Completing the cycle
It was thanks to a scholarship that Charis Kozel (BSc Hons Medicine 2011) was able to come here to pursue a career in Medicine. She describes what St Andrews gave her, and why she decided to give back to St Andrews through the Wallum Scholarship.
Discovering St Andrews
I first discovered St Andrews when I visited my brother, Marcus, who had matriculated to study astrophysics here two years before me. I completely fell in love with it! The beaches were beautiful, the atmosphere both cosy and inspiring and I loved how wholly the University was integrated with the town: you could literally find a university building around every corner. I knew St Andrews had a good reputation for medicine and, as it offered a three-year BSc programme with a path onwards to clinical medicine, I also liked the idea of intercalating and getting an extra degree.
As was the case with Marcus before me, I applied for a place on the programme and for a scholarship. Thankfully, I was accepted for both and was able to take up my place.
A sense of family
My favourite thing about St Andrews was the immediate sense of family that I discovered in my first year in McIntosh Hall – from evening strolls down West Sands to the dedicated group of us who made it to RockSoc every club night! I also made some firm friends within my medical school class – many of whom I am still close to.
Medics at the top of Ben Nevis
Soaking at the end of exams
A double graduation
It was incredibly lucky for me that the medics graduated on the same day as the astrophysicists, so Marcus and I could graduate together! Because of this we were basically able to get twice as many tickets and were accompanied to the ceremony by our parents, two aunts, our gran and both our partners. We all went for a fantastic meal out afterwards. It was a very memorable day – particularly for my parents who were beaming the entire time!
Charis and her brother Marcus at graduation in 2011
Life post-graduation
To be honest, being the first doctor in the family meant that I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. Training – particularly post-graduation – has been a rollercoaster, with higher highs and lower lows than I could ever have thought. It has been an absolute privilege though: being able to be there for people in some of their worst moments and being able to do something to help them is worth every long shift and the occasional body fluid!
Charis at the European Congress of Radiology in 2019
Giving back to St Andrews
I funded the Wallum Scholarship in the hope that it will give someone else the opportunity I was given – the freedom to choose whatever path they want to take in life without financial restrictions. I came from a situation where, without financial assistance, I simply wouldn’t have been able to pursue medicine, and I am incredibly grateful to have now reached consultancy in my desired speciality and to be able to provide care for patients in the way that I do.
It gives a reassuring sense of continuity – a feeling that you’ve completed the cycle – to be able to give back to the ‘pot’ that got you to where you are now.