Emeritus Professor Field Rickards started his research career as a PhD student with Bionics Institute founder and bionic ear pioneer, Laureate Professor Graeme Clark AC.
He went on to pursue a stellar career in audiology research, later becoming Dean of the Melbourne Graduate School of Education at the University of Melbourne.
It is very fitting that he presents the Field Rickards Awards for Leadership and Impact each year to our stellar staff and students. Congratulations to the awardees Dr Tommy Peng, Stephen Lee, Dr Sally Herring, Lisa Dyball and our Tinnitus team on their achievements in 2022!
As this story illustrates, students are both integral to the success of the Bionics Institute and are the superstars of the future. That’s why we have introduced the Innovate for Life Student Scholarships to attract biomedical, engineering and neuroscience students to undertake a Masters by Research or PhD at the Bionics Institute.
As you can imagine, many young people are unable to commit to postgraduate study because they simply can’t afford it. A scholarship can be the difference between the brightest students using their skills to find solutions to challenging medical conditions or deciding to follow a different path.
In this newsletter, you will meet some PhD students who are now senior researchers at the Bionics Institute, plus some research stars of the future who joined us for a summer internship to work on research into hearing, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. To find out how you can support the next generation of Bionics Institute researchers, come along to our free webinar in April.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who donated to our Alzheimer’s Christmas Appeal.
“Your support will help us get a clinical trial into a promising new treatment for this debilitating disease started as soon as possible.”
Mr Robert Klupacs
CEO
