IN 2013 former Kinross Wolaroi School student Jade Ryan became the first member of her family to finish Year 12 and now the talented all-rounder is about to realise another dream: studying medicine at university.
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The Cowra girl and former Kinross boarder has been accepted into the Bachelor of Medicine course at the University of Newcastle and will begin her studies this year.
She said without the support of teachers and students at Kinross she would not have had the confidence to leave home for Newcastle and enter university.
“I started boarding at Kinross in 2012, at the start of Year 11,” Jade said.
“That’s also when I started thinking about studying medicine.
“I gained so much from Kinross. The teachers were outstanding and they really helped me to get through the two years.”
She rated those two years as the best of her life because she met friends who became like siblings.
With help from her supportive and proud mother Sandie, Jade applied to study through the university’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander program.
During the higher school certificate, Jade had to leave Orange and travel to Newcastle to complete a week-long pre-entry program.
“During the course I met the tutors who will be teaching us and they were really cool,” she said.
“Now I’m looking forward to just doing the actual courses with them, but I’m also looking forward to living in the city.”
Sandie is overjoyed her daughter is heading off to university and believes Jade’s success is a combination of the opportunities and support provided by Kinross and her daughter’s own drive.
“Jade is very focused and I knew when she got the opportunity to come to Kinross she would really take advantage of it, but I didn’t grasp how far she would come,” Mrs Ryan said.
“Everything at Kinross was positive, including the teachers just letting her know she could do anything.
“Having that support was huge.”
Jade made every post a winner at the school, working hard in class to achieve an ATAR of 82.35 and securing places in the top grade football and basketball teams, while also representing Kinross at NSWCIS athletics.
Her new goals are a little less clear, but at this stage she is leaning towards specialising in surgery or paediatrics. She plans to return to the country to practise.