A family medical crisis and a desire to serve has encouraged a young Sydney school-leaver to head north to the Sunshine Coast to study Medical Science at USC.

Monica Said graduated from St Mary & St Mina’s Coptic Orthodox College in Sydney last year with an ATAR of 99.6, equivalent to Queensland’s OP1 score.

Monica said when her two-year-old niece was hospitalised a few years ago, the experience cemented her plans to become a doctor.

“I was only 15 at the time and the whole incident really shook our family,” she said.

“My niece was diagnosed with Henoch-Schönlein purpura, or HSP, which is a condition that’s caused by a virus and makes the blood vessels become inflamed.

“The cause of HSP is unknown and my niece went from being a normal energetic toddler to totally bed-ridden and lethargic. She’s fine now thanks to the amazing doctors that took care of her.”

Monica has received a $9,000 Vice-Chancellor’s Merit Scholarship and is set to become the first doctor in her family.

“I’m also the first person in my family to leave Sydney so it was a big decision to leave everyone,” she said.

“The scholarship definitely made the decision to move easier and my family are really, really proud of me.

“Now that I’m here at USC I couldn’t be happier with the choice to move here. The community feel of the campus and the fact it’s built around a wildlife reserve is amazing.

“The Sunshine Coast is definitely an incredible place to learn to become a doctor.”

USC’s Bachelor Medical Science offer provisional direct entry to Griffith University’s Doctor of Medicine program offered through the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.