First-year medical student Marico Roman, from Grassy Park, is setting his sights on becoming the first generation medical doctor in his family and his community.
The 25-year-old student is studying MBChB at Stellenbosch University. However, there are high costs involved.
“My journey to medicine has been a challenging yet equally humbling experience, especially since a career like this remains highly sought-after and national (and even international) competition for university placement attracts only the greatest academic minds.”
He adds that this is his second attempt at the medical programme.
“To date, I haven’t received any word from my funding applications and am also ineligible for any loans.”
The student has started a back-a-buddy campaign to raise enough funds to reach his dream of completing his medical studies and to some day work for the prestigious Doctors without Borders (MSF) humanitarian organisation.
“It is costly, of which I am unable to cover these expenses. As a result, I ventured into medical bioscience as a secondary route, obtaining my BSc and BSc (Hons) degree(s) from the University of the Western Cape (UWC).
While he enjoyed the ‘scientific’ domain of medicine, he believes working directly with people in their time of need is where he needs to be.
Roman says his aim is to specialise in trauma surgery and emergency (field) medicine, with a special focus on neonatal-paediatric and maternal surgical care.
“These objectives support my long-running future aspirations to work for the reputable medical organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
“Furthermore, this acknowledges the call for field physicians as crucial now more than ever during this pandemic.”
Roman’s achievements include being a member of the Golden Key International Honor Society from the UWC’s Faculty of Natural Sciences, a National Research Foundation (NRF) Scholar, an alumnus of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), recipient of the BRICS Educational Internship Award at the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostok, Russia, and shortlisted as the sole South African finalist for the Young Professional Fellowship Programme (third cohort) (YPFP-III).
His most recent accolade was winning the overall first-prize for the national think-tank essay competition on the theme of “South Africa and BRICS: lessons and insights” from the University of Johannesburg and its Department of Politics and International Relations. Roman’s entry was selected for publication in the South African BRICS Journal.
