Twenty years later, a mum of two from Armidale is honoured with top university award

22 DECEMBER 2022

Twenty years later, a mum of two from Armidale is honoured with top university award

Charles Sturt University graduate from Armidale receives prestigious Postgraduate University Medal Award for outstanding grades.

With a fervour to make a positive difference in the community she lives in, Mrs Rebecca Wright pursued study in the fields of business and information technology hoping to assist small businesses to maximise opportunities locally and beyond.

Mrs Wright graduated with a Bachelor of Business and a Bachelor of Information Technology in the Charles Sturt School of Business in 2002. Twenty years later, she graduated with a Master of Commerce (Marketing/ Small Business Management) while receiving the prestigious award of the Postgraduate University Medal for outstanding grades.

The University Medal is the highest honour that a student can receive. To be awarded a University Medal, a student has to achieve High Distinctions (HDs) in nearly all their subjects and if a student receives all HDs, they will receive a possible Grade Point Average (GPA) of seven.

Mrs Wright grew up in Warren, a small town in Western NSW. After studying for her undergraduate degrees at Charles Sturt in Wagga Wagga, she relocated to the Armidale area in 2004.

She has worked with Regional Development Australia – Northern Inland (RDA-NI) for the last 12 years, which is a Federal Government funded not-for-profit that works to drive economic development in the Northern Inland region of NSW.

“I greatly enjoy working in an organisation that actively benefits its community and provides opportunities to make a positive difference in my regional area,” Mrs Wright said.

Mrs Wright was the first in her immediate family to go to university, and her sister and brother have completed university studies since.

“Originally, I had a goal with my husband to establish a small IT business, which was the motivation to pursue university study,” Ms Wright said.

“I would never have guessed then, that 20 years later, being married with two kids, I would go on to receive my master’s degree in commerce, and grades that were worthy of the Postgraduate University Medal.”

Mrs Wright was able to apply her learnings throughout her studies immediately in her role as Chief Financial Officer and Project Officer with RDA-NI.

“I was able to apply my learning to our various projects directly, and I look forward to working on some projects of my own using what I have learnt in my master’s degree,” she said.

It was the format of Charles Sturt’s Master of Commerce that was one of the things that appealed to Mrs Wright.

“The format of the subjects in the Master of Commerce and the guidance from the academic staff provided me with skills that can be directly applied, allowing me to hit the ground running,” she said.

Mrs Wright hopes to help the voice of regional communities be heard and to break down the barriers between cities and regional Australia.

“As small businesses are vital contributors to our economy, I would like to help them take advantage of the advances in technology and online mediums to grow beyond their local geographic boundaries and prosper, which my master’s degree will assist with,” she said.

Mrs Wright is grateful for the support she received from her family and Charles Sturt staff throughout her educational journey.

“I would like to thank my family for their patience and support and the ever-supportive Charles Sturt academic staff that made themselves available and were so patient with all my questions,” Mrs Wright said.

“Working full-time, being a mum to a special needs child, and studying at the same time presented many challenging times, and it often felt like there weren’t enough hours in the day.

“However, the support of my husband and children got me through, and many times, hearing my children say - ‘you can do it mum’ helped me keep going.”

ENDS

Media Note:

To arrange interviews with Mrs Rebecca Wright, contact Trease Clarke at Charles Sturt Media on 0409 741 789 or news@csu.edu.au

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Wagga WaggaBusiness and EconomicsCharles Sturt UniversityComputer Science