Qais Nayle
Qais Nayle's dream of becoming a doctor has led him from war-torn Afghanistan, via Pakistan, to Dunedin where he arrived in 2009 hoping to complete the medical degree he had started at Aryana University in Peshawar. Dunedin was an easy choice as his wife, Marwa, was already an Otago student (she has since completed Oral Health and Dental Technology qualifications).
However, the road is not always straightforward for migrant students and Qais needed to qualify as a permanent resident before resuming his studies. He enrolled in Foundation Studies before using his Aryana credits to enter the second year of the BBiomedSc degree, majoring in Infection & Immunity.
Qais chose the BBiomedSc programme as a route to a professional health science degree. It is his experiences as a small child in war-torn Kabul that have fuelled his desire and motivation to help people by becoming a doctor. At the moment, however, Qais is focussed on completing his Pharmacy degree and working as a qualified pharmacist.
Qais loved his BBiomedSc degree - his favourite topic was immunology and his “most interesting” paper was MICR 334. He found that he really enjoyed the inter-disciplinary aspect of BBiomedSc and the “way you could link papers together”, commenting “that this is what I like about science”.
Qais has discovered that his major in Infection & Immunity is providing a very good background for his Pharmacy studies, and recommends BBiomedSc as a great option for any student considering the professional health science programmes. He noted that “the teachers were nice and keen to help” and that the broad scope of BBiomedSc provides a great foundation for health studies.
Qais has found that Dunedin is a very welcoming place and he has made lots of kiwi friends. With two young children, his spare time is family time, but he does take the time to play social soccer and badminton.
Wherever Qais' BBiomedSc degree takes him, it is certain that he will be fulfilling his dream of helping people – all the best on your journey Qais!