Paul Dhillon

After completing his medical studies, Paul Dhillon was looking for a chance to continue his medical training.

Your time at the University

After completing medical school in Ireland and working in an intern position, I was looking for opportunities to start work on my post-graduate medical training. I searched online and successfully applied to study the collaborative Online Distance Learning Surgical Science program offered by the University of Edinburgh and the Royal College of Surgeons.

I was always impressed by the quick online replies and seamless online ‘life’ that I experienced whilst distance learning. Something that continued when I arrived in Edinburgh for exams. Even though trips to Edinburgh from Ireland were stressful, I remember the relief after finishing exams, walking out into the amazing cobbled streets, finding the closest Indian restaurant and then a lively pub in which to discuss the difficulties of the examination with my classmates.

...my positive experience of the University of Edinburgh course has given me rose-tinted glasses and I look forward to having more excuses to come back to Edinburgh, even if it is for more examinations!

Since completing my PGC in Surgical Science, I returned to Canada and completed training in Family Medicine along with further training in Disaster Medicine and Tropical Medicine in London. The surgical skills and knowledge I gained in Edinburgh have allowed me to comfortably practice medicine in rural and northern Canada and in the remote Falkland Islands.

During 2015, I volunteered with the charity Save the Children UK for a short period in the Kerry Town Ebola treatment centre and have started working as a Reservist Medical Officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. Prior to publishing my first book The Surprising Lives of Small-Town Doctors earlier this year, in which physicians share some of the most pivotal moments of their careers, I was awarded the American College of Emergency Physicians Humanities Writing award for a journal article entitled “The Viral Hospital”.

Over the next three years I will be returning to eLearning through The Royal college of Surgeons of Edinburgh’s Remote & Offshore Medicine programme. When I think of studying online again, my positive experience of the University of Edinburgh course has given me rose-tinted glasses and I look forward to having more excuses to come back to Edinburgh, even if it is for more examinations!

Alumni wisdom

Remember to lift your head from the books and make sure you enjoy the unique experiences that you can have only by studying in Edinburgh and then use the online distance learning courses to stay in touch with the University and as an excuse to come back to explore Edinburgh’s nooks and crannies!

Further information

MSc in Surgical Sciences  (online distance)