Help to continue studies

Matthew Flinders Scholarship

Arvind Appadoo’s dream job is to help people with a disability find relevant activities that will improve their quality of life.

He says, “I hope to be able to help people of any age range to be able to enjoy doing things they want to do, no matter how severe their disability is.”

Arvind realised he could do this work as an Occupational Therapist, so he applied for a Bachelor of Health Science and a Master of Occupational Therapy at Flinders University – a commitment of five years full-time study!

He’s now four years into his studies. “So far it has been an amazing experience and I’ve learnt so much, including every single muscle group, working with cadavers, and so much more.”

However, Arvind has faced a range of challenges during his degrees. Unable to afford to live near campus, he has been staying with relatives in Salisbury - where getting to lectures means a four-hour return journey by bus each day.

Arvind says, “Thank you for your support and helping me in my pursuit of becoming an allied health professional.”

“That’s a lot of time that I could have been studying,” says Arvind.

He managed to cut his travel time in half by working two part-time jobs to buy a car, but struggled with registration, petrol and basic living costs.

“I thought, ‘If I don’t get help, I will have to quit uni’.”

That’s when Arvind applied for a Matthew Flinders Scholarship.

“For a whole semester the scholarship helped me pay for petrol and car registration, plus buying better food than baked beans and two-minute noodles.”

Arvind was thrilled to receive the support that ultimately enabled him to continue his studies.

“Not only did the scholarship help me financially, but it also increased my motivation to keep going with my studies, because at that point I was having doubts on whether my finances would stretch enough to be able to continue.”

He says, “To the donors of the Matthew Flinders Scholarship, thank you for your support and helping me in my pursuit of becoming an allied health professional.”

You can provide vital support and hope to students like Arvind by giving to the Matthew Flinders Scholarship.

100% of your tax-deductible donation will support students in financial need at Flinders University through the Matthew Flinders Scholarship.

Donate today

^{Published: 2022. Author Lynda Allen.}

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