Five Australian First Nations Griffith University students have received the Go Further Indigenous Tertiary Scholarship.
The scholarship, awarded by Arrow Energy, provides $5000 for part-time students and $10,000 for full time students, to support better educational outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.
Second year Bachelor of Pharmacy student Georgina Morris (above) is a proud Aboriginal woman and now, a scholarship recipient.
Georgina plans to pursue a Doctor of Medicine after graduating with her bachelor’s degree and to use the skills she gains to give back to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.
“I decided to pursue pharmacy as I knew I would gain a deep understanding of medicine and patient care prior to further studying to become a medical practitioner,” Georgina said.
“My long-term career goal is to work with Aboriginal patients in rural and remote locations as a part of the Royal Flying Doctor Service to satisfy my desire to see positive change in the well-being of the wider community.
“The health gap and life expectancy between Caucasian and Indigenous Australians is substantial and I hope the theoretical and practical skills gained throughout my university education combined with my drive to further understand the needs of the Aboriginal community will contribute to bringing these statistics closer together.”
Georgina said she had so far used her scholarship to purchase additional textbooks, which she would not otherwise have been able to afford and hopes to put some of the funding toward undertaking placement in a rural or remote location next year.
GUMURRII Student Support Unit’s Shane Barnes said it was essential to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students with scholarships such as this one.
“Scholarships can change lives,” Mr Barnes said.
“The financial assistance often enables students to undertake further education opportunities that may have otherwise been hard for them to access.
“Opportunities like this one which are afforded to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students could be the difference that pushes them to excel in university and beyond.”