What do you do in the world of Higher Degrees by Research?

I am the HDR Education Coordinator, leading the HDR Development team in the office. We look after all training and development for HDR students and supervisors. I manage the induction process, REST and all workshops and content provided to our HDR students. I run a number of workshops and discussion groups as well as surveys where I connect with HDR students to find out their training and development needs, and base the content and services on those. I also manage the HDR Supervisor Development program, assisting our supervisors to complete their training requirements and provide the best possible service to our students.

The best part of your job?

Having completed my undergraduate and PhD at Flinders, I feel I understand the joys and struggles of our students. I love being in a position where I can directly help students by facilitating workshops, discussion groups and meetings and sharing by experience and knowledge gathered throughout all these years . The best part of my job however, is that it allows me to directly respond to students’ needs and requests by developing and implementing services to support them throughout their candidature. I do feel that I am actually able to make a difference and give our students a helping hand to make the HDR journey just that little bit easier and more enjoyable.

Your favourite holiday destination?

I do not like winter, and like to escape it whenever possible. I love spending winters in Far North Queensland, where it is a lot warmer. My family has been escaping to Cairns or Port Douglas every winter for a number of years. This is the first year in a while I haven’t had a break from winter, and I welcome spring with open arms!

Your favourite Cuisine?

I must admit that dessert is my favourite part of the meal. It often replaces my meals actually! I am lucky (or they are lucky) that both my girls (6 and 4) take after me, so we often go out for waffles and ice cream.

Do you have any pets?

Yes, I have a dog called Lacey. She is a Staffy x Ridgeback (not much Ridgeback in her though). She is turning 13 this year, and is an old dog in age but still very much a puppy in spirit. She loves to escape us when we are not looking, and take herself for walks to explore the neighbourhood. We often find her sunbathing with the cat next door.