We are delighted to hear news and updates from our collegians, and with their permission, to share with our College community.

The following email was received for our Head of Careers, Mr Lynton Smith.

Megan Rawlings – Class of 2017

Megan Rawlings graduated in 2017. 2 years prior she came to you for help and advice. Megan wanted to study for her Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing whilst still studying for her ATAR subjects.

This involved her needing a study period in year 11 for her Veterinary Nursing and studying 4 ATAR subjects, increasing to 5 in year 12.

Megan was advised by other teachers to take 1 pathway, ATAR or Certificate. Megan explained to you that she knew she wanted to work with animals and this was what she needed but also wanted to Leave school with an ATAR grade for her self-satisfaction she knew she could juggle both and you believed in her.

Megan always had a dream to study Veterinary Medicine, she was realistic and knew she would not get the ATAR to go straight in so had to have a plan B.

Her plan B was to study animal health animal science whilst working as a Vet Nurse giving her a better chance to transfer to Vet.

Here application to transfer was also backed by her taking her Vet Nursing to Africa where she did voluntary work as a nurse working with African wildlife and she works part time at Murdoch Animal Hospital Nursing. It’s a very hard course to get into and Megan knew she would need a lot to support her application and not rely just on grades.

Megan has just found out that she has a place in Veterinary Medicine and can transfer over from her second year in Animal health Animal Science.

With Megan always having a plan she did it.

We want you to know that without her having her Nursing Megan may not have been able to do this as it is such a competitive course. She would not have been able to make her application as strong as it was without all the pieces.

We want you to also know that by you allowing Megan to also complete her ATARS, she would not have had the confidence nor been able to attend Murdoch as easily as she did. Megan left LJBC with her Cert IV in Vet Nursing and an ATAR of 82.5!

I know that being a teacher is a very rewarding job but sometimes your influences on a student may go unnoticed and you may never really know the impact you have had on someone.

We want you to know the role you played in helping Megan, you really went that extra length to help her, by making it possible for her to complete both her ATAR subjects and Cert IV you gave her the confidence that you believed she was capable of managing both. When you give someone that confidence it will continue to grow and help them throughout all aspects of life.

Megan along with us will never forget your encouragement support and help in making her dreams start to take place.

The world needs more teachers like you, We will always be grateful to you and although you may not recall our meeting as you are so busy, we always will.

Jake Mawson – Class of 2022

We are delighted to share that Jake is the recipient of a UWA Fogarty Scholarship. The UWA Fogarty Foundation Scholarship Program is one of Australia’s premier scholarship programs, a joint venture between the Fogarty Foundation and the University of Western Australia, investing in the future leaders of Western Australia. Each year, there are 10 scholarships on offer for Year 12 high school students from WA. The program is enriching our community by investing in exceptional young people who use their skills, abilities and commitment to lead positive change in our community, state and nation.

Jake graduated in 2022 with 4 subject prizes, Honours in Curriculum and Service and a SCSA Certificate of Distinction, as well as the ADF Long Tan Youth Leadership and Teamwork Award and an ADF Future Innovators Award. He served as Unit Leader for the Emergency Services Cadets, Youth Leader for the college’s Ignite Youth program, as a guitarist for youth groups and competed on the Interschool Basketball team. He represented LJBC at the Da Vinci Decathlon and Future Problem Solvers Nationals, his teams having won both State competitions. 

A passionate creator who enjoys helping others, Jake designed and made the prototype for an invention used by a local Soccer Academy. He also designed and 3D printed fidget toys for a Learning Enhancement Centre. He runs a tutoring business and performed successful penetration testing as an ethical hacker, also accumulating 1M views on Quora for his articles.

Jake loves playing piano and guitar. In 2021 his band won the City of Joondalup’s Defeat The Beat and returned as Youth Judges for the 2022 competition.

Jake is looking forward to making the most of the opportunities afforded by UWA and the Fogarty Foundation Scholarship.