From scalpel to sketchpad: FIFO surgeon finds creative calling through CDU

Darwin-based surgeon Dr Stephanie Weidlich is proving it’s never too late to expand your horizons, blending a demanding medical career with a growing passion for architecture, thanks to her studies at Charles Darwin University (CDU).

A general surgeon with WA Country Health Service, Dr Weidlich spends two weeks a month in Kununurra, performing everything from colonoscopies and hernia repairs to emergency trauma surgeries in some of Australia’s most remote communities.

Originally from the NSW Central Coast, she moved to Darwin in 2011, drawn by the opportunity to work in trauma and re-engage with First Nations health - something that had been important to her early in her studies.

“By my fifth week in the Territory, I’d bought a house and a 4WD. I just knew I was here to stay,” she said. 

After more than a decade as a Territory surgeon - and following a series of major life events, including a breast cancer diagnosis during pregnancy - Dr Weidlich began to reflect on how she wanted to spend her time outside of medicine.

“I’d always joked that if surgery didn’t work out, I’d do interior design or fashion,” she laughed. 

“So I started exploring design courses. That’s how I stumbled across CDU’s architecture program.”

In 2022, Dr Weidlich enrolled in CDU’s Bachelor of Arts with a major in architecture and quickly discovered how naturally her surgical precision and hands-on experience translated into design.

“I love working with my hands. There’s problem-solving in both surgery and design - and a lot of creativity in both,” she said. 

In 2023, she volunteered at the Garma Festival, working with Sydney-based design firm Cave Urban to expand a stringybark shade structure used for cultural gatherings. 

The experience of collaborating on-site - from harvesting local stringy bark saplings and shaping materials to constructing the final form - resonated deeply with her.

“There were so many moments where it mirrored surgery. The tactility, the focus, the sense of structure and flow - it all clicked,” she said.

Earlier this month, Dr Weidlich received the Student Prize in the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) 2025 Northern Territory Architecture Awards and has plans to enrol in CDU’s new Master of Architecture in 2026.

For now, she balances both careers with motherhood, her surgical experience enriching her design work - and vice versa.

“I’m not leaving surgery - I love what I do - but studying architecture has opened up so many experiences, connections and creative opportunities that have enriched my life.”

Her advice for others considering a change?

“You don’t have to choose one path and never deviate. It’s okay to follow multiple passions - and it’s never too late to start something new."