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THE FAR-REACHING EFFECTS OF THE TAYLOR SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

The Far-Reaching Effects Of The Taylor Scholarship Program

The Taylors Scholarship Program was implemented in 2016, to great success, within the College for its residents. The aim of the program is to influence thriving St Andrew’s residents to contribute to the future and the wider communities around them. The scholarship provides fee relief on the basis that the students contribute a project to the College over the course of a year. In 2017, one placement of the Taylor Scholarships was awarded to Nimalan Sundaram, then a third-year resident of Drew’s who was already exhibiting an exceptional desire to contribute to society. The University of Sydney law student was keen to establish a framework in which to communicate the variety of beneficial extracurricular activities available at the university that had been imparted on him by older law and finance students he had met during his time at USYD. Thus, when he applied for the Taylor Scholarship it was under the pretence that his project would provide nurturing and assistance to the residents of St Andrew’s in accessing and understanding the projects, societies and opportunities they could be afforded through university.

Nim was originally told about the array of opportunities at the university by some of the older students of his faculty and was surprised to find that many of his comrades at college were unaware of the possibilities. His pitch was concise and eloquent, with clear goals in mind and with the community focus that the St Andrew’s community takes pride in, one of the many reasons that Nim was allotted a place in the program. Nim’s proposal for the Taylor Scholarship began with a seminar for new residents during Orientation Week to introduce them to a realm of possibilities. He was invested in providing information regarding all the societies, competitions and opportunities he was aware of, however one, in particular, was at the heart of his program; Student Ambassadorship in the form of USYD’s IPP (Industry Placement Program).

At the end of his first year at the University of Sydney, Nim, through the IPP, and assisted by a Petre Family Scholarship, undertook an internship at Capitol Hill in Washington D.C., working as a policy and legislative intern in the federal office of an Illinois Congressman. During this time, not only did Nim become acquainted with important political figures and the contemporary climate of the American legal system, he earned life lessons and lifelong friends during the experience. As he re-transitioned into life at college and in Australia, he knew that he was going to put any spare time and energy he had into making the knowledge and the experience he had available for all of his peers. Luckily, Nim was awarded the Taylor Scholarship, granting Nim more time to dedicate to the project. The University of Sydney Washington D.C. IPP only accepts 20 University of Sydney students, and in 2019, three students from St Andrew’s will make up its cohort, thanks to Nim and the Taylor Scholarship Program.

Nim, as a mentor and program leader for the College, effectively helped provide the knowledge and advice needed for some of St Andrew’s most apt and interested residents and helped them through the process of applying themselves well over the course of interviewing for the placements. The Taylor Scholarship was an invaluable contribution to Nim during his time at St Andrew’s, and even though he had always planned on imparting his experiences and advice on new Drew’s students, it was with the financial assistance of the Taylor Scholarship Program that allowed Nim to give so much of himself to the project which eventually saw St Andrew’s residents, Tom Dowse (3rd year), Declan Drake (2nd year), and Tom Woodcock (1st year), being accepted into the 2019 Washington DC IPP.

The Taylor Scholarship Program is one of the many invaluable scholarships that St Andrew’s offers its residents. To find out more about how to contribute, contact the St Andrew’s Advancement team by clicking here.