Professor Sue Dorsch graduated from the Faculty of Medicine in 1958 with no less than four 'named' prizes at graduation. In 1960, having spent two years at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (RPAH) as the Professorial Resident Medical Officer, and now married to Tom Fraser, MB BS 1956, the couple left for General Practice in Harden, NSW.
Fortunately, Tom and Sue returned to RPAH and the University of Sydney in 1969. Sue was appointed as a Teaching Fellow in the Department of Pathology in 1970, beginning her post-graduate studies the following year. She completed her PhD in 1975 in the then relatively new field of transplantation immunotherapy. Academic promotions followed rapidly. She was appointed Senior Lecturer in 1975 and Associate Professor in 1981. In 1983 (a full 100 years after the founding of the Faculty of Medicine in 1883), Sue became the first woman appointed to a Chair in this Faculty.
She was an outstanding teacher, researcher and administrator. Sue supervised countless students, both undergraduate and postgraduate, from Medicine and Science, providing stimulating, world-class research opportunities within her own research base in the rapidly expanding field of transplantation and immunotherapy.
As an administrator, she took on numerous roles across a broad range of committees. She was first appointed an elected member of the Academic Board in 1977 and, later, in 1986, as Pro Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sydney. She served as Deputy Vice Chancellor from 1989 until her retirement in 1995.
In 1996, she was honoured by the University of Sydney for her extraordinary contributions with admission to the Degree of Doctor of the University.
From her entry as a medical student to her retirement as Professor Emerita, Sue excelled at everything she tackled. She contributed enormously to the teaching, research and administration of her alma mater. One of her greatest legacies will be that she led the way for women to take their place in academic positions within the Faculty and administrative positions within the University of Sydney. Sue lit the path for all those exceptional women who have followed.