Study Tour

The final and possibly most valuable lesson learnt from the Study Tour was the confidence that Indigenous students do belong in institutions like those we visited, they are capable of being accepted on a merit basis and furthermore they are capable of succeeding while there. Being able to meet with Indigenous Scholars currently studying overseas at such prestigious institutions cemented in my mind the reality of postgraduate study overseas. Knowing that students have walked this path before me and succeeded so tremendously makes the experience seem far less daunting.

Getting a tertiary education was something I didn’t think was achievable, particularly because I wasn’t encouraged to pursue the university pathway at school. The Study Tour and the Aurora Education Foundation network played a huge role in my confidence to get to where I am now. I needed to see other success stories for me to believe in my own future.

The biggest, simplest impact [of the Study Tour] was when two Harvard faculty members, independent of one another, described my work as 'compelling' and engaged) enthusiastically with my current and proposed research and practice. It was a small gesture, but one that helped me shake impostor syndrome. It was also one that affirmed that I didn't just want to go to Harvard, but that Harvard might have interest in and a place for me and my work.