What are your highlights from school, teachers, programs etc?

One of the highlights of St. Andrews for me was the range of opportunities, support and guidance I was offered. Access to the extension programs with Peter Hand was invaluable. Brad Bowen, Paul Sjogren and Penny Sargent had an immense influence on my development at a personal level. I am a big believer of the influence environment has on you - I couldn’t fault one thing in this regard at St. Andrews, from the people in my classes through to the teachers.

What were your interests during school… sport, music etc and are you still involved?

Outside of academics, I was really interested in tennis. Glenn Irwin and his team helped me out a lot. I also remember doing lessons at the school with Pat Rafter - something I probably didn’t value as much as I should have, being a kid.

What challenges you faced post-school, and even post-uni?

After school I moved to Brisbane both for tennis and to attend UQ. Moving out of home, living alone and entering University at 16 presented a fair few new challenges which were invaluable for maturing into an adult and gaining fresh perspective. Although in hindsight, it was probably not a bad thing that I couldn’t buy a beer on the weekend during most of my time at UQ! With only a learner’s license, I had to cycle anywhere I wanted to go such as the grocery store and learned how to cook pretty quickly. Overall, it was a necessary move to pursue my ambitious dreams. I quickly gained appreciation for the simple things.

What did you study at University and graduation news etc

Bachelor of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences at UQ. Master of Health, Exercise and Sport Science at University of Pacific, California

What have you been doing since graduation?

As mentioned above I spent time in Brisbane from 16-19 completing my undergraduate degree. In the last semester I finished my degree on exchange competing for the tennis team at University of Washington in Seattle. This opened the door to a multitude of offers from colleges around the USA to play NCAA division 1 collegiate tennis. Now at 20yrs old, I have taken up a full ride to University of the Pacific in California to continue progressing my tennis alongside earning a Masters degree.

What are your long-term goals?

I plan to pursue a career in tennis professionally (finances permitting) upon finishing college here in the US. Successful or not in pursuit of the famed heights of the tennis world, I plan to return to study in Australia some day to study medicine.