Jade is undertaking a Bachelor of Midwifery at the University of Technology Sydney.

Jade has a long and deep family connection to community and women’s health, with both her grandmother and mother being midwives.  Jade considers that she has inherited their commitment to women’s health, as well as their compassion, perseverance, resilience and connection to community.

Jade has evidenced that commitment with her volunteering at the Cerebral Palsy Alliance on the NSW Central Coast, which has continued beyond her initial high school involvement.  She has also been involved, through Apex Tutoring, in helping remedial and advanced students build their confidence and academic performance.  Jade has completed a Certificate II in Active Volunteering and was the recipient of the 2022 NSW Central Coast Young Volunteer of the Year Award.

Jade’s involvement with her midwifery course, particularly at the perinatal stage, has reinforced her awareness of the need to offer improved health and sexual awareness services to women in rural communities.  She recognizes and is concerned by the disparities in health services for women in rural versus urban areas.  Jade is keenly interested in research and wants to undertake honours/masters study, and potentially to train as a medical doctor, in the field of women’s health. Her exceptional academic performance reflects her commitment to making a difference for Australian women.

The Panel considered that Jade, with her unique blend of focus and commitment, along with her articulateness and consideration for others, will make a real difference to the future of Australia.

Jade’s Scholarship was donated by the NSW Branch of the Order of Australia Association.

Paris is undertaking a Bachelor of Communication (Strategic Communication) and a Bachelor of Laws at the University of Technology Sydney.

Paris’s inspirational narrative and her aspirations for her career have been shaped by three main influences.

The first is her commitment to children’s health and well-being arising from her having a rare medical condition, called exercise induced anaphylaxis.  She has been involved with raising funds for the SPARCle Foundation Ball for the past six years to increase awareness of allergic disease.  She has been a member of the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network (SCHN) Youth Council, including helping with the design of appropriate spaces for adolescents in children’s hospitals; as well as being a peer mentor of Allergy 250k, which runs camps for children with allergies.

The second is her interest in public speaking and debating which arose from her experiences at Ravenswood School.  She represented her school in the Independent Schools Debating Association (ISDA) competition; received a Diploma in Communication from the Australia Speech Communication Association (ASCA); and has been employed by St Andrew’s Cathedral School to design and roll out their public speaking syllabus.  From 2019 to 2022, she also represented Australia in the World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championships, being a finalist in 2021-2022, having previously topped the Australian selection process.

The third is her interest in social justice.  In part, this has arisen from her grandparents’ decision to leave Timor for Australia to seek a better life.  Equally, however, her debating prowess has led her to research climate related challenges, along with mental health and women’s disadvantage issues.  She is a powerful advocate in all three areas.

These three formative influences are reflected in her career ambition, which is to pursue a career in human rights, with her long-term objective being to work for the United Nations in communications, thereby leveraging her degree, her powerful communication skills, and her interest in health and social justice.  In essence, she wants to walk on a world stage to make a difference.

This Scholarship was donated by the Order of Australia Association.

Ayman is undertaking a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) at Monash University with a specialization in Aerospace Engineering.

Since he was a child, Ayman has been intrigued by space and fascinated by propulsion, in part influenced by stories of man landing on the moon.  This led to his studying Aerospace Engineering at Monash, where he has an impeccable academic record, achieving straight high distinctions in his degree to date.

His interest in space has been backed up by his other university involvements. This includes his having been a member of the Monash High Powered Rocketry Dynamics Subteam, where he is tasked with dealing with the simulations of rockets that his team creates.  He has also created a Blog called “Just in Space”, where—as writer and editor—he communicates to a broader audience about space in simple to read English. He has also participated in the National Youth Science Forum.

Over and above that, Ayman has a deep sense of community, which he describes as being based on the need to help others. This includes the Bangladeshi community in Geelong. (In 2005, Ayman’s parents moved from Dhaka to provide a better life for him and his elder brother).  As a result, he has been actively involved in fundraising for activities in Bangladesh, including flood relief.

Post-graduation, Ayman wants to undertake a Doctor of Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston.  However, his bigger and more audacious goal is to start a successful company that develops reusable rocket systems for interplanetary missions.

Ayman’s Scholarship was donated by the Victorian Branch of the Order of Australia Association.

Matthew is undertaking a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Advanced Studies at the University of Sydney.

Matthew brings an international perspective, having grown up in Hong Kong to an Australian father and a Korean mother, before boarding at St Ignatius’ College Riverview, where he played 1st XI football; received a Laureate award; and represented Australia in Mandarin at the International Chinese Bridge Language Competition.  He was awarded a Dalyell Scholarship to attend Sydney University.  He is also proficient in Korean.

His inclusive but disciplined leadership style, influenced by his international background, has been demonstrated at Sydney University.  This includes his being President of Beta Alpha Psi (BAP), Alumni Director of the Sydney University Business Society (SUBS), and former Events Director for the Sydney University Impact Investing Society (SUIIS).  He has assisted fellow students through supporting USYD FoodHub (providing essential items for students in need); helping organize case competitions with McKinsey & Company; supporting industry mentorship programs; and representing BAP and Sydney University at international competitions in Auckland and Orlando.

After undertaking an Honors year and postgraduate business qualifications at a leading USA University, Matthew aspires to a career in finance, potentially reflecting his interest in alternative investments and sustainability.  His stated objective is to make a difference in the green energy transition.  To this end, he has interned as a Product Analyst at Longreach Alternatives, where their collaboration with indigenous communities on fishery initiatives strongly resonated.  He has broadened his skill base by internships at KPMG (where he audited a global alternative asset manager) and at Macquarie Group.

Matthew’s Scholarship was donated by Mr Paul Wheelton AM KSJ.