Adelaide student wins Rhodes Scholarship

Rhodes Scholar Phillip Killicoat at St Mark's College
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Friday, 17 October 2003

Phillip Killicoat from Bordertown, South Australia, has become the latest University of Adelaide student to receive the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford University in the UK.

Phillip, 23, is the second person from Bordertown to become a Rhodes Scholar, the first being former Prime Minister Bob Hawke (Rhodes Scholar for Western Australia, 1953).

This year is the 100th year of the Rhodes. During that time more than 90 University of Adelaide students have been recognised with Rhodes Scholarships.

The Rhodes is one of the world's most prestigious scholarships and is offered annually in every State in Australia, plus three for Australia at large. Winners of the Rhodes are not only gifted students but must also demonstrate excellence in sporting and/or community endeavours.

Phillip Killicoat is a graduate of Bordertown High and also completed some Year 12 subjects by correspondence through Open Access College. He won the prestigious C.A.S. Hawker Scholarship, which allowed him to become a resident at St Mark's College while studying at the University of Adelaide.

He has already graduated with two degrees: a Bachelor of Arts (International Studies) and a Bachelor of Economics, in which he was awarded the Citigroup Australia Prize for being the top graduate in Economics. This year he is completing his Honours in Economics.

Phillip is a former State Triathlon Champion and national representative in Duathlon. He has also contributed to a number of community organisations and charities through volunteer work.

Thanks to the Rhodes Scholarship, in 2004 Phillip will study for a Masters degree in Economics at Oxford. Prior to that he will take up a three-month internship with the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome, which aims to alleviate world hunger and improve nutrition in Third World nations.

"It is a great honour to win the Rhodes Scholarship, not just because I'll be representing South Australia but also country South Australia," Phillip says.

He says living at St Mark's College has not only been of "tremendous help" to his studies but has also been important "in maintaining the kind of well-rounded experience that Rhodes required of his scholars".

The campus life of the University of Adelaide has also been a major contributor to his success.

"The academic standing of the university is very high, with outstanding teachers that have made my learning experience all the more rewarding," he says.

"As well as being strong academically, the University of Adelaide also has an active campus life, and I've thrown myself into it, especially the triathlon club and the debating society.

"Those extra-curricular activities have been all-important in helping to develop a range of skills and experiences. For me, going to university is not just about earning a degree."

University of Adelaide Vice-Chancellor Professor James McWha has congratulated Phillip on his Rhodes Scholarship win.

"The award of a Rhodes Scholarship is a very significant achievement which reflects on the all-round attributes of the awardee and also on the institutions where studies were undertaken," Professor McWha says.

"The University of Adelaide is proud of its Rhodes Scholars and I am sure that Phillip will be a worthy successor to the long line of Rhodes Scholars from this university, some of whom are currently among our fine academic staff."

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