He graduated with honours as Bachelor of Medicine in 1852. In the same year, Lister passed the examination for the fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons, bringing to a close nine years of education. With his medical education completed, Sharpey advised Lister to spend a month at the medical practice of James Syme in Edinburgh and then visit the medical schools in Europe, for a longer period. However, Lister who anxious about his first appointment, decided to settle in Edinburgh for some time, after meeting Syme. At the time Syme, a teacher of clinical surgery, was widely considered the best surgeon in the United Kingdom.