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I have been a Link Wentworth tenant for two and a half years. I am a second-year PhD candidate studying full-time, off-campus, at the University of New England.

I once asked someone who was nearing the end of her PhD why writing a dissertation takes three years. She told me that to write a sustained argument over 80,000-100,000 words that engages deeply with the source material and makes a new contribution to knowledge, you need to be deeply immersed in the research and writing process. It’s a full-time job in itself – which you have to balance with finding enough paid work to make a living.

I applied for a Link Wentworth Scholarship to reduce some of the pressure of taking work shifts, so that I can buy myself some extra time to work on my dissertation. Without the grant, I would struggle to give my studies the time and focus it needs, amidst rapidly rising costs of living.

The Link Wentworth Scholarship Program represented a number of possibilities for me. I initially planned to use the funds to purchase novels I needed to study for the duration of my candidature. However, in recent weeks, my five-year-old laptop started slowing down, and occasionally showing the blue screen of death before shutting down – at the most inconvenient times. It’s probably about time, given I’ve typed millions of words throughout my Undergraduate and Honours studies on this device, but it’s a significant expense I had hoped to delay until the end of my PhD. I decided that the money was better spent on a new device that will hopefully reliably carry me through to the end of my degree.

Finding out you need to replace your laptop at short notice is stressful – especially when you are trying hard to carve out enough time to research and write. The scholarship came at just the right time! It’s a significant weight off my mind knowing that I can fully focus on my studies without worrying about finding extra work to raise funds for a new laptop. It means more time to immerse myself in the deep thinking a PhD requires.

I dream of being paid to read and write for a living. While academia isn’t as romantic as the ‘dark academia’ aesthetic might suggest, the more I’ve spoken to scholars and students at the university, the more convinced I am that academia is the path for me. By the end of my PhD, I hope I’ll find a position that enables me to contribute to knowledge about Australian literature and literary culture by teaching younger generations and publishing my findings as part of a global academic community.

I am really grateful to Link Wentworth for awarding me a Scholarship this year.

In my experience, a safe, reliable, and affordable living space is an essential foundation to success in life, especially academic success. Every day, I am thankful for my home provided and maintained by Link Wentworth, from which I can study, rest, and pursue every opportunity life presents to me.