My UEA Story: Max Yates
Norwich Medical School alumni
Max Yates, Arthritis Research UK - Clinical Research Fellow (Graduated 2007)
The medical school course has an excellent reputation. Medicine is changing... read the shape of training review...
What is your current role?
Arthritis Research UK - Clinical Research Fellow, UEA.
What were your career aspirations when you joined UEA - did you know what you wanted to do?
I knew I wanted to be a hospital-based physician but other than that had no firm idea.
The best thing about my job is…
I am currently out-of-programme whilst I undertake my PhD. It is very rewarding to be able to be given such a long length of time completely devoted to what I want to do. I am, largely, my own boss.
The biggest challenge in my job is
The biggest challenge now is to write my thesis.
What personal achievement are you most proud of?
I am proud of my research achievements, at times it has felt like a battle to try and get things done, and I am reminded that researchers are more likely to have traits of defiant personality disorder. I takes a lot to set up a study having got it through ethics, recruited the participants, collected the data and analysed the results only to have the small matter of writing the paper and getting it accepted. I am also proud to have been involved with the European League against Rheumatism and am first author on the recommendations for managing ANCA-associated vasculitis.
Where is your ambition for the next 10 years of your career?
I would like to continue on an academic pathway. This will not be easy.
How did UEA prepare you for your career/help you make decisions?
I felt the course prepared us very well for clinical practice and we were well trained in the pragmatic side of medicine. In addition, the teaching on research methods was well covered and I believe taught us to have a good insight into to how to appraise a paper and to think about how to approach clinical problems and form sensible research questions.
What made you decide to study your particular course?
I was offered a place at UEA or Manchester. At the time, Manchester was the largest medical school in Europe with almost 500 students per year. I attended the UEA MED open day and was impressed by the courses vision and desire to do things differently, Sam Leinster gave an inspiring talk on the need to break down perceived walls in medical education.
What advice would you offer current students, or anyone considering studying at UEA?
The medical school course has an excellent reputation. Medicine is changing - they should read the shape of training review and not necessarily have desires to be a specialist.
The most important thing I learnt at UEA was…
Communication.