help to you, also don’t ‘rule-out’your personal revision. You will feel so bad in an orals exam when you can’t answer just a simple question that should have earned you the Job. Please, revise for interviews. N.B:Don’t join colleagues that don’t have connections and yet don’t revise. It’s ghastly!
6.REMEMBER THE G-FACTOR IN ALL YOU DO.
A. Promotion comes not from the east or west but from God.Keep
praying and trusting God to guide you in the struggle and give
you grace to be stronger no matter the outcome of the interview.
Just sing and praise God whenever an interview wasn’t
successful. He has a better plan in store for you. TRUST GOD
only to help you as you write exams and Connect you to the right
person.
7.KEEP YOURSELF AS WELL AS YOUR BRAIN ACTIVE.
A. As you seek for internship, it doesn’t call for you to be dormant at home, really looking like a frustrated applicant.Look out for where you could be passing out time(practising privately in a private hospital or discovering other aspects of your
talents).Through out the time I was in the struggle, I worked with
an understanding boss who also paid me,and with the money I
earned I was able to send parcels for application in far places,
travel for interviews. I didn’t have to burden my parents and I am grateful to God. Some who come from rich families may just sit doing nothing ,receiving daily money from family.It’s not the best anyways.Just ensure you are improving yourself while waiting for internship.
8.APPLY EVERYWHERE YOU CAN
A. You can drop your applications in some hospitals even when
they are not advertising. This is important!!! A friend of mine sent her applications to a certain Hospital in the North. The application documents stayed there for up to three months, and suddenly she was called from there to come and pick up her appointment letter without interview. What do you think happened?
The hospital ran short of staff and decided to bank on the
applications they have, they had no time to start conducting
interviews, they just prepared her application letter and called her for assumption of duty. Be open -minded.
9.BE READY TO SPEND MONEY.
10.BE A RISK TAKER.
Some persons got their jobs even when a hospital did not invite them for interviews.These set of persons just heard that an interview will be happening in a particular state. And though they didn’t apply…. they went for such interviews and got their jobs instantly.
You just never can tell which move you’ll make that will yield the expected result.
My friends…. Always be on the move.
Thanks for reading.
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