Hi everyone!
 
Thank you so much for selecting me as a recipient of this scholarship last year. With the money, I was able to purchase a high-quality laptop, which is such an important resource for any uni student - especially considering the year we had, which had such a large focus on online learning. A good laptop makes all the difference and by making this purchase, I felt much better equipped and I was able to further my work and efforts at university this year. 
 
This past year I have been studying First Year Health Science at the University of Otago. Alongside moving to the other end of the country, I was able to get out of my comfort zone, have so many new and exciting experiences, make some unforgettable memories (if the hall asks, we didn't try to hide a cat in the hall's library during a late-night study session), and gain some more independence. This year certainly didn’t go how I’d anticipated, with lockdown and COVID creating a massive blunder through most of my second semester, moving it all online. Nonetheless, this helped me learn to adapt to change and made me appreciate my time in the halls of residence. Regardless, I still loved my first year of university and overall, I came out of this year very satisfied and happy with my results.
 
While I went into this year thinking I was gonna come out as a Pharmacy student at the end, my strong distaste for biochemistry and chemistry which arose a mere few weeks into the year made me rethink my carefully thought out plans. However, as the year passed, I quickly discovered my interest and passion for public health. Therefore, next year I’ll be studying a Bachelor of Health Sciences majoring in Public Health and minoring in Statistics. Public health appeals to me because it has a focus on the health of the entire country, working at a population level rather than focussing on an individual level. I’ll be able to work with and impact entire communities at once rather than individuals at a time. I’ll also reach communities and prevent problems before they’re even started, instead of waiting to work with people after they become sick, as well as implement the importance of our right to health. Following my time in university, I hope to eventually work in either epidemiology, biostatistics or health policy, all of which are areas of public health that fascinate me. 
 
For the rest of the summer, I plan on working to earn some money for uni next year, soaking in the warm weather (which I’ll certainly miss when I’m back in Dunedin), and getting some much-needed rest to re-charge and prepare to hit the ground running next year!
 
I’d like to thank Rotary again for awarding me with this scholarship and for your support; I’m so grateful and so disappointed I wasn’t able to see you all in person. 
 
Hira Qadeer
Dear Rotary Club,
What a year it's been! Although, I am getting a bit of déjà vu, and I do not love it. I am so disappointed to miss the opportunity to speak to you all in person, but I would like to thank you all for awarding me the Rotary scholarship last year. I cannot express to you just how grateful I still am for that honour.
With your support, I was able to buy a quality laptop for University. I don't think I need to tell you just how valuable a good laptop has been this year. However, not only that but presenting me with such an award gave me a sense of confidence that my hard work did mean something. So, this year I took that confidence and ran with it. While studying Biomedical Science at Auckland University this year, I have pushed myself to look beyond one path. I have discovered my love for neuroscience and just how much I love the field. I have done work within labs giving me a glimpse into the research field. While I originally wanted to apply to medicine to become a Psychiatrist, I have found myself wanting to help
in more ways than just within healthcare. I have also applied for a Bachelor of Advanced Science with Honours in Psychology. This way, I will be able to pursue the psychiatric aspect of medicine down a different path. Going down this path, I hope to get into clinical psychology to help people still personally. However, I will also be able to explore neuropsychology and the research side; this way, I can be a part of discovering more ways to help people. I've been inspired by my many lecturers and professors who've shown a tremendous amount of passion for their field, which has only motivated me more.
While this year has undoubtedly been a challenge, with Auckland going into a swift lockdown for my first week of University and then being in lockdown for the majority of my second semester, I'd like to think I came out relatively unscathed. I managed to receive an invitation for MMI clinical interviews, so my grades haven't suffered too much. However, whether or not I am accepted into the medical program, I am proud and enthusiastic for the future.
Thank you so very much for your continued support and interest in what I am pursuing.
Best Wishes
Erica Choeung
 
The course I am doing is a bachelor in health and science majoring in paramedicine at Auckland University of Technology at the south campus. For my first semester the overall grades I achieved were A-, A, A, and B+ which I was very happy to see, and this made me feel more confident as being in university is a big step up from high school. For my second semester I haven’t received my overall grades yet but with most of my assessment I was achieving A and B grades, which I am proud of myself for achieving the higher side of the grading system. Because of the type of degree, I am doing, I got to go out on ambulances transporting people from hospital to hospital or hospital to home. This gave me the opportunity to talk with and connect with my community which I felt was very special and because of covid being able to go out on the ambulances took a while longer than it was supposed to be but the university was able to get us students out there and we were able to see first-hand what Covid has done to our communities. I have very much enjoyed my experiences at university and have had a lot of fun despite the interruptions
My plan for the holidays is just to hang out with the people that I care about that I haven’t been able to properly hang out with because of covid. I am very excited for next year as it will again be a step up as I go further into my degree and meet lots of different people and start to help those people.
Catherine Armstrong
 
Hi, I’m Kayla Sinclair, previous student of ACG Strathallan and I am studying Engineering at the University of Canterbury. This year has been a big change to normal life as I moved into a university hall in a completely new city. At first it was hard being so far away from home, but once I settled into Christchurch and started my courses, I adjusted well to university life. There were many social events throughout the year which made it easier to meet new people, and allowed me to see more of the beautiful city.
In the semester one exams I achieved three A+’s and an A- giving me a GPA of 8.5 out of 9. I was overjoyed with these results, and it proved my hard work through the semester had paid off. I have recently completed my semester two exams, which have gone very well, and I am awaiting the results.
This year has brought many challenges, especially with the major COVID-19 lockdown. I moved home in late August when we went into lockdown and continued with university online. As lockdown continued, it was hard seeing Christchurch move down the Alert Levels without being able to be there. I was fortunate enough to return to Christchurch at the beginning of October when the border restrictions eased, which was nice to end the year on a high note.
I have now returned to Auckland and this summer I am working full-time at Fisher & Paykel Healthcare. I hope I can continue with Fisher & Paykel next summer, to gain professional engineering hours required for my degree. Next year I will continue my courses at UC, specialising in Mechanical Engineering.
I would like to thank Rotary again for the scholarship I received, this was vital in helping pay for my accommodation fees. I appreciate the dedication, organisation and co-operation from your members in funding these scholarships, it has made such an impact on my studies. It is wonderful that you can support so many young adults in their transformation to university and I hope this can continue for more students in the future.
Kind Regards,
Kayla