Many of the subjects at University I found unnecessary, but I still had to study them, they are the basis of medicine. The most important to me were the practical and clinical part of the studies, when we started spending more time at the clinics. My biggest focus was on passing the exams, the most important thing for me was to pass an exam as soon as possible with a good grade, says Evgenij Pop Acev.

Evgenij Pop Acev is a Macedonian marathon swimmer, three-time world champion in marathon swimming in 2015, 2017 and 2019. In 2015, Evgenij became the first Macedonian to win the Ohrid marathon. Pop Acev completes this season with his biggest success yet in Macedonian marathon swimming by winning the first place in the Grand Prix series of swimming marathons of FINA. Even today, he is actively engaged in swimming, achieves success, participates in various races, triathlons. He is a doctor of dentistry by profession. He completed his primary education at “Kole Nedelkovski” and secondary school at “Orce Nikolov” Secondary School in Skopje.

– I was an excellent student both in high school and primary school, I would say that I was a solid student. I wasn’t anything special, but I fulfilled the tasks that were assigned to me, when I had to study more, I studied – says Evgenij.

Apart from the knowledge, I also made many friends

He recalled his student days and shared with us a small segment of his student life.

– I studied dentistry at the Faulty of Dentistry in Skopje, I finished my regular studies and I am currently specializing in periodontology. I don’t know what precisely played a decisive role and when exactly I decided to enroll in Dentistry. The biggest factor, probably, was the fact that my parents and brother are dentists, so somehow that pulled me in that direction, even though I never had any pressure – says Evgenij.

The first thing that comes to his mind when thinking about the student days are the long hours spend at the Faculty, the breaks between classes with his friends, as well as the many sleepless nights spent studying.

– Apart from the knowledge, I also made many friends. I consider it one of the most beautiful periods in life. There was a lot of stress, of course, because of the exams, but the way of life, going to classes, socializing in and out of college – it was a very nice way of life. Today it is impossible to live with that tempo and I am happy with today’s way of living, but I still get nostalgic for those days. I have many wonderful memories of that time. There were a lot of funny and interesting situations, both from lectures and congresses as well as from the graduation excursion and social life. I still hang out with some of my colleagues from college and we retell stories every day. The most interesting experience for me was when we were on an exchange at the Faculty in Oslo, Norway, for three months – Evgenij shares with us.

My biggest focus were the exams

Evgenij says that it was difficult for him at university, and rightfully so, because the Faculty of Dentistry is considered one of the more difficult ones.

– There were subjects for which I studied for months. I didn’t have some special ritual, but a starting point for me was that I needed to read the material three times, and then to start revising and practicing. I also had a bit of a bad habit of starting to study late and having to spend whole nights before an exam studying, often until the morning. I think that I spent my time studying, but very often learning and socializing were intertwined, often while studying we socialized in some way, especially during lectures and exercises – recalls Evgenij.

We asked him which subjects were more difficult for him

– It’s hard for me to say which one exactly, but I think the most difficult were the subjects of the first few years, such as anatomy, pathology, biophysics, chemistry and others, where there was too much material to learn, and at the same time we had other subjects that we had to prepare. Many of the subjects I didn’t want to have then, but I still had to study them, they are the basis of medicine. The most important for me were the practical and clinical part of the study, when we started spending more time at the clinics. My biggest focus was on passing the exams, the most important thing for me was to pass the exam as soon as possible and with a good grade. My goal was to finish college as quickly as possible so that I could either start working or continue improving my knowledge and skills. But I spontaneously focused more on my swimming career after I graduated, and now I started to realize those goals, after more than 10 years – says Evgenij.

He spent most of his free time training

His free time was reserved for training because he was a professional swimmer, but also for socializing and doing things that made him happy.

When asked what the faculty taught him, apart from textbooks and lectures, he stated:

– It taught me discipline, dedication to the profession and the goals I want to achieve, ways to overcome obstacles, hard work, communication with all kinds of people, organizing time and many other things. However, I would say that the faculty played a major role in my life,because many of my qualities that have contributed to some of my successes and achievements, even in areas outside of dentistry, I have learned or acquired during my studies and student life. My advice to students is to grab as much as possible from your studies, any knowledge and experience gained during your studies is priceless. It is the period when they are most capable and have unique opportunities and privileges to upgrade themselves as human beings. But they should also respect their professors, assistants, and colleagues – points out Evgenij.