Meet Sarafina Otis, Medic and Thatcher Scholar

Meet Sarafina Otis

THE MTST SCHOLAR SPREADING THE WORD ABOUT SOMERVILLE

Sarafina (l) with friends Sal and Leah. Photo John Cairns

Having made the long journey from a state school to studying Medicine at Oxford, Margaret Thatcher Scholar Sarafina Otis (2020, Medicine) explains why she’ll always seek to share the benefit of a

Somerville education with others.

I grew up a short bus ride from Oxford, but sometimes it felt like a million miles.

I was studying at a state comprehensive in Milton Keynes. The teachers did their best, but resources were stretched. We understood that a successful application to read Medicine would be hard enough, but reading Medicine at Oxford was aiming too high. The thing is, I really liked the academic focus of the Oxford medicine course. Hoping to find out more, I applied for Target Oxbridge, an outreach initiative supported by Someville College to help students from African and Caribbean backgrounds experience life at Oxford. Through them, I was able to spend several days meeting academics, touring the colleges and getting a glimpse of what Oxford’s really like. Talking to current Black students was especially useful in debunking some of the stereotypes I’d picked up. Not long afterwards, I submited my application. Being financially secure means that I can think seriously about the future for the first time.

Fast forward three years and I’m in my final pre-clinical year at Somerville, and I couldn’t feel more at home. I suspect the collegiate structure is always good in that respect, but at Somerville it really does feel like a big college family (with Jan at the top, keeping an eye on us all!). I also feel fortunate that Somerville is a true meritocracy. Since coming here, I’ve been awarded both a Margaret Thatcher Scholarship and a David Scourse Scholarship in recognition of academic achievement. With financial worries no longer a barrier to participation, I’ve been able to study harder than ever, securing proxime accessit to best overall performance in my Second Year exams. Being financially secure also means that, for the first time ever, I can think seriously about the future and participate in various career opportunities. This summer I fulfilled a long-held ambition to conduct public health research in a project with Somerville JRF Dr Shobhana Nagraj, evaluating the government’s Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme at sites throughout Oxfordshire. It was great to present my findings to community members and make recommendations to help tackle holiday hunger. Building on this work, I’m now undertaking a project reviewing breast cancer screening programmes in resource-low settings. For all these reasons, I’m proud to call myself a Somervillian and am determined to share this privilege with others. I’m an Access Ambassador for Somerville and mentor students for Target Oxbridge. I even go back and speak at my old school – where I’m always careful to tell students that Oxford is closer than they think.