The Great UniSA 30th Anniversary Countdown: Volume Four

30 years. 30 Degrees. 30 students. 30 accomplishments.

It’s countdown time…

Verse is back on that celebratory grind as we are now just counting down the hip hip hoorays in our university’s birthday serenade. Yes, you heard it right, we are almost on the home stretch of this huge cohort-wide countdown! From designers to journalists, aviators to physiotherapists and midwifes to lawyers, I reckon we have pretty well covered some of the University of South Australia’s coolest student accomplishments. But now we are getting deeper. Now we are in with the architects, the filmmakers, the engineers and some of UniSA’s technical fields. So please, be our guest once again, as we countdown towards the single digits.

Tune in for Volume Five in our next edition!

Written by Nahum Gale

15 Sabrina Sterk – Bachelor of Architecture

My employment in the Design and Architecture industry has not been possible without the aid of UniSA’s architecture course, laying strong foundations for me to base myself off of. The education I have received has not only provided me with fundamental knowledge and skills, but also with confidence and modesty to pursue jobs in my desired field. I am thankful for my patient and supportive lecturers and tutors, many of which have turned into mentors to me and continue to inspire me. As the Architecture Student Representative, I feel honoured to represent my cohort and be a part of making this degree as valuable and rewarding as possible for all involved.

14 Henry Hancock – Bachelor of Electrical and Mechatronic Engineering (Honours)

My biggest accomplishment while studying at UniSA has been to take part in a comprehensive study of the solar power array on the Mawson Lakes campus. As a part of a team of students, we were tasked with analysing a years’ worth of data and determining the viability of installing a battery bank alongside the solar panels. This would store excess power generated on sunny days to be used when the sun was not shining such as at night or on cloudy days. Along with data analysis of power generated by the solar array, we also did research on different possibilities to use as the battery, such as lithium-ion batteries, hydrogen cells, and forms of kinetic energy storage. Although it was concluded that a battery pack was not economically viable, it was still a great opportunity to apply our learning to help a real-world issue.

13 Dinuk Nanayakkara – Master of Information Technology: Enterprise Management

There are quite a few accomplishments that I am proud of. I have been able to maintain a GPA above 6.0 while participating in many extracurricular activities. I love volunteering and networking, and have completed the UniSA+ award and have been a recipient of the BUPA UniSA International Student Grant.

I love meeting new people and I believe all these were a reason for me to be elected as the USASA Postgraduate Student Representative, which has been my biggest accomplishment while studying. It has been a great opportunity for me to develop both my personal and professional skills and to be an advocate for the students.

12 Charlene Lee – Bachelor of Mathematics: Data Science

Honestly, I think my biggest accomplishment has been making it this far in my degree. Choosing to study in this area was a big risk for me; I find maths challenging on the best of days, but I recognise that businesses are driven by people in the background running numbers and analysing data. It’s been difficult at times, and I have certainly felt like giving up, but I have worked hard to understand the concepts in all my courses and am thankful to be set to graduate at the end of this year. I am beyond grateful to the people around me for their continual support, and to UniSA for all the opportunities I have been given during my time here.

11 Amrit Kumbhar – Bachelor of Arts: Major in Japanese & Applied Linguistics

I would say my greatest accomplishment while studying the BA at UniSA was representing South Australia in the 50^th National Japanese Speech Competition and winning 1st place in Australia with my speech, The Iroha Song and Optimistic Nihilism. I have had a passion for learning Japanese since high school and have aspired to be a Japanese teacher ever since. As such, under the Bachelor of Arts I chose to specialise in Japanese and Applied Linguistics to pursue my passion for languages and to learn the skills I will need for my future careers. In doing this, I was able to delve deeper and gain a more profound understanding of the complex meaning making processes we engage in when using language in our everyday lives. Furtherly, I was able to realise the integral and inseparable relationship between language, culture and identity; it was the culmination of these understandings and knowledge that allowed me to participate in and win the national Japanese speech competition.

[For further features of Amrit’s work in Edition 41, check out USASA Clubs: UniCast Radio Club on pages 58-61]