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Student experience matches top rankings
Sreyleak Tip did her research. An international student, she wanted to find the best university in Australia for nursing. She discovered ComparED, a website that explores and compares institutions and study areas based on real-life student experiences. “Avondale ranked number one for overall experience.”
The ranking of another university “wasn’t as good,” so Sreyleak “started to deep dive” and found new students at Avondale get free on-campus accommodation and free access to a wellbeing program. One-on-one career coaching and course advice from lecturers also appealed. “I love my classes, especially the sim labs.” As a student on the Lake Macquarie campus, Sreyleak is using the new Nursing Simulation Centre. “I remember learning how to safely clean a wound dressing. There’s a lot of steps involved in minimising the spread of infection.”
Sreyleak never thought she would study nursing because “I’ve had a fear of needles and blood. Even seeing people with an intravenous catheter made me feel like fainting.” But, being curious and open to learning something new, she told herself, Maybe I should try. She felt hesitant during the first few months of study until getting a job as a community support assistant at an aged-care facility. “I saw what the nurses do to care for the residents. That’s when I felt nursing was really for me.”
The decision to study nursing is one of which Sreyleak’s mother in Cambodia approves. “She’s glad I choose Avondale because she can see how happy I am.”
Living in the women’s residence has helped. “The girls are so friendly. We often visit each other’s rooms to talk. You’re never lonely.” That is important for any student, particularly those who are international. “You’re a long way from home,” says Sreyleak, who wondered what support she would receive if she needed it. An experience on her first day offered reassurance. Sreyleak remembers meeting another student while trying to find a classroom. “She didn’t know where to find the room either, so we walked around together. This is what community on campus is like. I feel cared for.”
Even by the lecturers, who “know me by name.” Sreyleak sat next to one on a bus trip to the snow as part of the wellbeing program. “We talked and hung out a bit.” And with English as a second language, Sreyleak sees a tutor a couple of times a week to learn how to write better essays and for help with assessment tasks. “She’s good. And it’s helpful.”
So, with new friends and easy access to academic and personal support, “it feels like I have a second family,” says Sreyleak. “Avondale is the best place to spend your uni life.”
Photograph: Sreyleak Tip in the new Nursing Simulation Centre on the Lake Macquarie campus. Credit: Maddy Voinea.
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