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Overview
Each year the ANU Medical School may offer two awards known as the Bill Nicholes "Willigobung" Scholarship for Medicine. The objective of the award is to provide financial assistance to students enrolling in the Australian National University's four year graduate entry Medicinae ac Chirurgiae Doctoranda (MChD) degree program.
Funding for this award has been provided by the late Bill Nicholes, who bequeathed more than $4.2 million to support students studying graduate medicine at ANU. Bill was a retired farmer who lived and worked on his family's farm near Tumbarumba, NSW, for most of his life. The estate was called "Willigobung" and was acquired by his father as a Solider's Settlement block in 1951. There the family established an apple orchard and eventually became one of the most successful apple growers in the region. Bill was said to be instrumental in the farm's success.
In later years, when his mother and father's health deteriorated, Bill cared for them at "Willigobung". Bill also suffered from a number of medical conditions and it is thought that these experiences may have contributed to his decision to support scholarships in medicine. To honour Bill's regional background and his intention to give students the opportunity to come to ANU who otherwise might not be able to, one of the scholarships available each year will be for a student who is relocating from, or was schooled in a rural, regional or remote area.
Field of study
Eligibility
The award is available in 2023 to a prospective ANU student who:
- is an Australian citizen, holder of an Australian Permanent Resident visa or a permanent humanitarian visa;
- has been offered a place in the Medicinae ac Chirurgiae Doctoranda (MChD) program at the ANU Medical School, College of Health and Medicine;
- has achieved an overall weighted minimum GPA of 6.8 (as per GEMSAS calculation);
- Is able to attend the ANU Medical School Nicholes' Scholarship Interview;
- is able to demonstrate the attributes of a Nicholes' Scholar (see further information below);
- For the scholarship reserved for a student from a rural background, in addition to satisfying the above criteria, the student must meet the rural background criteria by having lived in an approved Australian Statistical Geography Standard Remoteness Area (ASGS-RA) for a minimum of 5 years consecutively or 10 years cumulatively.
Selection
Selection is made on the basis of:
- Academic achievement;
- A track record of sustained contributions to the applicants community eg. during university life (Volunteer Programmes);
- Ability to demonstrate personal qualities, abilities and talents desirable in a clinician;
- Extra-curricular activities beyond academic achievement;
- Nicholes Scholarship interview.
Benefits
The scholarship is valued at $20,000 per annum for four years. The scholarship will be paid in equal instalments at the beginning of each semester.
How to apply
The application form is available from the "Apply Now" link at the top of this page. Applications must be submitted by the closing date i.e., Friday, 6th January 2023, 5:00 PM.
Further information
A Nicholes scholar will display the following attributes:
- an individual who will practise medicine with humility, compassion, self-sacrifice, courage and resilience
- an individual who will aspire to advocacy and leadership in their chosen field.