Having harboured a dream of becoming a doctor since i was very young due to an immense love & passion towards science, VSMU gave me the opportunity to achieve that dream in the best way possible. The many setbacks & obstacles i faced in life, including the constant battle against a stammer, made me incredibly determined to work extremely hard & gave me the drive to strive towards success & excellence.

I began my journey as a medical student at VSMU in the beautiful city of Vitebsk, Belarus armed with a constant hunger & desire to expand & deepen my knowledge in the art of medicine. There were ups & downs & long sleepless nights & tears & laughter. But as I continued to learn & grow as a doctor I learnt to believe in myself & my abilities. I realised that with the right mindset & mindset, nothing is impossible! I also realised that medicine is a delicate & demanding art where the end-result of medicine practiced well is a renewed life for our patients & their families; free from pain, suffering, fear & anxiety.

Looking back, I can attribute my success to a refusal to follow the crowd, consistent hard-work day-in, day-out; focus, drive & determination, a heroic obsession & devotion to the task at hand, an irreversible lust for learning, a fire to become relentless, a breath-taking desire to become an undisputed heavyweight champion of the creaft, the capability to leverage pain & setbacks into strength.

It wasn't only the internal forces mentioned above that drove me towards success. None of this would have been possible without the unconditional love & support of those close to me, specially my parents & family. The environment at Vitebsk & at university, along with a well-rounded, well-structured course, incredibly knowledgeable lecturers & teachers & excellent facilities were also extremely conducive to acquiring knowledge, learning crucial skills & developing both personal independence.

The proficiency & skills that I acquired during my study at VSMU were reinforced by a number of non-academic activities, such as my personal stress-busters: gymming, running & swimming, that enabled me to live a full, active life & study to the best of my ability.

Looking back as a Medical graduate with a red diploma of excellence, it is amazing that within a few years I have been able to grow so much academically, intellectually & emotionally in preparation for the future pressures that all doctors have to face.

As Hippocrates once noted of medicine "Life is short, the art long". This is just once stepping stone in my journey as a medical professional. I hope my achievements & work-ethic inspires others as well to achieve academic excellence & strive towards a bright future, making a difference at every level of society. I am forever grateful to VSMU, its professors, teachers & administrators for all the knowledge & opportunities given to me through my 6 years of study in Belarus.

Dinoosh Ranga Joseph De Livera, graduate of Overseas Students Training Faculty