If you haven’t considered a career in health, read this!

‘Health’ related roles are many and varied. Without even including GP related data, the NHS alone employed 1,168,406 full time equivalent roles in June this year (73,000 more than in 2019) across Trusts and CCGs. But of course, not all roles within the NHS are clinical and the NHS is just one (albeit Europe’s largest) employer.

So, could there be a ‘Health’ role out there for you?

If hospital dramas only confirm your feelings that people’s insides are their own business, it doesn’t mean you have to shy away from the Health Sector. The NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme is ranked amongst the top 4 leadership development programmes in the UK and offers 6 specialisms in Finance Management, General Management, Health Analysis, Health Informatics, Human Resources, and Policy and Strategy – so plenty of non-clinical options (phew! you say). Why not try their ‘Match Me’ tool to see if it’s right for you.

Did you know that many civil servants work in Health? Apart from the Civil Service Fast Stream areas that extend across all government departments, there’s a Department of Health and Social Care, Health Policy Fast Track Scheme, still recruiting until 11:55 pm on Monday 16th November 2020. We know that politics (and there’s a lot of it about at the moment) and health are not easy bedfellows, but this programme gives you the chance to experience and influence how government delivers social health and social care policy, as you develop a career that makes a real difference to society. You’ll need a minimum of a 2:1 to apply but it’s open to students from literally ANY degree background.

If you want to get hands on (but still keep your hands relatively clean) and you have a STEM degree, the NHS Scientist Training Programme will train you to work in a senior healthcare science role across a wide range of exciting and innovative areas from genomic counselling, to rehabilitation engineering to respiratory and sleep science. Recruitment is planned to run and will open in January 2021. Or if IT is your thing, you could contribute to the digital transformation of the NHS and Social Care sector by joining the NHS Graduate Digital, Data & Technology Scheme. Applications have closed for this year but be ready for 2021!

QUANTITY SURVEYORS! You thought this blog was not for you, didn’t you? But did you know there’s a 2 year NHS Graduate Surveyor Trainee programme that leads to full Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors membership and Chartered Surveyor status.

Unfortunately, COVID has led to recruitment casualties (excuse the pun), even in the healthcare sector. Many of you currently work in care roles to help fund your studies and gain valuable experience at the same time, so it is disappointing that the national Skills for Care Graduate Management Programme has been postponed during the pandemic. However, the care sector has never been more in the spotlight and ThinkCareCareers and Graduate jobs in Social Care are great places to go to plan your future career in the care industry.

So, not all health related roles need you to be medically qualified (though you can read more about these at Health Careers) and skills you already have, and which you continue to develop during your studies, are essential to the functioning of health services that need all the support they can get – especially now.

If you have ideas about working in this exciting and challenging sector and you’d like to discuss these further, email [email protected] today and book an appointment with an Employability & Careers Adviser.

By Rebecca Pardue

Employability & Careers Adviser