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Student Achievers - Sophia Casanova Clarke

Posted on December 31, 2019

My name is Sophia.

Over the past year, my family has spent time in Victoria and South Australia. Open Access College allowed me to continue my studies throughout this period. When I’m not babysitting my nephew, I enjoy caring for my pet rabbit, painting animals and landscapes, and reading novels.

My experience at OAC…

I studied Stage 2 Biology and Nutrition at Open Access College and achieved fantastic results in both subjects. The distance education setting enabled me to develop my independence in learning as it required greater initiative to be taken. The flexibility afforded by this system helped improve valuable organisational and time management skills, that will undoubtedly be of significance in my tertiary studies.

My advice to current and future students is to ensure that you allocate time each week to commit to studying the class material and completing any pre-class tasks and homework, so that you are able to participate fully and get the most out of your class.

The small class sizes allowed for more personalised learning than perhaps a traditional school, which led to me having a comprehensive understanding of all topics and finding that I was well prepared for my tests and, particularly, exams. My teachers were always very understanding and responded thoroughly to all questions. I would like to thank Krista Schuurmans (Biology) and Kelly Sharrad (Nutrition) for their guidance and support over my final year at school.

And today…

I am thrilled to have been offered a place in the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery at the University of Tasmania, and will begin my studies there this year. My ultimate goal is to help improve health outcomes, particularly of underprivileged people. I am eager to actively extend the reach of health services, including to more isolated communities that have limited resources and service access.