Nicole makes a century of Rhodes Scholars

Scholarships

A Medicine and Arts student who has been studying schizophrenia has become the University of Adelaide's 100th Rhodes Scholar.

Nicole Krzys, 24, from Aberfoyle Park, joins a long list of distinguished South Australian Rhodes Scholars to study at Oxford University since 1904.

Ms Krzys is studying for a Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of Surgery at the University of Adelaide and also has recently completed an Honours degree in Philosophy, specialising in cognitive science.

For her Honours, Ms Krzys looked at schizophrenia from a cognitive science point of view, combining elements of philosophy, psychology and neurophysiology.

In addition to being outstanding students, Rhodes Scholars must demonstrate some strength in community work and/or sport.

Ms Krzys is a classical ballet dancer who also teaches ballet, and she has a blue belt in tae kwon do. She also has a strong interest in Third World medicine, with a focus on women's health. Last year she won a Medical Insurance Group Australia (MIGA) scholarship to study women's health in Ecuador.

Ms Krzys said she was honoured to become the University of Adelaide's 100th Rhodes Scholar. She will use her Rhodes Scholarship to study for a D.Phil (PhD) in Philosophy at Oxford in 2008, once she has completed her medical internship in Adelaide next year.

"It's been hard work, but it's been worth it," she said of her studies.

"I'm pleased to have been able to combine a number of different disciplines in my study - psychology, philosophy and medicine - all at the same time. It's really helped to enrich my experience at the University."

Ms Krzys said she hoped to use her Oxford studies to focus more on cognitive science and schizophrenia.

"The Rhodes Scholarship is an amazing opportunity to develop my understanding in this area and to contribute to the treatment of mental illness," she said.

Vice-Chancellor Professor James McWha has congratulated Ms Krzys on her Rhodes Scholarship on behalf of the whole University.

"Nicole has shown herself to be an outstanding academic talent, completing her Honours degree in cognitive science at the same time as studying full-time for a medical degree," Professor McWha said.

"Nicole has now become part of the University's - and South Australia's - history. What began with Adelaide's first Rhodes Scholar, Norman Jolly in 1904, has become a legacy of brilliant scholars in all fields of study spanning more than 100 years.

"This is a moment of personal pride for Nicole and her family, and also a moment of institutional pride for the University of Adelaide. There would be very few universities anywhere in the world that have so many Rhodes Scholars to their name.

"As many of our Rhodes Scholars have done, I have no doubt that Nicole will go on to great things," Professor McWha said.

For more information about the Rhodes Scholarship, visit: www.adelaide.edu.au/scholarships/

Story by David Ellis