Meus parabéns e até logo!

The Department of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery today said ‘Congratulations and farewell’ to our inaugural Science without Borders initiative undergraduate medical students. The Department was the first to accept medical students in the UK via this initiative in conjunction with the Brazilian Government. Our aim was to offer an experience that was different from what a medical student would experience in Brazil, whilst remaining complementary and indeed expanding upon their medical information, with an opportunity for a year of in-depth studies and a research project as well as clinical observation.  

In the inaugural year we accepted four students (Carina, Renata, Camila and Bruno) from different medical schools in Brazil and engaged them hand-in-hand with our intercalated BMSc honours course in Applied Orthopaedic Technology, which comprises a set of master classes and a research project, supplemented with the opportunity of clinical observerships in various clinical disciplines at Ninewells Hospital.

The students embraced their studies and Scottish culture and after initially feeling slightly home-sick, developed a close relationship with all associated with the course and left with not only certification of their time in Dundee (see sample below) but with fond memories. This was a learning curve for both the students and the Department which we will further develop when we welcome four new Brazilian students this coming September. 

Bruno Ribeira said “Being in Scotland is amazing! It’s much more than I expected and now I’m sure that coming to Dundee University is the main reason for me in thinking that way. I can start by saying that the department staff do their upmost to make us feel like we are part of a family, treating us with respect in a friendly environment, always willing to help. The course is also a big opportunity for us, since we are the only four 'Science without Borders' students in the whole United Kingdom with access to patients and with the ability to enter operating theatres to watch surgeries. In addition, since the first month, we have been attached in a research project and the lectures are always by great visiting Professors. Living on University campus with students from all over the world gives me the opportunity not only to improve my English language abilities but to grow as a human being, to learn about different cultures and to develop skills that I will use during my entire life”.

Mr Carlos Wigderowitz, SWB Lead, added “I was delighted to see the first group finishing in such a successful manner. Starting an international programme is always a very exciting opportunity and we try our best to ensure that the students will benefit from an experience that will advantage them in their future careers, in addition to being pleasant and challenging in its own right. We will continue to strive to offer our SWB students an experience that will complement their course and in line with the recommendations from the CNPQ puts them in a good position to aim for further postgraduate studies later in their careers. I wish all the best to our first group and our doors will always be open to help in any way we can”.

Head of Department, Professor Rami Abboud, stated “It was a great pleasure to have Bruno, Camila, Renata and Carina in our department, which provided us with a further opportunity to diversify and expand our international teaching portfolio to another group of undergraduate medical students from Brazil. I was surprised when I found that no other UK Medical Schools were embracing this educational initiative which I had no hesitation in endorsing. The students worked hard and it was rewarding to see their genuine commitment to learn and attend theatres at every available opportunity”.

Everybody involved in the course here at the TORT Centre would like to wish the four of you every success in the future.