‘Scholarships provide opportunity’: how Molly has made her dream career a reality
Growing up in Mulwala in rural New South Wales, Molly Ingram knew that she wanted to work in healthcare from a young age. She spent time with both her parents in their pharmacy and liked helping customers when they came in with questions.
‘Coming from a small rural town, I didn’t want to go to a big city for university,’ Molly says. ‘Deakin provided the perfect mix of getting an on-campus experience without the stress of a city like Melbourne.’
Molly was keen to attend Deakin Waterfront for its regional location in Victoria and its course structure.
‘You go straight into simulations, learning how to do Obs and bed-making – all that basic stuff in just your first week. I’m a very hands-on learner so that really appealed to me as opposed to just learning everything in the classroom and doing placements later.’
Moving four hours away from her hometown and being one of four kids, Molly knew that financial implications would impact her potential to study. Receiving a scholarship from Deakin meant that Molly would be able to move from Mulwala to Geelong to begin studies without financial stress.
Scholarships provide opportunity for rural kids. They are so disadvantaged with their access to tertiary education … it gives them that option to further their studies and find a career that they want.
Now in her fourth and final year of studies, Molly is thinking about her next steps after graduation. She is keen to stay in the Geelong region working at one of the hospitals as a midwife for a few years before moving back near her hometown, knowing the struggles that regional towns face due to nurse and midwife shortages.
‘As one of four kids, I remember when mum was pregnant and having to drive over 40 minutes to get to the hospital because there was no one closer who could look after her. This is something I want to help fix by returning closer to home to help women give birth near their homes.’
Looking ahead, it’s not a career Molly will tire of anytime soon.
‘I just love the midwifery profession so much. Women can go through an awful time during pregnancy and labour, but when their baby is born and you put it on their chest, and you can see them and their partner light up knowing that the past nine months have been absolutely worth it … it’s just phenomenal. Every birth story is unique. Every woman is unique. I can see myself being 60 and not wanting to retire because it is such an amazing profession.’
Interested in learning more about scholarships?
Deakin has a range of scholarships for both new and continuing undergraduate and postgraduate students.
The first step is to search our Find a scholarship tool, which lists all the currently open or soon-to-open scholarships. Use the search filter to help find scholarships you may be eligible for. Every scholarship has different eligibility, benefits, open/close dates and required information, so click on a scholarship name to learn more.
For Trimester 2, the scholarship period generally runs between mid-June and mid-July, so don’t delay – visit our scholarships page to find out more and apply.