Vrinda

Bachelor of Commerce (Finance and Economics)

The thrill of travelling from her home in northern India to study a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance and Economics) at Flinders University greatly excited 19-year-old Vrinda, but hardships imposed by COVID-19 soon left her feeling isolated and afraid.

She couldn’t find part-time work – ‘So many applications and no success,’ she explains. She was also under pressure from an unsympathetic landlord and socially dislocated in her share house with an eclectic group of strangers – all who had full-time jobs.

‘I really buckled under the stress when the lockdown occurred. I felt so alone,’ says Vrinda. ‘There weren’t even other students to talk to. I’d cry myself to sleep at night, wondering what was my future.’

Receiving a Matthew Flinders Scholarship proved decisive in turning Vrinda’s thinking around. The kind financial gesture lifted her spirits and has helped return her focus back to studying.

‘If you can pay the rent, everything else can fall back into place including studies. I got good marks in my first semester,’ says Vrinda.

‘I am so grateful that Flinders has helped many students like me with this wondrous step. I don’t feel that study is a burden anymore. I just bless those people who contributed to the scholarship. I could not be more thankful.’