MBChB Medicine pre-arrival information

We’re delighted that you’ll be joining us and are very much looking forward to welcoming you into our medical school community. Please check this page regularly for any updates or new information as you prepare to start your course.

Welcome Week

Your Welcome Week starts on Monday 21 September.

This page contains important information and instructions to help you prepare for the start of your course. Please work your way through everything carefully to make sure you’re fully prepared for a smooth start to your studies.

The latest on Curriculum updates

Over the past few months, you will have received emails about planned updates to our curriculum. We’re pleased to confirm that you will benefit from the later years of our new curriculum, which will be introduced from 2028.

We’re currently finalising the details and will keep you informed as further changes are confirmed. In the meantime, you can visit the Medicine and Graduate Entry Medicine prospectus pages for the latest information.

If you have any questions about the curriculum changes or anything covered on this page, please contact us at medical-experience@sheffield.ac.uk.

Pre-arrival: self-directed tasks

These tasks are a part of your pre-arrival activities

Activity 1: 'Who Am I?' Activity

During welcome week and the first few weeks of term, 'who am I?' might be a question you ask yourself. Adjusting to new environments, new ways of working and new subjects can be overwhelming, and sometimes you might feel that you have 'lost' yourself. With this in mind, we think it's important that you take some time to think about this. We have two very short activities for you to complete:

Activity 1a: Statement of Self

Write a short (no more than 250 words) 'statement of self', to include:

a little bit about yourself
where you're from
why you chose medicine
why you chose Sheffield
what you're most excited by
what may be challenging

Upload this into your ePortfolio on Minerva by Friday 25th September 2026. To do this, go into your ePortfolio, then click on Personal Documents -> Reflections and upload your document.

Email your Academic tutor (details will be provided to you following Welcome Week) to introduce yourself and confirm that you have uploaded your statement into your ePortfolio. Liaise with your tutor to organise your first meeting with them.

Activity 1b: An Interesting Fact

Think of an interesting fact about yourself. Make it something individual - something you think makes you unique or makes you stand out! This could be anything from a hobby you have to a place you've visited or a situation you've been in. Keep this fact in mind and share it with your group during the group sessions later in the week.

Activity 2: Professionalism Activity

You were asked to start this activity in your pre-arrival tasks above, but you will be expected to complete the remainder of this activity in your own time.

This activity should take you no more than two to three hours overall, but this time should be investing in thinking, researching and documenting what kind of doctor you might like to become and what it means to be a medical professional. This activity is intended for both your personal and professional development and will also be explored in your first meeting with your Academic tutor.

Read the following article written by an American medical student, Eric Keller:

What is professionalism and wellness in medical education?

Make some notes on Eric's perspective on professionalism. Consider the various aspects Eric mentions - which do you personally find the most interesting/compelling/scary/challenging?

Moving beyond the piece by Eric, spend some time researching and reading up on aspects of professionalism that you find most interesting. There are a lot of resources about professionalism - just do an online search. As you go along, please continue to jot down some notes as you learn more about these.

Pick one particular aspect of professionalism that you find personally relevant, interesting or challenging, and write about it in no more than 300 words. You should discuss why this particular aspect captivates you. We are not looking for a definition but for your personal reflections. Your interest may relate to volunteering or other personal experiences - that's up to you.

Upload the document into your ePortfolio by going to the Personal Documents area and looking for Reflections. The deadline for this is Friday 2 October 2026.

If you have any queries regarding this activity, contact: medical-experience@sheffield.ac.uk

Review Your Welcome Week timetable

Welcome Week is almost here, and we’re excited to share your timetable with you! Most sessions will take place in person, but some will be online.

You’re expected to take part in all sessions, whether they’re face-to-face or virtual.

Make sure you’re looking at the right timetable: A101 is only for Graduate Entry Medicine (GEM) students only.

A100 Timetable 2026

A101 Timetable - Graduate Entry 2026

Make sure your set up on Minerva

Minerva is our online learning platform, where your tutors will share important messages, updates, and course materials. It’s essential that you get set up on Minerva so you don’t miss anything important.

Once you have completed your university registration activities, we'll be able to create you a Minerva account and profile. However if you do not yet have access, do not worry as the process of setting up your Minerva account can take time. You should be able to access the system prior to Welcome Week

To activate and access Minerva, please follow the steps below:

Log in to your University MUSE account. This is to ensure you have gone through the Multi-Factor Authentication security barrier.
Access Minerva via MUSE (once logged into MUSE, you can click on My Services at the top of the page and there should be a link to Minerva on the navigation bar that pops up).
Change your password straight away. You can do this by clicking on your profile picture (a silhouette for now) at the top left of the screen.
You can also add your mobile number to your MUSE account - this isn't mandatory but we do recommend it. This will allow us to send an SMS message to your phone. We will only contact you to communicate essential information such as lecture cancellations, but getting an SMS message will ensure you receive a physical notification. If you don't wish to add your mobile number, you can access the same information via the Minerva News feed, but will not be notified of this information in the same way.

