Supporting international experiences for our staff and students

Jake Laycock is Doctor of Medicine student at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. He was the 2020 recipient of the Professor David Penington Scholarship. Jake will soon be undertaking an elective placement with Oxford University in the United Kingdom. Learn more about what motivated him to pursue this opportunity, what the elective program will involve, and how the Indigenous Development Unit supported him to take part in the program.

Jake Laycock

“I have had an interested in neurosurgery throughout my journey as a medical student at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, having gained significant exposure to many areas of the field. It was this interest, as well as the support from my clinical mentors, which encouraged me to apply for Oxford University’s medical elective at John Radcliffe Hospital in the UK. This was a complicated and competitive process from which only 50 positions are offered world wide.

After successfully gaining acceptance to Oxford’s elective program I reached out to a surgeon in the Neurosurgical department of Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge who has agreed to take me on for a two week observership prior to my elective at Oxford. It was at this point that I contacted Proffessor Eades and her team seeking any advice they may have regarding organising some financial support to make these exceptional opportunities become a reality. The support of MDHS faculty is vital in ensuring I have the means to continue pursuing my interests and will undoubtably provide a lasting benefit in my profession development. I could not be more thankful for this.”