First-Year Medical Student Wins Professor Bohdan Boichuk Scholarship Competition

Ternopil National Medical University named after I. Horbachevsky (TNMU) recently announced a competition for the Professor Bohdan Boichuk Scholarship. Professor Boichuk, a 1986 graduate of TNMU, later served as Head of the Department of Biology and Head of the Department of General Hygiene and Ecology. Since 2002, he had lived in Toronto, Canada, and was a devoted patriot of Ukraine. To honor his bright memory, his family established a named scholarship for first-year students of his beloved university.

To take part in the competition, applicants had to submit by September 20, 2025, a personally written essay and a completed application form, as well as demonstrate achievements in sports, culture, volunteering, science, or community engagement.

After reviewing all submissions, the special committee selected the winner, first-year TNMU student (MM-110) Serhii Novosad. His essay impressed the committee members the most (the text of the essay is published below).

Congratulations to Serhii on this well-deserved victory! We wish him success in his studies and fulfillment at TNMU!

“Hello, my name is Serhii Serhiiovych Novosad.
I am a student of TNMU, originally from Brody, Lviv region. I studied at Brody Secondary School No. 2, where I learned German and studied English in depth. Throughout my schooling, I consistently achieved excellent grades and graduated with distinction.

Since childhood, I have been interested in biology and medicine — my career choice has been clear to me for many years. I have not always understood or known everything, but it was precisely the desire to learn more and apply that knowledge in practice that led me to medical university.

I grew up in a military family. My father was an air force officer who died two years ago. In him, I always saw an example of a person who helped others and worked for the sake of Ukraine. So, even though I did not follow in his footsteps and did not become a soldier, I still want to defend Ukrainians — if not on the military front, then on the medical one. And now I understand that doctors are needed in Ukraine more than ever.

I am determined to achieve my goal and believe that I can become a worthy doctor or scientist. Remaining true to my principles, I do not intend to deviate from this path and believe that this scholarship would help me in fulfilling my aspirations.”**