Breaking down the barriers

UTAS remains committed to making uni accessible to all.

The University’s ability to remove financial barriers for students through Access Scholarships has never been more important. So in 2021, the Advancement team worked hard to streamline the process for Access Scholarships, and to help to remove the barriers future and current students have around accessing tertiary education at the University of Tasmania. This year the University also launched the 2021 Southern Lights Scholarship Appeal to help assist our students, like new undergraduate Declan Porter, from the North-West Coast. Declan was a kid who always loved English and was well-versed in Shakespeare even while in primary school. Encouraged by Mr Bird, his English teacher at Latrobe High, Declan turned books into his passion. His dream was to turn that love of literature into a career and inspire other hungry young minds. But there were obstacles to Declan attending university – his father wanted him to join the family business and fix tractors, while his mother had battled illness for years and could no longer work. Although immensely proud of her son, Declan’s mother didn’t have the means to support his study. But earlier this year, Declan was awarded a Southern Lights Access Scholarship valued at $5000 annually which will help cover living expenses and textbooks and let him focus on the degree that will enable him to teach. Now Declan will be the first in his family to attend university. Southern Lights Access Scholarships were created for students just like Declan. Since Access Scholarships were introduced in 1995, thousands of students with huge potential but limited means have been given access to a university degree once beyond their reach. If you would like to help lift educational attainment – a critical priority for the University and an essential focus for our State – please consider making a tax-deductible donation.

Your gift today will give more eager minds an opportunity to shine bright, just like our Southern Lights. utas.edu.au/giving

New undergraduate Declan Porter