Growing up in Devonport on Tasmania's north-west coast, Ty Cunningham initially thought his love of maths and science might lead him to engineering. But a high-school job at a local bakery showed him how much he valued relationships and community - and medicine offered a way to combine both.

Now completing the final stages of his medical degree, Ty reflects on navigating the application process, finding mentors along the way, managing imposter syndrome and developing study techniques to cope with medicine's enormous volume of information. He also explains how returning to Tasmania's north-west for his clinical training changed his perception of surgery and inspired a new goal: pursuing general surgery to bring those skills back to the community that shaped him.