Written by Alias Bullock
In March, my beloved laptop of eleven years stopped working. It has crossed three continents, been my link to the outside world during the pandemic, but now it was no longer holding charge. Now, it was a paperweight.
Undaunted, I armed myself with a tool kit and a YouTube tutorial and attempted to repair it.
First, I replaced the battery–a little pricey, but that’s okay I had some savings – and then I replaced the charger when that didn’t work– luckily, Officeworks allows refunds. Finally, I opened my laptop up to confront the circuit board that tricks my paperweight into thinking and email and maybe a little too much Netflix.
The charger port had burnt out. I bought the part, installed it with trembling hands, and… nothing. As it turns out, the port’s connection to that motherboard had failed, and now needed a very specific soldering job. I had officially met my match.
Calling around to various locations, I was met with the same bewildered: “That model still works?!” – as it turns out, no it doesn’t!
Recovering from the death of a laptop
I was beginning to despair of finding a solution.
Distance learning has become a greater and greater part of our lives, particularly after the pandemic, but even before then. It has always been crucial to students with disabilities, people who live in the middle of nowhere, those of us with frantic family lives and inflexible schedules.
For students like me, who have to study at a distance, a workable laptop is an absolute must-have for classwork, lectures and assignments.
My problem?
I’m a student, notoriously broke and have just spent what savings I had trying to breathe life into my beloved, but broken paperweight-former-laptop.
And it was then, in April, just as this began to truly affect my course work, that I received help from Charles Sturt’s Continuing Student Equity Scholarship.
The Continuing Student Equity Scholarship
Step back to November last year. I’m still a destitute distance student, and whilst I’m not in crisis mode, I know that I am only one or two disasters away from my life collapsing like a house of cards. I’m on my student portal, on the ‘My fees and costs’ tab, making sure that all of my paperwork is ready for next year, and it’s there: the Scholarships and Grants information.
I am so glad that I thought ahead and clicked to browse scholarships.
I am so grateful that I had this opportunity.
Most of all, I’m relieved that I was able to secure myself a working laptop by using my scholarship funds from Charles Sturt’s Continuing Student Equity Scholarship.
This was a port in a storm that meant I can keep up the workflow of my degree and my future.
The Application Process
So, I’m here to say that it really is that easy; it took me only a few days to get my paperwork together, and Charles Sturt’s Continuing Student Equity Scholarship makes the process as calm and clear as can be.
The Scholarship application portal is easy to navigate, with regular updates on the status of my application and a confirmation that I’d been accepted only eight days after submission!
Being ready for study is not just about dealing with problems as they happen, but also about helping future you have the tools you need to succeed.
I implore you, please consider applying for the Continuing Student Equity Scholarship before Wednesday 1 November 2023. They are offered and paid as a one-off payment of $2000.
You have nothing to lose, and even if you are unsuccessful in round one, you can still be considered and may receive an offer in round two.
More details on closing dates, eligibility requirements, FAQs or applying, can be found here.
