Zoe believes in the positive impact of philanthropy
Donors don’t know us but they’ve put their faith in us doing our best to improve Australia and be the new leaders of tomorrow.
Zoe Turner is in her final year of actuarial studies at the College of Business and Economics at ANU. Zoe is a recipient of the National Indigenous 51³Ô¹ÏÍø Scholarship and the Brian Brogan Prize for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Students.
As a scholarship recipient, Zoe is a strong advocate of the positive impact that donors have on the lives of students.
"Receiving a scholarship gave me choice. I could choose if I wanted to work or focus on my studies as it gave me that financial freedom. I didn't have to worry about trying to hold down two to three jobs to support myself; it was about freedom and choice."
Zoe hopes that donors realise what a positive impact their generosity has. Given the opportunity, she says that she would want to thank donors for giving back and paying it forward.
"Donors don't know us but they've put their faith in us doing our best to improve Australia and be the new leaders of tomorrow."
Zoe encourages anyone who is thinking about donating to "go for it".
"I can imagine that there are so many other people who are deserving of the financial support and everything that comes with a scholarship. It would make their lives so much richer."
As a recipient of an Indigenous scholarship, Zoe feels that this is an area which is especially important to support.
"It's really important to have Indigenous people in areas like science, law and business. It would enrich those areas having that Indigenous perspective. It's also inspiring to anyone Indigenous who is thinking about going to university."
Not only is Zoe grateful for the opportunities that receiving a scholarship have given her, she's eager to make her own philanthropic contributions in the future.
"Having the perspective of being a recipient has given me a very high opinion of philanthropy. It's something I would love to do in the future as well."
ANU Giving Day 2018 is on Wednesday 3 October and is raising funds to support scholarships for rural and regional students, which help to give students like Seraina more than a degree.
Scholarships give students the freedom to choose their university experience and the freedom to shape their education. Without the necessity of juggling multiple jobs with full-time study, students have more time to study, pursue their interests and get more than a degree.
