Stories

I am currently in my third year of a Doctor of Medicine at the University of Sydney. I chose to study medicine in the hope of becoming an emergency physician in a rural town.

This generous donation uniquely supports me over the entire length of my degree. In doing so, it has removed one of the most significant hindrances from my studies and has allowed me to be a regular student.

Before receiving the scholarship, I was experiencing extreme financial pressure. I was working as much as I could, and missing classes to gain extra shifts.

My grades suffered and I had considered dropping out, because I could not afford rent and other expenses. The Rotary Club of Sydney Soukup Memorial Postgraduate Coursework Scholarship allowed me to keep studying and doing what I love, without needing to worry about monetary problems.

This year, your support has enabled me to take an extended rural placement where I had the fortune to work in remote medical clinics, Aboriginal medical services, outreach programs and locum medical work. This trip provided me the exposure to the challenges and rewarding aspects of rural medicine and I am extremely humbled to have experienced it.

The Rotary Club of Sydney Postgraduate Memorial Coursework Scholarship, is one that runs over a few years. This generous donation uniquely supports me over the entire length of my degree.

– Samantha Graham Scholarship recipient

I am in my final year of a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Sydney. I live in Sydney’s East Hills, but my family originally comes from the Bundjalung clan, on the NSW North Coast.

I have had a fascination with animals for as long as I can remember. As a child, we had rottweilers, and the animals were like my family. A connection with animals and the land is deeply ingrained in my personality and who I am.

Getting into the course was an intensely competitive process, but since commencing my degree, it has been an amazing experience.

In 2016, I was lucky enough to be a recipient of the Rotary Club of Sydney Soukup Memorial Scholarship. The scholarship has been of enormous help throughout my time at the University of Sydney.

The support of the Rotary Club of Sydney has enabled me to take vital learning trips to the Nyirripi, Yuelamu and Yuendumu communities in the outback Northern Territory, as well as visits to communities in the Tiwi Islands.

Knowing that I could rely on the financial support of the Rotary Club of Sydney Soukup Memorial Scholarship has meant that I could take on part-time work that complements, rather than detracts from my study.

I am so thankful to the Rotary Club of Sydney Soukup Memorial Scholarship for believing in me and my abilities.

– Simone Armstrong,  undergraduate recipient (2016-2019)