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Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has led to global disruption of healthcare. Many students volunteered to provide clinical support. Volunteering to work in a clinical capacity was a unique medical education opportunity; however, it is unknown whether this was a positive learning experience or which volunteering roles were of most benefit to students. Methods: The COVIDReady2 study is a national cross-sectional study of all medical students at medical schools in the United Kingdom. The primary outcome is to explore the experiences of medical students who volunteered during the pandemic in comparison to those who did not. We will compare responses to determine the educational benefit and issues they faced. In addition to quantitative analysis, thematic analysis will be used to identify themes in qualitative responses. Discussion: There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that service roles have potential to enhance medical education; yet, there is a shortage of studies able to offer practical advice for how these roles may be incorporated in future medical education. We anticipate that this study will help to identify volunteer structures that have been beneficial for students, so that similar infrastructures can be used in the future, and help inform medical education in a non-pandemic setting. Trial registration: Not Applicable.

Additional file 1. Questionnaire items used in Pre and Post-questionnaires.

Additional file 2. Regression analysis R output.

Additional file 1. Planning and developing the dental workforce of the future [26].

The full questionnaire is available in the supplementary file prof_id_stereotyping_q.docx. (DOCX 68Â kb)

Evaluation questionnaires. Student and supervisor versions of questionnaire (cascaded online during evaluation study). (DOCX 31 kb)

What is already known on this topic: A large proportion of medical graduates do not feel prepared for practice. Prescribing is one of the biggest steps up from being a student to practising as a doctor. What this study adds: Graduates lack of preparedness for practice is related to a lack of exposure and preparation for clinical practice. Preparedness may be improved by increasing the number of opportunities to develop the skill-based, applied aspects of prescribing in a controlled, ‘real’ environment. Simulated activity could provide this experience to undergraduates, or writing prescriptions and drug charts to be checked and signed by a doctor on clinical placements. Aim: This aim of this paper was to explore new doctors’ preparedness for prescribing. Methods: Multiple methods study including face-to-face and telephone interviews, questionnaires, and secondary data from a safe prescribing assessment (n = 284). Three medical schools with differing curricula and cohorts: Newcastle (systems-based, integrated curriculum); Warwick (graduate entry) and Glasgow (problem-based learning (PBL)), with graduates entering F1 in their local deanery. The primary sample consisted of final year medical students, stratified by academic quartile (n = 65) from each of the three UK medical schools. In addition an anonymous cohort questionnaire was distributed at each site (n = 480), triangulating interviews were conducted with 92 clinicians and questionnaire data was collected from 80 clinicians who had worked with F1s. Results: Data from the primary sample and cohort data highlighted that graduates entering F1 felt under-prepared for prescribing. However there was improvement over the F1 year through practical experience and support. Triangulating data reinforced the primary sample findings. Participants reported that learning in an applied setting would be helpful and increase confidence in prescribing. No clear differences were found in preparedness to prescribe between graduates of the three medical schools. Conclusion: The results form part of a larger study ‘Are medical graduates fully prepared for practice?’ Prescribing was found to be the weakest area of practice in all sources of data. There is a need for more applied learning to develop skill-based, applied aspects of prescribing which would help to improve preparedness for prescribing.