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The Griffith Futures Scholarship is awarded to students who have experienced financial hardship or education disadvantage that has impacted their ability to achieve their full potential.
For students like D’Arcy Smith the scholarship allowed her to reduce work commitments so she could spend more time focusing on study and pursue opportunities within the Griffith University community.
D’Arcy relocated from regional NSW to pursue a Bachelor of International Business degree four years ago as she was passionate about languages and hopes to one day work in diplomacy and foreign affairs.
With a passion for languages, D’Arcy studied Korean via distance education while at school and has since picked up Mandarin and Japanese.
“During my second year at Griffith, I decided to get involved with Griffith Clubs and found the Australia-China Youth Association (ACYA). Since then, I have been introduced to so many different opportunities and programs that have revolutionised my life,” D’Arcy said.
D’Arcy applied for the Griffith Futures Scholarship as she was working in a tourism office that began to feel the effects of COVID-19 early on and her hours were significantly reduced.
“I was concerned about how I would be able to support myself whilst continuing my studies and was considering putting my degree on hold for the year to seek full-time employment.
“As a recipient of this scholarship, I was able to continue studying full-time despite tough economic conditions, hire a language tutor and also focus on other projects that I’m incredibly passionate about, such as the United Nations Millennium Fellowship,” D’Arcy said.
The Fellowship focusses on implementation of the UN Sustainability and Development Goals which is one of the priorities for Griffith and aligns to several of Griffith University’s core values.
“I would love to someday work in diplomacy, fostering positive relations within our global community and extending a message of peace, so being chosen to take part in the Fellowship was really incredible,” D’Arcy said.
“I’d like to say thank you to the donors for investing in students like myself and showing us that our hard work, our passion and potential is recognised. This scholarship alleviates a lot of the financial burden and pressure that comes with being a student, allowing us to immerse ourselves fully in our studies and focus on creating a positive impact in our community.”