Science, Technology and Engineering

I became interested in nature and conservation when I took a seven month trip around Australia. I thought doing a Bachelor of Bioscience would be a good way to learn more about our environment, and that it would hopefully lead to a job in conservation or research.

The best thing about studying botany at La Trobe has been the passion and knowledge of the lecturers. They are very committed to their professions, both as teachers and researchers.

I did a cadetship with the Department of Zoology last year, which I enjoyed. It was full-time for three months, during which I did a bit of field work in and around Kinglake and the Box-Ironbark forest in central Victoria. I learnt how to use a mapping program which is widely used in ecological studies, and collected and entered data for several PhD students. It was nice to be working on real research.

Ultimately I would like to become a researcher investigating plant evolution. This path appeals to me because of the mixture of fieldwork and lab work, as well as the philosophical and logical aspects of thinking about evolution and how it might occur.

The thing I like the most about the La Trobe Melbourne Campus is the natural setting. I am a keen birdwatcher and the Campus is a great place to see lots of birds. I sometimes see a turtle in the moat, which is a thrill!