Cum Laude Degree for Medical Student

BY: .

Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery student (MBChB), Dr Zubair Haffajee, graduated cum laude at UKZN’s College of Health Sciences Graduation ceremony.   

‘It’s quite surprising but a real honour to be one of the top students in my class,’ said Haffajee. ‘It feels like all my hard work over the past six years has paid off. You always try your best but in the end you never really expect something like this happen.’

He said his achievement had made his family very proud. ‘At least now they know that I wasn't fooling around too often at campus.’

Achieving his degree was a culmination of hard work that began in high school and it gave him a real sense of accomplishment to now be able to practice in the field of medicine.

He is currently looking forward to completing his two years of internship and thereafter his year of community service. ‘I have not yet decided but I plan to hopefully specialise at a later stage,’ he said.

‘Knowing that I can actually make a difference when I go to work is what really keeps me going every day.’

His advice to students is to work smart not hard and enjoy varsity life as much as possible. ‘They probably hear that from everyone but often you never really appreciate the advice until it’s too late.’

Initially medicine was not his first choice, but after getting accepted to UKZN he hasn’t looked back.

One of three children in the family, his elder brother is a Dentist in Cape Town and his younger sister is currently studying for a BCom at UKZN. His parents work in the clothing industry.

He said the highlight during his degree was the new friends he made along the way as well as the fact that as a class they always seemed to help each other and were never hesitant to share notes and give advice.

Haffajee thanked all his classmates and his family. ‘This achievement would not have been possible without your continuous help and support.’

Nombuso Dlamini