Indigenous Health Scholarship Program

Choosing to study medicine was not a decision I made at a young age nor was it made during my high school years. In high school, I rarely entertained the idea of pursuing an education at a university level. During this time, I believed becoming a psychiatrist was an unrealistic aspiration. My parents didn’t complete their high school education and a life-threatening stroke forced my mother into early retirement. I found it difficult to imagine tertiary education as part of my narrative, believing I would take after my parents. Despite these obstacles, I have had the opportunity to study medicine, the first in my family? and if I were to be awarded this scholarship this would assist myself and my family in numerous ways.

My dreams since being a young girl has been to care for people. It took years to get there but I am finally studying. My goal is to work at APY lands or in country with those vulnerable people who are scared of the modern hospitals. I would love to help them feel safe and to make sure they are receiving the best care possible.

I have always been passionate about Indigenous Health and had aspirations of pursuing a career as a doctor with a focus on Indigenous health and community outreach. Although this is not my current degree, I still have dreams of using laboratory medicine as a pathway perhaps into post graduated medicine. Laboratory Medicine, so far, has shown to be very rewarding and an interesting degree that holds many career opportunities and I am excited to explore both the pathology and public health sides of the degree.

I have chosen to study dentistry as I have a great interest n oral health care. I have always really enjoyed going to the dentist since I was young, and have been fortunate enough to benefit from visiting the dentist regularly. I have also chosen to study dentistry as one day I would really like to be able to give people the gift of smiling. Many people struggle with their self-esteem from the appearance of their teeth; therefore, I would like to boost peoples self-esteem to enjoy smiling by becoming an orthodontist after completing my current degree in dentistry. I also hope to be able to encourage will people to visiting the dentist nby increasing oral health knowledge and raining awareness of available pathways to dental care for Aboriginal people.