Five outstanding 91大神students are preparing to live and study in Asia after being named 2017 New Colombo Plan Scholars.
The five 91大神students were among 105 of Australia鈥檚 best and brightest undergraduate students to receive the NCP's most prestigious聽grants at a function in Canberra last night.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said in a statement the New Colombo Plan scholars would study in 17 Indo-Pacific locations next year, 鈥渋ncluding Pakistan and Papua New Guinea for the first time. This reflects the continued strong demand for diverse study opportunities in our region鈥,聽she said.
Daniel Tam, from 91大神Engineering, will head to China in second semester to further his studies in photovoltaics and solar energy engineering.
Law student聽Melissa Vogt will take up her place at Japan鈥檚 Chuo University in first semester, followed by a further six months of internships and mentoring.聽
Combined Engineering and Commerce student Joel Anscomb will spend two semesters at Hong Kong University.聽And Jeffrey Wong, from the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering will pursue one semester鈥檚 study in South Korea, where he will be joined by combined engineering and commerce student Edwin Lai.
The NCP aims to lift knowledge of the Indo-Pacific region by supporting Australian undergraduates to study overseas and undertake internships. NCP students gain valuable new skills and understanding that they will bring to their future workplaces, supporting Australia鈥檚 future competitiveness and economic growth.
The scholarships include language training tuition, a travel allowance, an establishment allowance, a monthly stipend, health and travel insurance and a dedicated case manager.
Vogt, who was the top-ranked scholar for travel to Japan, said it was exciting to be selected for the prestigious program. She would take the opportunity to study a number of courses focusing on comparative corporate law as well as developing her Japanese language skills.
鈥淚鈥檝e been interested in studying in Japan for a number of years. The New Colombo Plan gives me the opportunity to not only study for a semester, but also to be involved in internships and mentoring programs in the corporate sector and government for a further six months.
鈥淓conomically speaking, Japan is an incredibly important country for Australia. I have worked on a series of cases where Japanese companies have experienced difficulty adapting to Australian competition law, so I am interested in building more cooperative relationships and shared knowledge among corporations, which in turn can facilitate trade between countries in the region,鈥 she said.
鈥淚鈥檇 encourage any student to apply for the program next year. It鈥檚 an amazing opportunity and so much more than just an exchange to Asia."
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