The University of the Sunshine Coast’s top graduate says she is determined to help people “in their darkest moments”.
Nambour’s Rebekah Belte, who earned a perfect score for her Psychology Honours degree, claimed the prized Chancellor’s Medal at UniSC Arena on Wednesday, in one of seven graduation ceremonies involving 800 graduates and 4000 of their supporters over three days.
Ms Belte’s thesis, in collaboration with UniSC’s Thompson Institute, examined psychological distress in adolescents.
The 27-year-old, who achieved a UniSC grade point average of seven out of seven, is eager to aid patients who face particularly trying times.
“I want to be a clinical psychologist to help make a difference to people in their darkest moments,” she said.
The former Mountain Creek State High School student was previously unsure of her career path and her strengths, and she feared making mistakes, before finding her way at UniSC.
“I knew I wanted to help people and have an impact, so I timidly decided to study psychology,” she said.
“In my first few weeks at UniSC, I knew I was finally in the right field working towards my purpose.”
She was offered a paid position at Sunshine Coast Psychology Clinic after voluntarily facilitating workshops to help young girls develop social and emotional skills.
She also works as a research assistant with UniSC’s Road Safety Research Collaboration and as a psychosocial trauma recovery coach at Real Life Skills.
Ms Belte has also trained at Lifeline to become a crisis support worker and volunteered at a local soup kitchen and a shelter for women and children.
The president of UniSC’s Psychology Club, she last year received a Graduate Women Queensland Bursary and the Australian Psychological Society Prize (one student is selected from each university).
Chancellor Sir Angus Houston presented the Chancellor’s Award to Ms Belte and said her commitment to both her academic pursuits and the wider community was remarkable.
UniSC Vice-Chancellor and president Professor Helen Bartlett, who addressed the 2023 graduates, praised their resilience and determination to succeed after the pandemic restrictions of 2020 changed the wider study landscape.
“The achievements of this cohort are tremendous, with the results reflected not only at this week’s ceremonies but also in the Student Experience Surveys from 2020 and 2021, which ranked UniSC first in Queensland among public universities for student satisfaction,” she said.
“We are focused on becoming Australia’s most relevant university through teaching and research that creates significant and positive impacts for our regions, and we are continuing to work in partnership with our students to achieve this.”
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