New country for new student
Sokpeuv Sin starts a new life at Toowoomba's University of Southern Queensland.
IT'S a new country, a new university and a new way of life for former Cambodia resident Sokpeuv Sin as she prepares to begin study at the University of Southern Queensland under the AusAID scholarship.
The AusAID scholarship allows overseas students like Sokpeuv to develop their education, leadership and skills in Australia so they can return to their home country and contribute to the development and improvement of their community.
Miss Sin will be starting a Masters of Professional Accounting and is hoping to return to Cambodia with a whole new set of skills.
'I'm hoping to improve my English, build up my knowledge and become more independent,' Miss Sin said.
'I'm very excited to start at USQ; I've been in Toowoomba for less than a week and I've been surprised by how cold it is.'
Student relationship officer and AusAID contact officer Damien Zekants said the AusAID students were very appreciative of their time at USQ.
'We have some very tearful goodbyes when it comes time for the students to finish the program,' Mr Zekants said.
'We have 16 students starting the program at USQ this year which is the biggest group we've had for a while.
'We get a lot of student enquiries about the program; it's becoming quite popular.'
Mr Zekants said most of the students came from places like Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, Vietnam and Samoa.
'This semester we have three Afghan students participating, the first lot of students from that region we've had through the AusAID program,' Mr Zekants said.
'The students form a very tight community here and meet other students from their home countries.
'That's part of the reason the students get so emotional when it's time to graduate and move on.
'The students are always very excited to start at USQ and our program graduates have had a great time here.'
For more information about scholarships available to international students at USQ, visit www.usq.edu.au/scholarships/international.
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