Making the jump from student to RMO is one of the biggest you will have to make in your medical career.

Clinically you will probably be really well prepared to get going in the hospitals and there will be support and advice readily available for you.

There are some things that nobody really tells you about though, so here is a random compilation of some tips and tricks for when you start out.

 Get your finances sorted early on in the piece!
- This relates to your superannuation, indemnity insurance, income protection, pay (i.e getting your bank details correct) etc.
- Visit www.sorted.org.nz This site is gold and will give you great advice and tips on paying back your student loan, savings etc.

Apply for leave at the earliest possible time.
- As soon as you know where you are working, you should be in at the RMO Support Unit requesting your leave.                                                                      - It's important that you aim to use all of your leave. Remember that your colleagues also need a break though!

Keep a record of the teaching activities / continuing professional development activities you attend or take part in.
- This is a critical requirement and assists with revalidation and recertification.                                                                                                                        - It also helps you manage your own professional development.

At the end of the financial year (March or April) of the year after you start working, ensure you complete a tax return as it is highly likely that you will get a refund.
- We are not too sure how exactly this works but it has something to do with the fact that we begin the working year in November and so have only been working for about 4 months by the time the financial year has ended.

Keep doing what you have always done.
- It's really important to keep your 'out of work' activities and relationships going when you start work.                                                                                    - It's up to you to manage balance in your life and you've got to be proactive about this.

If anyone has any other handy tips and advice for RMOs out there, feel free to write to the Scrubs Team. We are always looking out for ways to help docs around New Zealand.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are the views of the author. They are only individual opinions in the experience of one resident medical officer and should not be taken as ‘fact’. Scrubs accepts no responsibility for any individual resident medical officer’s actions, comments or consequences of such actions or comments.