Veterinary students with an international scholarship

• Zuzanna is an extremely active student – she works in multiple organisations and plans to do a PhD
• Ihma works in IVSA as an Exchange Officer. After graduating she wants to specialise in canine and feline oncology
• Witold has been fascinated with exotic animals since his early childhood,now his student activity revolves around them too
• Laoighse focuses on volunteering – it's what gave her so much experience working with horses
• What do the students intend to use their scholarships for?

The Federation of Veterinarians of Europe is an organisation of around 300,000 veterinarians from 39 European countries. It works to improve the health and welfare of animals and to protect the environment by promoting the veterinary profession. MSD Animal Health, on the other hand, is involved in promoting medicines and vaccines, as well as knowledge and technology, to ensure improved health, wellbeing and performance of animals. They also support the ideas of One Health and One Welfare, which deal with the impact veterinarians have on the environment and on people, as veterinary medicine has a huge impact on what goes on around us – such as antibiotic resistance and the health management of the animals that are in our diets every day.

The Veterinary Student Scholarship Program created by these organisations is intended to support third-, fourth- and fifth-year veterinary students in acquiring knowledge, launching their future careers and indirectly supporting the further development of the field. This year, out of 232 applicants, the committee selected 68 students from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the UK.

Of the many factors that go into awarding a scholarship, one of the most important is the student's overall performance and commitment, and the winners of the programme from UPWr can boast many achievements.

Third time's a charm

Zuzanna Czekaj became chair of the international IVSA Standing Committee on Veterinary Education in September 2022. She is also president of the Student Government, is active in the local branch of IVSA Wrocław and sits on the board of several scientific circles. During the inauguration of the 2022/2023 academic year, she was awarded the 'Sapere Aude' statuette. She was also recently awarded the "Top Minds" mentoring programme. After three attempts, she was also finally successful in becoming a Veterinary Student Scholarship Program recipient. Zuzanna is a very active student, so why did she try as many as three times before succeeding?

– I taught myself how to 'sell' my success properly – Zuzanna laughs. – I now know how to write to accurately present my business. It used to be that I didn't go into too much detail in my applications and didn't write about every venture. Now, however, I know that it is necessary to talk about every contribution to the academic community. So, in addition to my activities in the IVSA, I have also listed the smaller charitable events I have taken part in, such as “Nakarm Ciuchozaura” and “Paka dla zwierzaka” – says Zuzanna, who, despite her many successes, is not slowing down. Her plans for the near future include running for the board of IVSA Global and starting her PhD.

Future oncologist

Imane Sghir has been active in the IVSA organisation since her sophomore year – once as a member and now in charge of organising international exchanges. She was also ambassador manager for the Standing Committee on One Health, where she was responsible for ambassadors from all over the world. She is also active in the local branch of IVSA Wrocław, where she organises conferences and lectures for students. Together with her colleague Julia Pietrasina (last year's Veterinary Student Scholarship Program recipient), she has also written and published two scientific articles.

– Until recently, I thought I would work with exotic animals after my studies, but in the meantime I leaned towards canine and feline oncology. I am glad that the scholarship has enabled me to pursue this interest, because today I know that this is the direction I want to take professionally – says Imane, a fifth-year veterinary student.

Lifetime love for exotic animals

Witold Walczak's adventure with veterinary medicine actually began when he was six years old and rescued a mouse – Plamek. From then on, various animals, from rodents to reptiles, began to appear at home. When they became ill, Witold had no one to turn to, as there were no vets specialising in exotic animals where he lived. It was then that he made the decision to become a vet and treat the animals himself. It is also no surprise that Witold has been active in the Exotic Animal Medicine "Mephitis" Student Science Club since his first year at university. He has been on its board for two years – responsible for organising conferences and lectures, among other things. He also conducts some of them himself. Together with other members of the club, they organise trips to playgroups where they educate children about exotic animals. Witold has also prepared lectures for students at a veterinary technical school. He has also published two scientific posters.

Volunteering pays off

Laoighse Boyle is originally from Ireland and says she enrolled at UPWr because she loves travelling and experiencing new places – so studying abroad was perfect for her. She wants to become a veterinarian because she’s loved horses since she was young and decided that she wants to work with them. From there, Laoighse has already had placements in various Irish clinics where she gained valuable experience and knowledge about the work of a vet. It also gave her the opportunity to work with different specialists in the field.

– Before I came to study in Wrocław I was also a volunteer at several stud farms and this experience proved invaluable during my studies – says the student. Thanks to her commitment to volunteering, Laoighse also became one of the recipients of this year's Veterinary Student Scholarship Program. – I'm really glad I was successful, as this scholarship will give me the opportunity to travel and gain further experience before I graduate.

How to spend the scholarship?

The scholarship recipients say they intend to use their funding for overseas placements. Imane has her eye on an internship in oncology, which she wants to excel in, and Zuzanna is planning a clinical placement in Nottingham, where she has family friends. – Before the scholarship, I didn't have the opportunity to do this because, as you know, it's getting more expensive in England, so I'm very happy that it worked out! – says Zuzanna.

Laoighse, who is particularly interested in horse breeding, also wants to go to the UK for an internship. She plans to go to a centre in Newmarket that specialises in reproduction. There she will gain valuable practical experience.

– I am not sure where I will go yet, but I am thinking, for example, of going to an institute in Berlin which Prof. Niżański works with. This place deals with breeding and has, among other things, a large gamete bank. Or maybe I will go to the UK – we will still see – ponders Witold.

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  International internships for UPWr students

  Thanks to programmes such as BioLAB and DBU, talented and ambitious students and doctoral students from the UPWr are able to participate in internships in foreign research centres. This year, among the students to develop scientifically abroad are Marek Pieczka, Rafał Stępień and Kamila Kluczek.

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  EMBO scholarship for UPWr PhD student

  PhD student Mateusz Szczepańczyk has been awarded a Short-Term Fellowship from the European Molecular Biology Organisation to travel to Prof. Michael Sauer's laboratory at BOKU in Vienna.