He went on to study medicine at the University of Otago, graduating MB ChB in 1922.
In 1924, he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship, and went to study at Balliol College, Oxford, where he completed a DPhil in 1926.
In 1929, Aitken married Margaret Kane, and the couple had three children.
[2] In 1953, Aitken was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal.
[3] He was appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 1960 Queen's Birthday Honours.