Alumni

Have you ever wondered how young people who have just finished university could possibly afford to own property? It seems out of reach to most graduates, but it doesn’t have to be. In this first instalment of the Rich Grad, Poor Grad series, Andrew Courtney a UQ Master of Commerce graduate will explain that it comes down to breaking the status quo.

A Master of Economics might not seem like the best base to build a writing career, but graduate and author Kirsty Eagar says her time at The University of Queensland was a key to her career as a writer – mostly because her latest novel, Summer Skin, is set at the sprawling St Lucia Campus.

University of Queensland graduate and chronic pain researcher Georgia Richards has been selected as a semi-finalist for The Australian Women’s Weekly Qantas Women of the Future Award which honours people who are pursuing a dream to help others.

Leading Australian businessman and UQ alumnus Malcolm Broomhead credits his UQ MBA as a turning point in his career. He is giving back to the next generation through a $3 million gift to help establish UQ’s first Chair of Finance which will provide UQ business students with access to a global leader in the field.

UQ graduate Luke Furness leads the Queensland arm of Out for Australia – a national LGBTIQ charity that provides mentoring and support to young university students of all genders and sexualities. He shares his experience about covering up his sexuality while growing up Namibia.

UQ graduate and social entrepreneur Freeda Thong is passionate about the environment, and has found a unique way to help protect it. She is the founder of Ecopads Australia – cloth sanitary pads with a cause – and her impact has been recognised at the Queensland Young Achievers Awards where she was a semi-finalist in the Environmental and Sustainability category. Here’s her story.

Celebrated Australian author and UQ PhD student Nick Earls is exploring a novel approach to publishing for those with a short attention span. Today he releases Gotham, his first in a series of novellas that will be distributed in print, e-book and audio.