Two UTS students are ready to make their mark in the Indo-Pacific region after being awarded prestigious New Colombo Plan Scholarships.
The 2023 round of the New Colombo Plan (NCP) Scholarships will see two UTS students live, study and intern in the Indo-Pacific region, with 150 other Australian undergraduate students.
The prestigious scholarship program was established by the Australian government to build people-to-people connections between the countries in the Indo-Pacific and Australia. By offering the unique opportunity to study and work for up to 19 months in the region, the scholarship equips Australian undergraduate students to go on the journey of a lifetime. Recipients receive up to A$69,000 each and can choose to study in one of 40 countries.
In 2023, two bright UTS students, Esabella Los Reyes and Jacqueline Bodill have been selected and will spend 12 months in Singapore and Hong Kong respectively, for a session of studies and an internship.
Jacqueline is studying a Bachelor of Engineering and Science majoring in Mechanical Engineering/Chemistry. Hailing from Coraki in rural NSW, she is paving her way for a career in STEM.
Jacqueline has also been selected as the Hong Kong NCP Fellow, the highest ranking NCP Scholar for that destination.
Esabella is in her third year of the Bachelor of Business and is no stranger to the professional world of her degree. She’s been studying part-time and working full-time at an accounting firm in a cadetship program for the past two years.
‘While I have enjoyed doing my cadetship, I want to try something different for the final year of my degree and be more involved with student life now that COVID has settled!’ she says.
Esabella’s passion for entrepreneurship and business ventures led her to choose to study at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore.
‘NTU reminded me of UTS. It is ranked as the world’s top young university!’ she says.
Esabella hopes to complete her internship placement in a company that focuses on environmental, social and corporate governance. She hopes to learn about ‘how sustainability can be integrated into modern business models and how it can be facilitated through accounting and finance'.
For Esabella, the best part of the NCP program is the network of scholars. Before commencing their programs, successful applicants are invited to attend a ceremony and training sessions at the NCP Secretariat in Canberra. Here, she was inspired by the stories of past scholars and how their NCP journeys continue to shape their careers today.
Esabella is especially excited to travel overseas for the first time.
‘I think being overseas for an extended period will build my resilience and adaptability by pushing me out of my comfort zone’
Esabella Los Reyes
Through her NCP program, Esabella hopes to learn about Singapore’s successful business resources and strategies as well as how Australian businesses can adopt and benefit from these.
For Esabella, her NCP journey won’t end once she returns to Australia.
‘I’m excited to expand my network with overseas connections to build global business relationships in my future career and contribute to maintaining the significant investment relationship between Singapore and Australia.’