Do junior doctors specialise too early? No

“Do you know what you want to specialise in yet?” Surely the most frequently asked question during our time at medical school and during foundation training. Family barbecues, birthdays, christenings, funerals—if there’s a gathering of family or friends, you will be asked.

Fortunately for me I have been able to answer with some conviction as I have known what I want to specialise in for many years. While this is not always the case, most medical graduates in the United Kingdom do have a good idea of what area of medicine they would like to pursue. In a survey of 2778 medical graduates in 2002, 71% regarded their reported career choice as definite or probable.1 There is a strong argument for a more streamlined approach to producing the consultants of the future.