Students in Focus
U CAN @ UC: Riley Fernandes proves there's more than one path to university
Riley Fernandes was born and raised in Tuggeranong in Canberra’s south. Despite the occasional traffic jam, driving down the tree-lined Tuggeranong Parkway feels like coming home, as the iconic rolling hills that stretch into the horizon come into view.
“I was living in Banks for a long time – so as far south as you can pretty much get! There's something peaceful about getting home and you can see all the stars, there's the kangaroos and the mountains ... It's unique, certain pockets of it feel like another little world,” she says.
Riley is midway through a double degree at the University of Canberra, a Bachelor of Psychology and a Bachelor of Health Science. Studying the subjects where her passion lies makes every day a new adventure: “Psych is so cool, I’m crazy about it, even the statistics side of things!”
But university wasn’t always a sure thing for Riley, who returned to study as a mature age student and parent.
“In Year 11 I got told that I wasn't cut out for university. My ATAR projection was low, and I ended up swapping to an accredited package,” Riley says.
Without the pressure of an ATAR, Riley decided to take new units, psychology and media studies, “for fun” and as it turned out – discovered entirely new strengths and skills.
So when she decided to try study again after a period of fulltime work post Year 12, it was through a Certificate IV in Screen and Media at the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT).
“After not going to uni straight away and feeling a little bit glum about the whole thing, I decided on the media certificate because I thought I might enjoy it, and I did – I enjoyed it a lot!” she says.
Her success at CIT was encouraging, she had become better at the art of studying since college, and had found that by picking subjects she truly enjoyed, her homework never felt like a chore. She decided that perhaps she was ready to try for university again.
So she applied to study a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Psychology and thanks to her success in her CIT course, received an offer to study the next semester. Now with a renewed love of learning, she was ready to dive right in.
But within her first year, Riley hit another crossroads – she found out she was pregnant. She took a pause on her studies and moved back to Tuggeranong to live closer to her family.
By the time she was ready to return to university, taking a single Winter Term unit to “dip her toe back in”, Riley was driving from Tuggeranong to Bruce for classes with her daughter in tow. She swapped from the arts to a health sciences degree, finding a beautiful synergy between the study of the mind, and the study of the body.
“Adding that health component to my degree really opened my eyes to the different pathways that exist at the intersection of mental and physical health," she says.
“While I’m still drawn to a career in clinical psychology, I realised there are other options if I didn’t want to continue on and complete a masters – I think working in sports rehabilitation or workplace injury rehabilitation could be very interesting.”
And as her studies progressed, so did her connection to the university. Looking for a flexible part-time job, she applied to become a Student Ambassador. The rewarding role sees her visit local schools and career expos with the Student Recruitment team and attend events like O-Week and Open Day to provide advice and guidance to prospective students.
“I always tell students, do subjects you want to do – do something you’re interested in and that you think is fun – don’t take them just because you think you ‘should’,” Riley says.
“In my first three semesters at university, I got high distinctions. I had had a little bit of time to figure out what I wanted to do and I had the support behind me, people who believed that I could do it.”
It’s a rewarding job, and one she genuinely feels she can make a difference through.
“I’ve seen firsthand the opportunities a degree can create – the experiences, the relationships with your peers and your teachers, the benefits of work experience,” Riley says.
“I think UC connects with the kind of people who want a more practical outlook, so I guide students who want to make a difference in their community, and be a part of something.”
Now, one of UC’s biggest advocates is also one of the very prominent faces of the University’s new U CAN @ UC campaign. The campaign is designed around the stories of real UC students – mature age students, career changers and people who were told they can’t – so it’s only fitting that Riley is helping to represent that story.
“The Marketing team were looking for students who actually study here for the photoshoot. I was just supposed to be a background extra, but they kept making me laugh so hard!” Riley says.
“The smile is real! I think that’s why those shots got used, because they know that I’m genuinely happy to be here.”
Photos and story by Kelly White