I always had an interest in environmental management but didn’t realise it could become a worthwhile career, and that’s why I didn’t apply for it straight out of school. After applying, I nervously sat through the STAT, but I did well enough to get my first choice.

My environmental management lecturers had a big impact on me.

Very early on, we were taught about critical thinking and how to approach our work. We were given a lot of feedback on structuring reports and formulating written arguments. I loved the fact that we were pushed to a very high standard.

Since University, I’ve been working to help restore the Coorong and Lower Lakes. Much of what I learned during my environmental management degree has helped me in this role.

I learned about how governments relate to the environment, and the importance of community consultation – things I use every day.

The breadth of environmental issues we studied has also helped me greatly. Regardless of the issue – whether it’s water or vegetation – I have a good grounding of knowledge that helps me relate to many situations.

My name is Mike and I'm a student in Health Sciences here at Flinders. 

I understand that it can be an anxious time waiting for your offer.  To help make the transition to university as easy as possible, I'd like to tell you a little bit about me and offer you some tips that I wish I knew before I started my study.

I decided on a career change from carpentry in 2014 when I came across the Flinders Foundation Studies Program.

As I had graduated high school about 9 or 10 years beforehand, whatever I studied and wherever I was going, this course made too much sense not to do. When I researched potential career pathways and courses I wanted to do, Flinders was the best choice for me in terms of my future goals. The Bedford Park location provided easy travel on public transport, even when cycling from the train on occasion.

Support at Flinders was better than I expected from vague memories of a high school teacher’s lessons of the harsh realities of tertiary education. From navigating enrolments to working out topic information and my potential career options, there was always someone that could help. 

My tips 

• Look for the scholarship possibilities you might be eligible for and apply for them.
• Back up everything you do on a USB as well as the Flinders One Drive cloud storage, it's free. (One copy is a copy, 2 copies is a back up)
• Skim reading is a great and useful skill to learn, but use the key terms/ words in a related question to help you focus your reading as well. 

After 25 years working in real estate, I wanted a career change. I could have gone for any degree but I wanted to come out with skills that were portable.

In the beginning I found I had forgotten how to study. It was a bit stressful approaching my first assignment but thankfully my lecturers were absolutely brilliant. They gave me fantastic feedback on grammar, English and presentation as well as the medical side of things.

As a mature age student, I was consistently studying and taking whatever information I got from the University very seriously. When I arrived at University I also met a few other mature age students. We bonded and are still good friends.

I picked up a lot of skills at Flinders. In nursing, it’s the understanding of medical skills but also understanding how nurses and other medical professionals interact with each other. Understanding how the industry works is as important to me as anything else I learned.

I’m currently at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital. The biggest thrill is to have parents who thank you so much for saving the life of their child. It’s quite gratifying – even if it’s only something minor which the parents thought was life threatening. You’ve been able to look at the child and help that family.