The first medical school in a county has welcomed its inaugural students undertaking a five-year bachelor degree.
The University of Hertfordshire, external‘s medical school, in Hatfield, said it aimed to recruit up to 70 international students a year.
Students from the university’s first intake have travelled from countries including Australia, Canada, the US, the United Arab Emirates and Zimbabwe.
One of them, Vanessa Milne, 56, who is from New Zealand, said: “It’s taken a lot of courage to come here but the staff have been amazing and have made me feel welcome.”
The school opened a year earlier than expected in response to a wider need for doctors in the region.
Prof Zoe Aslanpour, the head of medicine at the university, said: “For every 1,000 people in the East of England we’ve got 2.5 doctors, whereas in England it’s about 3.2 – so we’re short of 4,500 doctors.”
Milne said she has been trying to get into medical school for 20 years after a career in pain medicine, rehabilitation and anaesthetics.
She said: “My end goal is fluid for now and I’m going to carry on and see where that leads me but ultimately I’m interested in public health and pandemic response.
“It’s a cohort which is predominantly international which speaks to me and brings a lot of different perspectives from all over the world.”