The word Kardinia of Kardinia International College is Tasmania Aborigine word which means sunrise or new beginning. There are many international students. Everyone is very friendly whether they are international students or not.

School is big, large and awesome. Teachers will support you to improve your skills. There are bunch of subjects so we can choose and develop our skills.

Geelong, where Kardinia International College located, is very beautiful city with beach. Average temperature is warm and nice.

I’m living in nice homestay with wonderful homestay parents. They are so kind.

  My friends are also kind, nice, friendly and awesome.

  The main special event I have enjoyed was founder’s day. It was very different to

  my country’s founders day.

  KIM Weonjoon(Grant)

Kardinia International College에서의 Kardinia라는단어는타스마니아어보리진단어로, 여명과새로운출발을의미합니다. 학교에는많은유학생이있으며, 유학생이건아니건모두친절합니다.

학교는크고넓고멋집니다. 선생님들은실력향상을위해도와주시며, 우리가실력을쌓을수있도록많은선택가능한과목이있습니다.

Kardinia International College가위치해있는절롱은해변이있는멋진도시입니다. 평균기온도따뜻하고좋습니다.

저는현재착하고멋진 Homestay Parents와함께 homestay를하고있습니다.

제친구들또한착하고, 멋지고친절합니다.

학교에와서제일특별하다생각한일은개교기념일입니다. 한국에서의개교기념일과는판이하게달랐습니다. 

A story from Eun Jeong Ji, she came from Korea to Deakin Nursing with a prior qualification of Registered Nurse from Korea, with this she was granted CPL for 16 credit points.

Back in 2013, I was faced with the task of choosing a suitable university for my undergraduate studies. I heard about Deakin University through the pathway program offered at the Royal Institute Colombo and I decided to study at Deakin because it is one of the most well-known and reputable universities in Australia. Deakin University is also known for its engineering courses and facilities, which persuaded me to embark on this adventure. As part of the pathway program, I completed the first two years of my degree at the Royal Institute. Then I transferred to Deakin in 2015 for my final years, undertaking a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Honours) at the Geelong Waurn Ponds campus.

From childhood, I always had a passion for engineering. After high school, I tried taking a different path by doing an internship at a bank, but the experience was uninspiring and pushed me further towards engineering. The experience I have gained by joining Deakin as an engineering student is inexpressible. Deakin’s cutting edge technologies, featuring the most current and advanced lab equipment in the engineering department caught me by surprise from the very beginning.

Deakin’s cutting edge technologies, featuring the most current and advanced lab equipment in the engineering department caught me by surprise from the very beginning.

Testing the stress factor of a bridge at the lab

When I moved to Australia, I was having second thoughts about living all alone in Geelong, where my Deakin University campus is based. I lost my father when I was three years old, and was raised by my mother for 20 years along with my sister. But after arriving, I found Geelong and Australia to be very welcoming and started embracing my life here.

Road trip with friends to Torquay beach

I was rather nervous during the orientation week at Deakin, but the people I met during orientation made me feel like I was no longer away from home. Studying at Deakin has been an invaluable experience, and it has taught me how to develop my thinking and to take everything into consideration. One of the things I admire most about Deakin is that I can listen to my lectures online through CloudDeakin. All of the lectures are recorded and available to be used through CloudDeakin which is helpful if I ever fall behind.

Studying at Deakin has been an invaluable experience, and it has taught me how to develop my thinking and to take everything into consideration Another thing I love about Deakin is the number of events that happen on campus, and the number of student societies you can join. Deakin holds a Twilight Festival every year which lights up the night sky with fireworks – it was mind blowing!

At the Deakin Twilight Festival

I also joined the Deakin Sri Lankan Students Society which made me feel more at home, introducing me to new people with different personalities. The events that the Deakin Sri Lankan Student Society organised over the past few months were spectacular. And obviously being a Sri Lankan makes you fall in love with the game of cricket, so I joined the Deakin Waurn Ponds Cricket Club and played in the first’s team.

Deakin Kottu Night organised by the Deakin Sri Lankan Society

During a practice session with the Eagles During a practice session with the Eagles

My journey abroad has been both overwhelming and inspiring and my experience in Australia has taught me so much. It has taught me to open my eyes to various opportunities, and how to adapt to new relationships and acquaintances abroad. Wandering out of my ordinary range of knowledge has taught me that life may not generally go as planned but one thing for certain is that we will positively wind up where we are intended to be, and if life is a story, why not make it an experience worth telling.

I obtained my VCE from Geelong College in 2003. After that, I received a scholarship to study a Bachelor of Philosophy (PhB) degree majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology at Australian National University. PhB is a unique degree from ANU that tailors for high-achieving students and prepares them for a career in academia by offering a research focused undergraduate degree.

During my undergraduate studies, I did an exchange semester at Stockholm University. After Sweden, I returned to ANU and completed my Honours research project at the John Curtin School of Medical Research under Professor Chris Parish. I was winner of the University Medal and recipient of the Janet Elspeth Crawford Prize recommended by the Dean of the Faculty of Science. I continued on with research and completed a PhD in molecular immunology at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research. My project investigated how cells in the immune system perceive cues from viral infections such as influenza and translate these cues into forming an appropriate immune response to defend the body from invading pathogens.

My study resulted in authorship in high-ranking academic journals including Nature Immunology and Immunity and part of the study was chosen for presentation at the 14th International Congress Of Immunology in Kobe. I was the sole recipient of the Australian Academy of Science Adam J Berry Memorial Scholarship in 2010 and completed a traineeship at the National Institutes of Health in the US under the prestigious Dr Warren Leonard. I have since pursued a career in medicine and am currently studying my 2nd year of the postgraduate degree at St Vincent's Hospital (a clinical school belonging to University of Melbourne).