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Theresa scoops six Business awards
Theresa Tobin of Mooloolaba is confidently looking forward to a career in financial planning or accountancy after having gone from strength to strength as a student at the University of the Sunshine Coast.
That confidence was boosted significantly this week when Theresa, 46, collected six prizes at USC’s annual Faculty of Business Awards Ceremony on Tuesday 12 April.
But the stand-out, third-year student – who has received a total of 10 business awards over three years and maintained a near-perfect grade point average of 6.75 – admits she was quite unsure how she would fare when she began her Business degree in mid-2008.
“I wasn’t very confident when I started at uni … I wasn’t sure if I could do it,” she said. “But the University offers every resource to facilitate your success.”
Theresa said she had benefited greatly from the encouragement of USC staff, assistance from her student mentor, and by accessing Academic Skills Services training in topics like exam preparation and critical thinking.
“The one-on-one contact that you get with academics, their encouragement and support and the way they help you to achieve your potential, is just outstanding,” she said.
Theresa, who has previously worked in banking and clothing manufacturing, will complete her combined degree in Financial Planning and Accounting later this year.
She is keen to work in the financial services sector on the Sunshine Coast to help people, particularly young people, achieve wealth through better financial planning.
Her awards for 2011 were the $525 NIA Prize for the Best Student in Management Accounting, $500 KPMG Prize for the Best Student in Auditing and Professional Practice, $500 Professional Investment Services Prize for the Best Second Year Financial Planning Student, $400 Garland Waddington Prize for the Best Student in Retirement and Superannuation and the $375 Tax Institute Prize for the Outstanding Student in Contemporary Accounting Issues, and she was a joint winner of the $250 ANZ Bank Prize for the Highest Achieving Student in Introduction to Financial Planning.
Theresa praised the prize donors for supporting the Faculty of Business awards ceremony, which she said gave students extra incentive to do well and provided them with a great opportunity to network with potential employers.
— Terry Walsh