AIBU to ask you to tell me where I should move to?

[theukismyoyster]

I am a medical student about to start my final year of university in September.

In our final year of university, we have to rank where in the country we would like to have our first job out of uni as a doctor.
(The better you do in your final exams, the higher the chance that you get given the region you've ranked highest.)

The UK is divided up into twenty regions for ranking purposes, which this map shows.

However, there are so many regions on that map that I have got no idea about in terms of what it is like to live there! So I thought I'd ask the lovely people of Mumsnet.

Perhaps you think the area you live is the best place in the UK or perhaps there's an area in the UK you wish you could move to that you could suggest to me?

Important points:
-I will be 26 years old, and I have no children and no partner, so I have no particular part of the country that I need to be.
-I am at university in London currently and would quite like to experience somewhere other than London.
-I cannot and will not be able to drive for medical reasons, so a region with good public transport links within it is vital.
-Someone I could afford to buy a house in one day would be great!

• You rank the regions, but don't get to pick which city/town within the region at this stage, so a region with lots of lovely towns/cities in would be ideal, rather than a region with one great town but the rest awful.

If you were me and the UK was your oyster (apart from needing good public transport), where in the UK would you rank first and why?

To the posters saying that the regions seem very big- I completely agree!
So for example, if I ranked Wales first and got it, I could be given Cardiff or I could end up being an obscure rural hospital with poor public transport links! So it makes picking regions with such a mix of good and bad public transport links a bit more of a 'risk', as I genuinely don't know which hospital/town/city I'd end up getting!

For those wondering about whether I could get special dispensation, my medical condition isn't taken into account, no. It's only medical conditions where you have to be in a particular region in order to receive ongoing treatment (e.g. if you're in the mid of chemo at particular place).
I'm sure if it came down to me being put in a rural location, I'm sure I could to the hospital once I'm given it about being given hospital accomodation but obviously poor transport would mean I'd be a lot more 'stuck' there when it comes to wanting to have time away from the hospital! So I'd much rather pick a region where I'm not so limited.

The replies have all been so useful, and also the replies saying places where public transport is very poor are very useful too!

We left London for Manchester when DH did his foundation training. As far as I recollect the FY years tend to be at one hospital which was one of the attractions for us as you can live somewhere and know it’s commutable for two years! I think it can be a bit harder for ST though. DH did GP which was fine but thinking about colleagues.

I would suggest a large northern city where transport is good , but housing much cheaper than London. Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester etc.

Waves at previous posters also between Derby and Nottingham! Good transport systems in most of East Midlands with major hospitals and house prices still pretty reasonable

West Midlands Central.

Lived in Birmingham and loved it transport. Transport is generally pretty good.

Obviously the 2 North London ones are probably the best re transport links.

I don't envy the junior doctors starting out now. It was easier in the olden days.

Scotland, without a doubt.

I don’t think everyone has had a proper look at the map, because a lot of these areas that contain great cities cover massive areas. Based on the fact you can’t drive and would like to be able to afford a house in the future it has to be one of the Midlands areas, possibly the central one might be the easiest with regards to transport?

I live in a small city in the West Midlands and our public transport is very poor. However the hospital is in the city centre and myself and many of my colleagues walk there. There’s lots of housing from within a safe 30 minute walk away. I even see consultants walking to and from work.

I don’t know all the doctor’s rotas. Regarding worries about public transport between 23.00 and 05.00 all the doctors I work with would either be in work or off duty during those hours. On call would have an on call room in the hospital grounds.

Any large city will have multiple hospitals and near the centre you’re within easy commute of nightlife and work. As you go outwards you may find nice areas with a longer commute and more travel costs.
Eg Many parts of Glasgow are cheap for houses and there are good bus/train/subway (ie underground) links which will take you to work in 30-40mins. Edinburgh is a bit dearer and has trams instead of the subway.

Good luck in your quest!

You're really stuck outside of London without being able to drive. I'm guessing you'll be on all types of shifts and, for example, where I live in Leeds you wouldn't be able to rely on public transport to get you there on time.

Believe it or not, many people survive outside London without being able to drive.

I'd vote for North West but that might be because I live here! Otherwise Yorkshire & Humber or Midlands maybe. This is quite topical for me as I've recently been setting up the online training for this year's F1 cohort!

Btw we didn’t have a car until DH was in specialist training as he commuted by bike. So Manchester is definitely possible. And he didn’t do particularly well in his exams but there are lots of Manchester jobs so if you rank them sensibly I would say you’ve got a good chance. Great region.

Severn Deanery is fab( biased here...) It’s not as big as other deaneries do if based in Bristol can get to all by public transport apart from Yeovil. Easy Midlands is also pretty commutable and reasonable house prices. North West is another good shout although there are a lot of DGHs that aren’t in the nicest areas to live in and may be tricky to got to by public transport for shifts. It’s a shame F1s no longer automatically get accommodation.

Excuse auto correct!

Edinburgh would be perfect for you.

I'm there, so just ask if you have any questions

I'd go North West: Manchester, Liverpool, Chester ....... all good places to live and the transport is workable.

There are lots of good northern cities and Scottish ones that you have been given.
But my concern would be the areas are so big you could end up placed somewhere you would need to drive.
For that reason alone London looks like your best option.

In London, you know you will be able to manage the transport. You also know that the hospitals are decent and with specialisms (in a rural hospital anything interesting can be shipped elsewhere to a specialist centre).

I wonder whether you’d be better off staying put? Would a hospital in say, Leeds, really give you anything in terms of experience that London hospitals wouldn’t?

I’d train in London if I was young and single again but wouldn’t live there with a family. Maybe these are your London years?

My takeaway from this is that I am definitely not bright enough to be a doctor as I couldn't even read the map. I thought the Isle of Wight was split into three areas. Rather generous for a small island in the English Channel. Nope. That would be London. 🙄

Sorry I can't add more to the conversation. I've lived in several of the areas and have had mixed experience of public transport depending on the exact town or city. It's so hard with an enormous area to choose from.

The South West is poor for buses in rural areas . But the hospitals are all in the cities or big towns where housing is comparatively cheap and train links are not too bad.

But you could also have a GP placement not at a hospital which could be impossible to get to. I live in the south west. I wouldn’t back it as an option for a car less junior doctor.

@kitchendancefloor that made me laugh so much!

@Proseccoinamug I realise now that I wasn't clear when I said I'd like to experience somewhere other than London- what I mean specifically is I wanted to experience somewhere cheaper! I didn't mean to get a more varied experience at hospital or anything like that.
So I've loved my London years going to university here, but I'm ready to move somewhere where I won't have to pay the £5.85 I paid for a pint the other day I might be able to afford a house one day!

@proseccoinamug but I will definitely take on board what you and a couple other posters are saying about how I know where I stand transport-wise in London- I really don't want to stay here but that is a really important thing to consider