High-achieving Deakin Law School student Shannan Welsh is soon heading to Singapore for a year of study and work.

While her 2019 sights are set on Asia as a New Colombo Plan (NCP) scholar, Deakin law/commerce student Shannan Welsh is already notching up global pathways by taking a study sojourn in Europe.

As part of a Deakin program, Shannan is spending the Australian summer studying ‘Danish and European Business in a Global Perspective’ at Aarhus University in Denmark.

‘It’s providing insight into how European nations conduct business which will be important for wherever my future career takes me. Studying in a different university and meeting new people will also be extremely valuable to my personal development and study experience,’ she explains.

In 2019 Shannan will expand her study experience even further when she commences a year of study and work in Singapore as a NCP scholar.

An initiative of the Australian Government, the NCP supports Australian undergraduate students to study and undertake internships in the Indo-Pacific region.

Its aim is to deepen Australia's relationships in the region, both at the individual level and through expanding university, business and other links.

Shannan is one of Deakin’s Vice Chancellor Academic Scholarship holders and it was her mentor, Professor Jean Du Plessis of the Deakin Law School, who encouraged her to apply for the NCP scholarship and also provided application advice and support.

She says that although the scholarship application process was ‘long and challenging’ it was very worthwhile.

‘After learning I’d been awarded the scholarship, I also found out that PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) had chosen me to be one of three scholars they will sponsor for 2019. This means that I will be interning with PwC Singapore during my NCP program. This will have a huge impact for my future career and personal goals of gaining insight into the operations of the legal department within a large-scale business,’ she says.

Based at the National University of Singapore, Shannan’s studies will include cyber-security law, intellectual-property and international law.

‘These will assist me with beginning of my journey into my desired career field of Legal-Technology,’ she explains.

The scholarship also provides her with opportunities to undertake language training and access a large variety of other internship and networking opportunities in the Singapore region.

The NCP supports students to study and undertake internships in 40 locations across the Indo-Pacific from South Asia and by the end of 2020, around 40,000 young Australians will have experienced living, studying and undertaking work experience in the Indo-Pacific.

And it’s this global experience that Shannan is most looking forward to.

 ‘The most incredible part is that all of these opportunities are going to occur in another country, so I will also be experiencing a brand-new culture and meeting so many new people which is an experience that I absolutely can’t wait to have.’