Alumni awarded prestigious John Monash scholarships in space and health sectors

Recent graduates, aerospace engineer Georgia Dallimore, photonics and nanotechnology researcher Rhona Hamilton, and medical doctor Daniella Nolan are three of 18 recipients of the national scholarships which are awarded annually to outstanding Australians with leadership potential who wish to study overseas.

University of Adelaide Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Peter Høj AC commended the alumni on their scholarships.

“This is an outstanding achievement, and I extend my congratulations to Georgia, Rhona and Daniella on being awarded these prestigious, transformative opportunities. The John Monash Scholarship supports changemakers and leaders to excel in their chosen field. The University of Adelaide is proud to see our alumni embark on these exciting next steps in their careers with their hard work and dedication taking them across the globe. We will watch their success with great interest and pride,” he said.

Georgia is a graduate of the Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical & Aerospace, Hons) and Bachelor of Mathematical and Computer Sciences at the University of Adelaide. She plans to use the scholarship to pursue a two-year Master of Science (Space Systems) at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US.

“You could say I was ‘over the Moon’ upon learning I had received the scholarship. It is an absolute privilege to have been presented this opportunity to further pursue my passions with a Masters, where I hope to bring a wealth of new knowledge back to Australia to continue contributing to the country’s vibrant, passionate and growing space sector. I am grateful to everyone who has been a part of my journey of achieving this dream,” Georgia said.

Georgia is passionate about space sustainability and addressing skills gap in Australia’s space sector through technical contributions and STEM advocacy. She has worked at the Australian Space Discovery Centre and Fleet Space Technologies, as well as participating annually in the Australian Rover Challenge with the Adelaide Rover Team. 

“This scholarship unlocks incredible possibilities for studying at the world’s premier space engineering Universities, with my first preference being MIT. I am incredibly excited at the thought of collaborating with some of the brightest minds in this field, working together to propose big ideas about the space-enabled world, and off-world, of tomorrow. I am certain this experience will equip me with the leadership and expertise to be an impactful driver of change,” Georgia said.

Rhona is a graduate of the University of Adelaide with a BSc Honours, Majoring in Physics and is currently studying a Master of Engineering at the University of Tokyo. Rhona’s field of experience is in laser physics. She is fascinated about how laser technology can be used to improve health, particularly in medical imaging and diagnosis.

She will pursue a PhD at the University of St Andrews in the UK with the goal of learning techniques from photonics and nanotechnology to further explain the biology of the brain. She hopes this research will help improve understanding of the causes of Alzheimer's disease.

“I'm really honoured to have been selected for such an amazing opportunity, and I'm extremely grateful to all my colleagues, friends, and family members who helped me in getting here. I'm really passionate about pursuing a research career where I can use laser physics to improve health outcomes in Australia. I think the scholarship will let me gain the training across both physics and biology to have a powerful impact in this interdisciplinary space,” Rhona said.

Daniella is a graduate of the University of Adelaide’s Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery, and is currently completing a Diploma of Public Health (Nested Masters Program) at the University of Tasmania. Working as a junior doctor over the last few years, Daniella has become increasingly aware of the threat of climate change on health.

Transitioning her career towards public health, she plans to study a one-year Master of Climate Change and Planetary Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in the UK. Daniella hopes to become a future leader within the intersection of public and planetary health.

“I am incredibly grateful to be awarded this scholarship, joining such an incredible community in the process. The opportunity to learn from leading experts about the impacts of climate change on human health is beyond exciting. I hope to use this opportunity to improve the health of all Australians and our natural environments.” Daniella said.

For more information about the awards, visit the John Monash Foundation website.