War-torn homeland fuels dental student’s dreams for the future
Bohdan Semeliak, DDS Class of 2025. (Cam Buchan/Schulich Medicine & Dentistry)
By Cam Buchan
Every morning Bohdan Semeliak opens his news feed to read stories from his war-ravaged home of Ukraine.
Home – where his parents still reside, and where his friends, cousins and classmates from the medical school, where he first learned dentistry, fight on the frontlines that separate his country from anarchy.
“It hurts. Even though I haven’t been there in eight years, it hurts,” said Semeliak, who is in the second year of Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry’s Internationally Trained Dentists (ITD) program. “Many of my colleagues are at the frontline as a medical team saving the lives of our heroes, and we talk all of the time.”
The Russo-Ukraine War began nearly a decade before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation in February 2022. The years of conflict have been a constant influence on the choices Semeliak and his family have made.
It hurts. Even though I haven’t been there in eight years, it hurts. Many of my colleagues are at the frontline as a medical team saving the lives of our heroes.
—Bohdan Semeliak
Semeliak comes from Zbarazh, Ternopil region, near the Polish border, and far from the current fighting. He recalled the small-town atmosphere, and friendly people in an environment that nurtured a love for both sports and academics. “I learned from early years what it takes and how important it is to be surrounded by ambitious people,” he recalled.
A passion for biology and chemistry combined with a penchant for business drew him to dentistry.
“I thought dentistry was a great combination because it involved my areas of interest,” said Semeliak, who began his schooling in 2010 at the Ternopil State Medical University, Faculty of Dentistry. With a desire to see the world and explore new opportunities for his professional development, Semeliak came to Canada right after graduation in 2015 and lived with his sister Olga and her family in Mississauga, Ontario.
Unable to practise dentistry in Canada, Semeliak travelled a different path, working in the construction trade, installing porcelain and ceramic tile, backsplashes and countertops. “At least, I still got to work with ceramics,” he joked.
“I wouldn’t have believed this was possible to be working in construction. But that’s why I love life; it’s unpredictable. Even though I was successful, I was keeping in the back of my mind the idea that I had to do it. I had to become a dentist.”
Semeliak also faced a language hurdle, having done all of his schooling, including his dentistry training, in Ukrainian.
“Dentistry gives me an amazing opportunity to become an entrepreneur, because I will be able to open my own clinic – so basically I am part clinician and part businessman,” he said. “So, from 2015 to 2022, I was learning a trade, improving my English, and preparing for dental school in Canada.”
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Still the challenges of living half a world away during the violence in his home country weighs on Semeliak’s mind.
“The things that Russia are doing is absolutely unacceptable,” said Semeliak, who hopes to see an end to the hostilities very soon. “President Putin is spending billions on an unnecessary war while his own citizens can’t afford the basic things. I anticipate the Russian people will soon rise up to embrace such basic freedoms as democracy, freedom of speech, human rights, and independent elections, like in Ukraine, rather than be hostages of their own government.”
The outbreak of war motivated Semeliak and his sister to bring their parents, Larysa and Anatolii, to Canada in March 2022. And while they stayed for more than a year, they longed to return home.
“They live in the western part of Ukraine near the Polish border, far from the frontlines,” Semeliak said. “But they missed home. They said Canada was beautiful but it was for young people, ambitious people and they don’t speak English. So, they went home in August 2023.”
With friends and family nearby in Zbarazh, Semeliak feels positive about their safety, and talks to them every weekend. “We couldn’t keep them here if they weren’t happy.”
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Now Semeliak takes another huge step on his dental journey, moving from working on mannequins to serving patients in the School’s dental clinic.
We have professors from all over the world – from the United States, South America, the Middle East and Europe – and each of them brings something from their part of the world to the program. So, we learn from all over the world.
—Bohdan Semeliak
“I’ve been assigned several patients that I will care for in all phases of treatment,” he said. “This is so exciting because, to this point, we’ve worked on mannequins. As my instructor, Dr. Ramesh Agrawal, said, ‘A mannequin is the best patient you’ll ever have. If you can’t handle a mannequin, how are you planning to handle a real patient?’”
While time spent in the Mississauga-Oakville area was “like my second home” to Semeliak, his final destination is still some moves away.
“I have heard about the Northwest Territories. Many students go there to practise dentistry. I think it would be a nice experience for me,” he said. “Canada is huge, and I haven’t explored it much because I was always busy with working. Let’s just say I like travelling. I don’t like being in one place.”
The multicultural experience of the dentistry program at Schulich Medicine & Dentistry has also given him a taste of the world.
“We have professors from all over the world – from the United States, South America, the Middle East and Europe – and each of them brings something from their part of the world to the program. So, we learn from all over the world. It’s amazing.”
Meanwhile, his home and former classmates still weigh on his mind.
“I’m going to go back to Ukraine after I graduate and see my classmates. That will be in 2025 and 10 years after I graduated from dental school there,” said Semeliak. “Do I think the war will be over by then? I hope so, and I will see my classmates in the new and peaceful country of Ukraine.”
