When Jay Thakar moved from India to Australia in 2016, he was adjusting to a new country, a new education system and a new language.
“If I had to describe the whole experience in one word, it would be ‘overwhelming.’ At such a young age, there were times when I felt completely lost. I didn’t always understand what people were saying or what I was meant to be doing, and adjusting to an entirely new environment was challenging.”
Jay remembers the patience and kindness of his teachers as he began learning English.
“I still remember them using hand signals, gestures and facial expressions to help me understand the meaning of different words. Looking back, those small actions meant a lot.”
Over time, Jay began to find his place in his new home, while maintaining a strong connection to his Indian heritage through family celebrations such as Diwali, Holi and Navratri, traditional food and spiritual practices.
“Overall, maintaining our celebrations, food, traditions and spiritual practices has allowed me to embrace life in Australia while still staying connected to where I come from.”
A few years later, in Year 10, Jay discovered an interest that would help shape his future.
While learning about the immune system and human anatomy in Biology, he completed work experience at Bendigo Day Surgery, where he had the opportunity to observe surgeons and medical procedures.
“Seeing medicine in practice rather than simply learning about it in a textbook created a real spark for me.”
His interest in medicine was also deeply personal.
When Jay was around 10 or 11, his grandfather suffered a heart attack in India. With no cardiac surgeon available at the nearby hospital, he had to be transferred to a larger hospital in the city for urgent care.
“At such a young age, I saw firsthand how a shortage of specialist healthcare in rural areas can place patients and their families in incredibly difficult situations. It became one of the biggest motivations behind my goal of becoming a rural surgeon.”
“For me, pursuing rural medicine is about more than simply becoming a doctor. I want to contribute to addressing the shortage of specialist care in rural communities and, hopefully, prevent other families from experiencing the same fear, uncertainty and stress that my family went through when my grandfather needed urgent care.”
By Year 12, Jay was determined to become a doctor. He researched pathways into medicine across Australia and worked hard towards his goal – even stepping back from cricket, the sport he loved most.
Then came a major setback.
“Receiving my UCAT result was one of the biggest setbacks of my journey. I hadn’t performed well enough to receive interviews from the universities I had hoped for, and for a while, I genuinely thought my dream of becoming a doctor might be over.”
But a conversation with one of his teachers changed things. They told Jay about La Trobe’s Bachelor of Biomedical Science (Medical) pathway – which doesn’t use the UCAT as part of its admissions requirements.
“Suddenly, there was another opportunity, and it gave me hope again.”
Jay secured an interview and decided that instead of trying to memorise the ‘right’ answers, he would simply be himself.
“I wanted the interviewers to see my genuine personality, my experiences, and the values that were important to me.”
It worked.
Today, Jay is studying the Bachelor of Biomedical Science (Medical) at La Trobe Rural Health School in his hometown of Bendigo, allowing him to stay close to his family and the community he grew up in while working towards his future career.
“One of the biggest reasons was the course’s strong focus on rural healthcare. I have always dreamed of becoming a rural surgeon, so the opportunity to undertake placements in rural communities and gain early exposure to rural healthcare really stood out to me.”
“For me, choosing La Trobe was an opportunity to study towards my future career while remaining connected to the rural community that has played such an important role in my life.”
Looking ahead, Jay hopes to pursue surgery and is currently interested in specialties including cardiac surgery, ophthalmology and plastic surgery. Most importantly, he wants his future career to make a difference in rural communities.
“Ultimately, whichever specialty I pursue, I hope to use my career to help address the shortage of specialists in rural areas and give back to the rural communities that have given me so much.”
And after everything it took to get here, Jay has learned that a setback doesn’t have to mean giving up on your goal.
“But sometimes one setback doesn’t mean the end of a dream, it simply leads you towards a different pathway to achieving it.”