Once you've followed these steps, you should be set up and good to go!

Watch the Minerva orientation video below for help and guidance on navigating the learning environment.

Check which group allocation you are in for small group activity sessions

We’ve planned a week full of opportunities to meet key staff members, including our Dean, Professor Mark Strong, and our Programme Director, Professor Jennie Walsh.

There will be live Q&A sessions where you can ask questions, and small group sessions where you’ll get to meet other new students, as well as students from last year.

Please check the group session list on the webpage so you know which session you're in, and when and where it’s happening.

Note that these small group allocations are for Welcome Week only, group allocations for teaching will be released at a later date.

You will only be able to access this document when signed in with your student account

Small Group Allocations (please check back for link)

Review Occupational Health Information

All new Medicine students must obtain Occupational Health clearance. This ensures that you meet the fitness to practice standards outlined in the Higher Education Occupational Practitioners (HEOPS) guidance and can achieve the required competencies for your course. You will be asked questions about your medical history, vaccination status, and physical/mental health.

Occupational Health clearance for University of Sheffield Medicine students is provided by the Sheffield Occupational Health Service at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and has two stages:

An Occupational Health screening
Immunisations and blood screening

This process is separate to any support you may access through University of Sheffield services such as the Disability and Dyslexia Support Service or Student and Academic Services .

If you disclose information to a University of Sheffield service, it will not be shared with Sheffield Occupational Health Service, so you must ensure you engage with all the services necessary to ensure all your requirements are met. While most health conditions do not affect your studies, some may impact your clinical placements or future registration with regulatory bodies.

Medicine students who are not declared fit to practice by Sheffield Occupational Health Service will not be able to complete registration to the University of Sheffield and their studies will be deferred until next year.

Occupational Health screening

The Occupational Health clearance process begins with an Occupational Health screening. You will receive a separate email with a link to an online screening questionnaire via Cority, Sheffield Occupational Health Service’s patient record system.

Complete this questionnaire within seven days of receiving the link to Cority. You do not need to wait until you have your immunisation history as you can submit this separately (see below). If you previously had an unconditional offer with the University, you may have already received this email, so please complete the questionnaire as soon as possible. If you have any issues accessing the questionnaire once you have received the link, email sth.sohs@nhs.net.
Provide as much information as possible and provide further details where required. For example, if you have a musculoskeletal diagnosis, please specify the exact nature of the condition. Partial or limited details will result in longer processing times. In addition, applicants have a duty to provide relevant and accurate health information – for example, a condition which may have minimal impact on you currently, such as a colour vision deficiency (colour blindness), may have a significant impact when you start studying or are in clinical practice.
Obtain a record of your immunisation history from your GP and upload it to Cority or email it to sth.sohs@nhs.net. Ideally, you should submit this before your first immunisation appointment, which will take place once you have started your degree. If you cannot provide this record, Occupational Health will need to perform a blood test to confirm your immunisation status.
Ensure you provide an email address that you can access throughout the summer. School and college accounts are usually closed once studies are complete.

Once you have completed the online screening questionnaire, Sheffield Occupational Health Service will inform the University whether you are fit for your course (subject to completion of immunisations – see below).

Your Occupational Health screening is only complete once Sheffield Occupational Health Service has processed the online questionnaire and issued a formal ‘fitness for practice’ certificate. Without this, you will not be able to get Occupational Health clearance or complete registration and your studies will be deferred until next year.

In some cases, you may be required to attend an additional assessment either via telephone, on a video call or in person to discuss any information you have disclosed in more detail. In some cases, medical records are requested to support clearance outcomes, and your consent will be requested before this information can be obtained. Please ensure you complete any further requests as soon as possible to avoid delays to your registration.

While rare, if a student does not pass the initial Occupational Health screening, appeals can be made to sth.sohs@nhs.net. However, you will remain unable to complete registration while an appeal is in progress.

Immunisations and blood screening

After the initial Occupational Health screening process, you will need to complete an immunisations and blood screening process in order to get full Occupational Health clearance. As a Medicine student, you must comply with Department of Health guidelines on immunisations and screening to protect both yourself and your patients during your course. You will be required to receive vaccinations for certain infectious diseases if you are not already immune. A list of immunisations and a more detailed timeline will be provided once you begin your course. It is essential to complete these immunisations before attending any placements.

