Swinburne University, Victoria

The George Alexander Foundation Scholarships for Living Support $78,000 (part of a commitment of $450,000 over seven years) Scholarships provide funding for living support and help to alleviate some of the financial burden of studying away from home. The GAF scholars are selected for their academic background, leadership skills, aspirations and commitment to community involvement. www.swin.edu.au

Student Profile

James Hicks, GAF Scholar 2007 Third-year student, Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical)/Bachelor of Business (Management) (five-year degree course)

James left the comfort of life in his hometown to pursue his passion for Engineering and Business. His story tells how GAF has helped him develop new networks and illustrates why this young man from Terang is a stand-out GAF scholar.

What challenges did the transition to tertiary education present for you? Moving away from home and a strong social network was one of the first challenges, which then merged with the need to form new networks, build my life in a new community and integrate into the world of tertiary education. All this combined with the need to finance everyday living while studying, created a multiplicity of challenges at first.

How did the GAF scholarship help address these challenges?

As well as obvious financial assistance, the GAF connection created an instant network of friends with similar interests and goals. This has been vital in the process of integrating into the tertiary setting.

The

Scholarships each valued at $18,000 over three years

Recipient Course

Laura Baker

Samuel Chandra

Melissa Mackenzie

Mujtaba Maqsudi

Fraser McDonald

Bethany Milkins

Katherine Parker

Bachelor of Business/Bachelor of Arts (Japanese)

Bachelor of Aviation

Bachelor of Engineering (Product Design Engineering)

Bachelor of Engineering (Telecommunication & Network Engineering)/ Bachelor of Science (Computer Science & Software Engineering)

Bachelor of Aviation/Bachelor of Business

Bachelor of Film and Television

Bachelor of Design (Multi-media Design)

For me and the other GAF scholars, the financial assistance has allowed us to work less, so spend more time studying and being involved in our communities. Has the scholarship brought other benefits? Any benefits you did not really expect or anticipate?

One key benefit has been the opportunity to develop leadership skills through various activities that our GAF network has been involved in. The emphasis on community involvement has led to us all volunteering with Conservation Volunteers Australia and encouraged us to become involved in other charitable causes.

The scholarship has led to me personally being recognised by other people who would have never known me if it weren’t for my involvement with The George Alexander Foundation. This has led to other opportunities such as the ‘Order of Australia Foundation Scholarship.’

Potential employers have been very interested in my involvement with The George Alexander Foundation Scholarship.

We have been able to form such a supportive/tight-knit network of GAF scholarship recipients, that we have regularly had social meetings just to catch up and spend time together.

Has your community involvement changed since you received your GAF scholarship?

The GAF scholarship has led to my involvement in the community in ways I hadn’t been before, for example working with Conservation Volunteers Australia. With the pressures of heavy study commitments and work commitments, many university students are forced to reduce their involvement in their community. The financial assistance from the Foundation has allowed me to achieve a much better balance of study/work and community involvement than most other students are able to.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years and what will you be doing?

I see myself working as an engineer, who has had experience working internationally and who is edging towards becoming a leader in my field.

“The scholarship has led to me personally being recognised by other people who would have never known me if it weren’t for my involvement with The George Alexander Foundation.”