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Students from Ethiopia on the traineeship in Hradec Králové

Our faculty has been accepting two to three students from Ethiopia for traineeships in the summer for several years. Here is a short interview with this year's students.

Where exactly are you from?

Qaleab: I am from Addis Ababa which is the capital city of Ethiopia.

What is your study in Ethiopia like? How much does it cost? How long does it take to become a doctor?

Qaleab: It is quite challenging to be honest to study as a doctor in Ethiopia. Long nights of study, grueling tests and high expectations are the norm. It takes about 7 years to complete medical school in my country and the study is funded by the school if you study in public universities and are asked to pay a small price to get your degree.

Tsadikan: In Ethiopia it takes 7 years of study to become a doctor. And there are both governmental and private medical schools.The government schools are for a very fair price that we pay by the end of our study and it's around 50,000birr. And the private schools are for a very expensive price from a minimum of 10000 birr per year. Studying medicine in our country has both pros and cons. One of the good sides is we have well qualified doctors in all fields of medicine which we learn a lot from them. The downside is the lack of enough amount of simulation apparatuses for skills.

How did you find out about studying in the Czech Republic and why did you choose it?

Qaleab: I found about studying in the Czech Republic from a notice put on our noticeboard in school and I immediately searched Czech Republic on the internet and found out what a beautiful place it is and how far it has gone in the field of medicine.

Tsadikan: I found out about studying at Czech Republic from my freind who also did his internship here at Charles University last year. And I chose it because I believe it would be the best opportunity to learn and have a glimpse of medical practice in one of the good setups.

Was it challenging to apply for the internship? What were the requirements you had to meet to become accepted?

Qaleab: It was quite challenging to apply as the opportunity was a very big one and everyone wanted to take it. The requirements you had to meet was an excellent GPA and participation in extracurricular activities coupled with an interview.

Tsadikan: Yes it was challenging. In order to be accepted for this program, I was selected from around 10 top scorers of the class with an application letter and then we again had an interview made from the selected 5 candidates. With the requirements being excellent grades and extracurricular activities.

How is the internship going so far? What activities have you tried at university hospital and our faculty? What else is waiting for you?

Qaleab: So far the internship is going really great. I have observed multiple advanced surgeries like robotic surgeries and transplant surgeries which are not performed in my country. I hope to assist in a surgery.

Tsadikan: My internship here at Charles University is going well. I'm getting to learn a lot from different departments, from the outpatient common cases to breathtaking rare cases at the operation theater. And the other activities that I want to join is research activities in the remaining one month.

What do/did you like most?

Qaleab: I liked that doctors are very helpful and open to help. I like the working environment and the patient care given.

Tsadikan: I'm particularly drawn to the medical innovations and advancements taking place in Czech Republic.

What do you think about Hradec Kralove?

Qaleab: Hradec Kralove for me is a very cozy city. I love how it has hidden gems that surprise even the local residents there. I love the churches.

Tsadikan: I've found Hradec Kralove as one of the very beautiful cities of Czech Republic which is very calm and quiet making it suitable to live and study medicine.

How do you spend your free time in Hradec Kralove?

Qaleab:I spend my free time by taking walks and exploring the city, having fun with friends and sitting in parks.

Tsadikan: In my free time,I try to explore the city,go swimming place and parks. I also visit some other places like Prague, Pardubice, Kutna Hora, Kolin.

You are now in a completely different environment. Is there anything you were really surprised by? In the Czech Republic, Hradec or the university hospital

Qaleab: The heat was a shock to me. I thought Europe was cold for some reason and my city of Addis Ababa is known for its cool weather. So that was something I had to get used to. I was also surprised by the size of the university hospital. It was huge.

Tsadikan: There are green spaces everywhere,which is very fascinating. Dogs are super well trained. The other funny thing I found new is paying to use public bathrooms, I had the most expensive pee here. :)

What field would you want to pursue in the future and what country would you like to stay in?

Qaleab: In the future I would like to pursue Neurosurgery and haven’t decided in what country yet.

Tsadikan: I want to join Dermatology. And I want to study dermatology abroad and Czech Republic is off course one of the 2 places where I am planning to stay in other than USA.