I am a proud Wakka Wakka and Wagadagum woman living on Marapikurrinya country. I am currently a third-year midwifery student, studying through the Away From Base program through Australian Catholic University in Brisbane. I aspire to be the first in my immediate family to obtain a tertiary education. My goal is not only to complete my studies and help my people, but also to inspire and be the example for my two young children, extended family and wider community to pursue a tertiary education also.

My passion for midwifery stems from my own personal childbirth experiences, my love for infants and to help my people, specifically First Nations women. I believe our women are the foundation of our communities. Completing my studies will allow me to assist in closing the gap in maternal and child health disparities between First Nations women and children, and our counterparts

Living in WA and travelling to QLD for University takes a financial toll on my family. These funds will help with daily expenses, so that I am able to complete my studies and travel to work placements without putting financial strain on my family.

I'm a proud Wajarri/Badamaya Woman but have had the privilege of being born and raised on Wadawurrung country. I have grown up in the community, learning my culture through dance, song, and storytelling.

Through midwifery, I want to address healthcare challenges for First Nations people, offering efficient and culturally safe maternity care as a midwife in remote areas. I believe that maternity care provided to mob by mob will contribute to closing the gaps and enhance outcomes for indigenous first nations families.

This scholarship would support me to buy resources essential for my studies, including textbooks, and provides financial stability during my periods of work placement. This scholarship opportunity would enable me to have more of a focus on my studies allowing me to excel academically.

My Name is Billie and I am a proud Bundjalung and Wakka Wakka woman. I am a mum to my daughter Sunny and am currently pregnant with my second child. I also have full time custody of my 16 year old brother Jackson.

I want to be able to complete my degree and become a proud identified First Nations midwife, so that I can stand together with families, support them, and be their voice for culturally safe births.

This scholarship will support me by allowing me to focus on studying and not working full time. It will also help support me financially while being on placement and with other Uni costs for things like uniforms, textbooks and general stationary supplies. 

I am a proud Darumbal woman from Rockhampton, Central Queensland. I've had the opportunity to work at an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation in a program that supports women giving birth to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander babies. It was through this experience that solidified my desire to work in maternal health and I am now proud to say I am currently enrolled in my first year of Bachelor of Midwifery with ACU in Melbourne. I am so excited to graduate and become registered so that I can start making an impact in our mob's lives from the very start.  

I want to be a part of 'closing the gap' for First Nations people, and the most pivotal time for this to take place is before a baby is even born. I am also a strong believer in the fact that Aboriginal lives should be in Aboriginal hands as this is when the most meaningful change and impact occurs.

The financial stress has always been the biggest barrier for me to take the first step in completing my studies. This scholarship will ease current financial burden, allowing me to focus on the important things regarding my studies, especially work placement.

I am a proud Gumbaynggirr and Wailwan woman from Nambucca Heads, NSW. I’m currently in my second year of midwifery at WSU. I travelled from a small coastal town to Sydney to pursue my dreams of becoming a registered midwife.

For me, birthing is a celebration, acknowledging the passing from the spiritual world into the physical world. I am commited to providing and promoting culturally safe care and integrating holistic and culturally appropriate maternity care. I aim to ensure Aboriginal women are cared for physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I strive to empower Aboriginal women maternally. I hope to make a difference to achieve positive health outcomes for Aboriginal women by strengthening cultural continuity, by fostering a sense of empowerment and resilience. I hope to make a difference by providing an integrated system of accessibility, collaboration and education.

Living away from home and traveling to placement, work, and university pose significant financial challenges for myself. This scholarship alleviates my financial hardship and eases the worry of travelling to placement, work and university, enabling me to focus on my studies.

As a proud Wiradjuriwoman from Dubbo, I've embarked on an empowering journey into midwifery. I am currently living in Campbelltown and now in my second year of studies, I'm immersed in a world where every birth is a celebration of life. My passion for midwifery started the moment I experienced birth with my two boys.

I have witnessed firsthand the disparities in healthcare access and outcomes for Aboriginal women during childbirth. My experiences inspired me to advocate for culturally sensitive and respectful maternity care. Childbirth is a sacred experience and needs to be honoured for First Nation families. For me, this scholarship about honouring my heritage and uplifting future generations of Indigenous mothers and babies.

