CAREER IN PLASTIC SURGERY 

UNDERGRADUATE: 

      Medical Elective

Your medical elective is a great opportunity to gain an insight into the working life as a surgeon, as well as demonstrating an early interest to the specialty and networking within the specialty. 

This guide will cover the top 20 countries that have the most number of plastic surgeries performed in the world. Thus in terms of gaining surgical experience (reconstructive or cosmetic), medical students will be more likely to be exposed to a higher number of procedures in the chosen hospital in the respective countries. Bearing in mind that countries that have a nationalized healthcare system (Germany, UK etc.) will usually take on reconstructive procedures and delegate cosmetic procedures to private hospitals.  

As the list is sourced from various reports and news articles on cosmetic plastic surgery, it is thus not reliable in the ranking of reconstructive procedures. The ranking number are from the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS) in 2011. 

Depending on the budget, location and practicality, you will have to carefully select the suitable country for your medical elective. I have refered to an elective guide book*, "The Medic's Guide to Work and Electives Around The World" (3rd Edition, 2009) to provide accurate information about electives in the respective countries refer directly to the book. For the extensive list of medical schools in the designated countries, go to www.iime.org.

It is also highly recommended that you apply for elective bursaries and prizes.  

Elective bursaries and prize to apply: 

• Association of Surgeons in Training (ASiT): medical student prize, elective bursary

  • 1st prize £500, 2nd prize £250 

  • Deadline: Midnight, 2400, Friday, 3rd April 2015 

  • More details here. 

• Royal College of Surgeons (RCSeng): Preiskel Elective Prize, Professor Harold Ellis Prize

  • Each award is worth up to £500, 3 wards available 

  • Deadline: Midnight, 2400, 28 August 2015 

  • Details here. 

• Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh

  • Elective or vacation studies bursary (For UK based electives)

    • Deadline: Wednesday, 25 March 2015

  • Africa travel bursary reports

    • Deadline: To be reviewed

  • Ethicon Medical Student Travel Bursary

    • Deadline: Friday, 1 May 2015

  • Wong Choon Hee medical student elective travel bursary  

    • Deadline: 8 July 2015

  • Details here. 

• British Association of Plastic and Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgerons (BAPRAS)

  • Bursaries for elective:

• The Healing Foundation in association with BAPRAS

  • ​Bursaries for elective: £1,200

  • Details here. 

• Restore Research

  • ​Burn and Wound Essay Prize

    • Deadline: Annually, 1st October

  • Details here.

Elective destinations by plastic surgery popularity. Click on the arrows to navigate to the specific continent.