A final year medic at the University of Bristol said it will be a privilege to join the fight against coronavirus.
Fadi Al-Zubaidi, who has been studying medicine for five years, believes many of his classmates will step up after calls for students and retired NHS staff to come forward.
Final year medical students at the university who have passed all of their assessments are set to graduate early this week and could start work this month.
They will take on more routine cases, allowing more experienced colleagues to focus on patients with coronavirus.
Fadi, who wants to become a surgeon, said: “The application process has not opened yet, but myself and the majority of my colleagues are waiting eagerly for these new jobs to become available.
“At the University of Bristol, all medical assessments are finished by the end of March anyway, we sit our finals in December and complete workplace-based assessments between January and March.
“This means that we are not going to be thrown into work having missed out on any training that we would normally have. This puts Bristol medical students in a uniquely well placed position to work as fully qualified doctors earlier than usual.”
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said 5,500 medical students and 18,700 final-year student nurses will move to the frontline across the country.
He also called for retired doctors to return to bolster the workforce.
The General Medical Council will provisionally register the student doctors, which will allow them to practice on the front line.
“Whilst these jobs are voluntary, my sense is that almost all of my colleagues will put themselves forward,” added Fadi, who is in a class of more than 200.
“I believe I speak for the majority in saying that the opportunity to serve the public and help curb this public health crisis is a privilege and a challenge we all relish.
“We are not half-skilled juniors being thrown at this - we have all worked hard to complete our training and wouldn't put ourselves forward if we weren't ready to step up.
“Our role will likely be to take on the more routine work, allowing our more experienced colleagues to turn their attention to dealing with COVID-19 patients in intensive care units and in other settings.
“Ultimately, we all came into this profession to battle disease and promote health - we are now ready to contribute our skills and efforts to the current public health struggle.”