This scholarship will support me by allowing me to fully immerse myself in my studies, especially during unpaid clinical placements, where I need time away from work. It will also help me to cover travel expenses and buy textbooks.

I am a Walbunga Dharawal Gumea Women, from Nowra. I am 28 years of age, and a single parent to two young children of 5 and 7 years old, with many kinship responsibilities within my large family and broader community. I have worked at Waminda, South Coast Women’s health & wellbeing organisation for 11 years. I am currently a AHPRA registered Aboriginal Health practitioner. I am a second year Bachelor of Midwifery student, studying at the ACU, Brisbane campus through the indigenous cohort, Weemala. My driven goal is to work for community and in my community. My ambition is to provide culturally safe and holistic health care to my community, continue to advocate for understanding of our ways of doing and being, and to strengthen the relationships from community to the local health district.

This scholarship will ease my financial stresses, allowing me to continue to complete my clinical placement and stay focused on completing my degree.

I am a Gubbi Gubbi/Wakka Wakka woman, living and working on Barunngaam country as a First Nations Midwife.  My aim as a Midwife is to improve outcomes of mob through culturally safe healthcare. I also want to assist students and new graduate First Nations Midwives to get through their degrees and build our workforce, so we have mob caring for mob.

I will use this scholarship to attend a Perineal Repair Workshop in Toowoomba. I believe this workshop would help in ensuring continuity of care for women under my care in the midwifery group practice (MGP) setting.  It will benefit my midwifery practice by reducing the need to involve unnecessary people in the birthing room and ensure cultural safety with a female clinician being able to repair perineal trauma.

I am Koori midwife working in an Aboriginal MGP in Sydney. I recently completed my Bachelor of Midwifery, inspired by my colleagues during my employment as an Aboriginal maternity health worker. I have a strong interest in Birthing on Country and ensuring our woman have access to high quality perinatal care.

This scholarship will allow me to attend the Australia College of Midwives NSW State Conference 2024. I am keen to hear keynote speaker Melanie Briggs at this conference.

I am a Wongatha woman living in Kalgoorlie with my husband and our 4 children. I have been working at our local Aboriginal Medical Service in the Maternal and Child Health program for the last year and I am looking to increase my knowledge of antenatal education for our women. I am currently enrolled in a Grad Cert Midwifery Diagnostics and Prescribing course with ECU, as well as an Ultrasound for Midwives course in Melbourne October 2024, which would require me to travel from Kalgoorlie to attend. This scholarship will help me with the costs associated with these courses.

I grew up in Korora (Coffs Harbour) and I am now a registered Midwife at Coffs Harbour Base Hospital. Despite the economic disadvantages and the tumultuous environment I grew up in, my upbringing instilled in me a deep sense of empathy and a drive to make a difference. Becoming a midwife felt like a natural progression for me. It's not just about delivering babies; it's about being a pillar of support during one of the most vulnerable and transformative moments in a person's life. Every birth I attend, every mother I assist, reaffirms my belief in the power of compassion and care.

This scholarship will support me to attend the Australian College of Midwives (ACM) National Conference and the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives (CATSINaM) Conference.

My name is Rachael and I am an Mbarbaram women from Atherton tablelands (father side), and an Alexander descendent from Killarney, Ireland (mother side). I have grown up in the Northern Territory, and have lived and worked all over the NT, this is home for me. I am also a proud mother to my daughter Layla.

I have chosen to work in remote locations working alongside Aboriginal women and families, to deliver a culturally safe model of maternity care. I do believe, having competent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander midwives working in remote settings improves pregnancy and birth outcomes.

This scholarship will support me to enroll into the Prescribing for Midwives post graduate course. This will allow me to use my full scope of practice in my current role as a community midwife working in remote locations. This allows for me to work more autonomously, to order and to interpret clinical investigations in the remote setting. I would like to be able to prescribe medications and interpret investigations, as they apply to pregnancy, birth and postpartum care of mother and baby.