Your first immunisation appointment will take place soon after your course starts and will be scheduled once you have completed the Occupational Health screening process described above.
You will receive your appointment date and time from Sheffield Occupational Health Service and your appointment will take place at Sheffield Occupational Health Service, 10 Claremont Place, Sheffield, S10 2TB (next to the Royal Hallamshire Hospital).
You will need to bring a valid form of ID (eg, University of Sheffield UCard, driving licence, passport) to your appointment.
Depending on your immunisation status, you may need to attend multiple appointments, and appointments may clash with teaching or other University activities, but it is essential that you attend all scheduled appointments.
Unless contraindicated, all students must attend all appointments. If you need to reschedule an appointment you must contact Sheffield Occupational Health Service in advance by calling 0114 271 4737 or emailing sth.sohs@nhs.net.
Missing a scheduled appointment will result in additional charges.

Full Occupational Health clearance is only given once your immunisations and blood screening are complete. Without this, you will be unable to progress onto your placements.

Your Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) appointment

During Welcome Week, you’ll be given time to complete your required Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. Please check the list to find your appointment details.

It’s very important that you attend your assigned time. If you can’t make it for any reason, please email s.marples@sheffield.ac.uk

The DBS check will only take about 5 minutes. If it overlaps with another session, just quietly leave to go to your appointment, then come back when you’re done.

View your DBS appointment here (please check back for link)

Watch available pre-recorded content

Disability and Dyslexia Support Service Introduction

This pre-recorded presentation gives an introduction and overview of the Disability and Dyslexia Support Service (DDSS) and it explains who is eligible for additional support and how to start setting up support. We hope this will help to encourage students with support requirements to get in touch with the DDSS service as early as possible.

University Welcome and Introduction Slide Deck

These slides offer a broad introduction to the University as a whole and some of the useful services available at the University along with some useful tips on how to make a successful start.

Within these slides you can find useful links to explore services further and access any that you feel would be beneficial during your University journey.

Medical School Digital Learning

This short video for new phase 1 medical students to watch during welcome week highlights the main digital resources that you'll be using during your medical degree.

Click HERE for the link to the University IT helpdesk page that explains how to download Microsoft Office 365 to your personal device.

Link to Quickscan via DDSS

Starting University is a great time to evaluate your support and learning needs, which is why we have arranged for time to be available for you to complete our Disability and Dyslexia Support Service QuickScan Screening Test. Completing this test is completely optional but is a good tool and resource to help with both giving you information about your individual learning style, while also suggesting some learning strategies and telling you whether you display any indicators of a specific learning difficulty.

Introduction to Residence Life Slide Deck

These slides provide an overview into the support that Residence Life offers and the different teams within it that you can contact for support. It provides information around the staff you may encounter within the teams and the types of concerns or queries that they can help with. For those staying in University accommodation, it provides useful information for your induction into your new halls of residence.

Introduction to Sheffield Widening Access to Medicine Society (SWAMS) Slide Deck

These slides are an introduction to the Widening Access to Medicine Society, they give an overview of the work that the Society does, the details of its committee members alongside useful information to improve knowledge around Widening Participation. It also shares details on how to get involved with the society and the activities it hosts.

Medical Society (MedSoc)

Each year MedSoc, the student Medical Society, organises the Medics Families scheme. This means that all incoming medical students are paired up with “medic parents”, no matter if you’re coming straight from A levels, if you’re a graduate or mature student, or if you’re a graduate-entry student

Your medic parents are carefully matched students from the year above who have just been through what you’re about to start. To begin with, you’ll meet your medic parents right at the start of the year for breakfast. They are there to be a friendly face to chat to, someone to have a cup of tea with, who can give you advice and support about academics and life in Sheffield.

To ensure that we can best match you with students who have been on the same journey, we ask that you fill in this short form and tell us a few details and preferences. This way we can try and make sure your medic parents will have had the same experiences as you when they started here at Sheffield.

A message from MedSoc

Congratulations on behalf of all of MedSoc for getting into Medicine! We all hope you have an amazing time in Sheffield for the next 5 years.

MedSoc is a student-led society that represents over 2000 medical students and we are here to make your time in Sheffield as fun as possible while also acting as the student voice to faculty and organising academic events.

We will be running a number of Q&A sessions on our Instagram as well as a few talks so be sure to join the official MedSoc run 2026 Freshers Group chat and follow our Instagram to stay updated.

You can join these groups using the links below:

MedSoc Whatsapp
MedSoc Instagram

We are really looking forward to meeting you all over the next month.

Best wishes,

Sheffield Medical Society

Freshwing 2026

MedSoc has also created a magazine packed with everything you need to know as a new student! It’s a fun read put together by your fellow students, from handy accommodation tips to the best spots for a night out.

Read the welcome magazine