Student Diary Artwork Competition

A student diary cover with sea creatures

Introducing your 2027 Student Diary Cover!

"Southern Cross University is where I found belonging. It gave me far more than a degree: it gave me a community when I needed one most. As a migrant to Australia, I had to build a new life and find where I belonged. On my very first day, I met another student who would become one of my closest lifelong friends. On day two, I met my future maid of honour...

...In the days and years that followed, I formed friendships that became family, and by my second year, I had met my future husband—all through SCU. 

Although I deeply miss my island home, living near Coffs Harbour constantly reminds me how connected the two places are by the ocean. That connection inspired my diary design. My artwork brings together memories from both homes: exploring rock reefs and hunting for octopus as a child, creating handmade posters to protect turtle nesting sites as a teenager, and now standing on Australian headlands watching whales migrate along the coast. 

Separated by thousands of kilometres yet connected by the oceans of the world, my two homes have shaped who I am today. SCU is the place that brought those two worlds together.