Bastian Stocker: Polishing the raw diamond.
Hi, my name is Bastian Stocker and I am a cum laude graduate from 2012.
I started the European School of Physiotherapy (ESP) when I was only 20 years of age and as green behind my ears and inexperienced as you can be. A raw diamond!
The reasons I decided to apply for the ESP were not only its high standards and curriculum, but also the international student population from over 30 countries.
Another characteristic I find unique about the ESP is that every year you start with only around 72 students. This keeps the community small and at a family like atmosphere where everybody knows each other even the lecturers.
Within the first semester I realized quickly that lecturers and classes demand a lot of the students, which sometimes brought me to high stress levels and a lot of frustration. However the fact that this applied to all students made us hold together and support each other, forming exceptional and close friendships for life.
Last feature which made the ESP stand out for me were the internships. During the three compulsory internships you are allowed, even encouraged, to travel around the world to explore physiotherapy in different places and cultures. Internship destinations in my year reached from The Netherlands, over Italy and Switzerland all the way to Canada and Australia. I for instance did my last internship in the Caribbean for three months.
During the three of ESP I had a lot of highlights, but also down periods. Nevertheless at the end of this long journey, the ESP and everything around it shaped me into a shinny and valuable diamond, with an internationally recognized physiotherapy degree and a network of professionals from all around the world.
Bastian Stocker
(Year of 2012)