Meet the WA students given a spot at university for being good people
Emer O’Brien spent her final years at school advocating for better education support for young people in Western Australia’s regional and remote communities.
Aware of the stark difference between opportunities available to metropolitan and regional students after growing up nearly 16 hours from Perth in Dampier, O’Brien wanted to help find ways to bridge that gap.
Emer O’Brien and Giselle Hein, are students at Murdoch University in Perth, WA.Credit: Cameron Myles/ Supplied
She decided to join the Youth Advisory Council for her city after two knee reconstructions forced her to quit sport, and eventually got involved in Youth Parliament, where she helped acquire a partnership with Rio Tinto to sponsor young people in remote areas.
Despite sitting five ATAR exams, O’Brien became one of the first students to enter a Perth university through a new scholarship based not on academic success, but on being a good person.
Murdoch University launched the Ngala Kwop Biddi Brighter Futures Scholarship in 2023, aimed at taking one student from every school in the state and bridging the educational gaps between students from different backgrounds.
O’Brien, now studying international aid and development with a minor in gender studies, said she had achieved more at school than grades alone, and had been excited about the new pathway and what it celebrated.
“Not only did I now have massive financial support, but I also had the pride and sense of achievement in knowing that I was selected,” she said.
“I found high school hard for many reasons but for my school specifically, there was less of a focus on studying ATAR pathways and a push for Certificate IV and bridging courses as the entry pathway to university.”
Another student to receive the new scholarship was Giselle Hein, who is now studying a Bachelor of Education with a minor in inclusive education.
“I did some ATAR subjects, but didn’t sit the exams because I couldn’t get the different exam conditions I needed,” she said.
“I brought the application (for the scholarship) forward to my teachers after I saw it and got everyone to sign off. I was really happy.”
Hein received the scholarship after organising inclusive outings and disability support for fellow students, having experienced first hand how being neurodivergent could be isolating.
This included running Disability Awareness Week at her school and raising money for Rett syndrome – a disease that affects the body’s nervous system – which one of her friends lives with.
She also organised a program through Vinnies, cooking once a week for the St Patrick’s soup kitchen.
“I wanted to do something about the loneliness in ed support – mainstream kids have birthdays, and you’re one of the one or two kids not invited,” Hein said.
“It seems like the school has taken some of the things I started on board, and they still do some of them.”
The state government has recently raised concerns that alternative pathways to university were stopping students who were capable from sitting ATAR exams.
Education Minister Tony Buti said the declining numbers sitting those tests was the catalyst for sweeping reforms to senior secondary pathways, that could include adding more subjects into the ATAR pathway.
Murdoch Deputy Vice Chancellor of Education, Professor Don Klinger, said he believed the alternative pathways were about improving the equity of the system.
“We continue to look for new pathways for students across the state that will best meet our young peoples’ needs and provide them access to a quality education with us,” he said.
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