Meet Juan (he/him), one of our inspiring Student Ambassadors. Juan grew up in a small city on the Indonesian island of Ambon and had limited access to education – so now, he’s even more passionate about helping others achieve their dreams.

He’s studying a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Computer Science, and juggles an impressive FOUR casual jobs at once! (But no, he doesn’t work at all of them every week.) If that wasn’t enough, he also holds two Student Ambassador roles for UWA: one working with international high school students, and one working with local high school students.

I really loved the idea of getting more than a degree. I had been involved in volunteering before joining UWA’s Student Ambassador Leadership Program and this was a unique opportunity to volunteer, show my pride in UWA and share my experience with future students.

As a Student Ambassador, Juan helps out at UWA Open Day, leads campus tours, visits high schools across Perth and helps deliver activities to high school students.

Being a Student Ambassador has developed my leadership and interpersonal skills. On top of that, I’ve made really good friendships with some of the most interesting people here at UWA.

“I’ve taken part in professional development training, got to know the friendly UWA staff, and even ridden in the blue UWA car to high schools across Perth!”

Of course, as a Student Ambassador Juan is full of useful tips: check out the Barry J Marshall Library (it has the best study spaces), borrow phone chargers from the library (you can keep them for 3 hours), and make use of the library’s physical books – you can borrow them for an entire semester. And if you have time, volunteer! Juan is a coordinator for the Guild’s Micro Volunteering program and recently became Chair of the Guild’s Volunteering Committee.

It’s not easy balancing study, work and volunteering but Juan loves what he’s doing and hopes to keep working in education and advocacy into the future (and hasn’t ruled out a future career at UWA…).

Want to become a Student Ambassador? Applications are open until 22 October and you’ll be asked to commit to 25 volunteering hours over a 12-month period (plus you’ll get invited to exclusive professional development workshops and social events). Find out more.