Former Windsor High School student James Fenton was last week awarded with a prestigious 2018 New Colombo Plan (NCP) Scholarship for Japan from the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Julie Bishop at Parliament House in Canberra.
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The New Colombo Plan is an Australian Government Initiative which supports Australian students to study and undertake internships in the Indo-Pacific region through short term mobility grants, semester programs, and their scholarship program.
Through the NCP many important people-to-people connections are made between Australia and countries in the region, and both studying and working in the Indo-Pacific is being established as a rite of passage for Australian students.
“My experience will involve me studying Japanese Language Subjects and College of Engineering Science Subjects at Yokohama National University for 12 months from April 2018 until March 2019,” James said.
“From April 2019 until roughly September/October 2019 I plan to undertake an internship in Japan, bringing the total duration of my program to around 18 months.
“I’ve indicated interest in companies such as the Japan East Railway Company, Huawei Technologies, and Mitsui and Co. I will also look into alternative options through NCP and other channels.”
It has been a long term goal for James, who is now in his fourth year at the University of Technology Sydney. He said he was thrilled to have received the scholarship and said he felt it was important to the Australian government and the tax payer that he makes the most of his experience, learning as much as he can to intern benefit the Australian economy in years to come.
“I am thrilled to have achieved this honour. My success in reaching this goal is not only a product of my hard work, but also a product of the opportunities I have been provided and the support of the people around me. So I’d like to recognize some of that support and opportunity.”
James first fell in love with Japanese when he started studying the language in year 10.
“I wasn’t sure what subject I wanted to chose for Year 11 and 12 at Windsor High School and one of my teachers suggested I learn a language.
“My teachers were really supportive of me learning Japanese even though it wasn’t a subject we had at school, and encouraged me through my distance education classes with open high schools in Randwick.”
Now studying at UTS, James said the staff were instrumental in providing him with valuable opportunities to access grant schemes to study abroad through their BUiLD program.
“The first time I traveled overseas was my first trip to Japan was last year. And I am actually the first person in my immediate family to study at university,” James said.
“There are so many opportunities out there and BUiLD at UTS has been instrumental in providing me with those opportunities.”
During his first visit to Japan last year James said it triggered a “chemical reaction” that had him hooked on Japan.
“The experience was transformative for me and confirmed my love for Japan.”
The trip also opened his eyes to the diversity that exists in the region which that challenged him to learn new skills in an unfamiliar environment.
Ultimately James will graduate from Uni in early 2021 and said could see himself moving into a project management or information technology/business analysis role using his skills in a multinational company.
“So many individuals who I have met through these experiences and elsewhere have also helped me get to this point, thank you to everyone who has had some impact on my journey thus far.
“I’m a product of all the experiences and opportunities I’ve had and the people I’ve interacted with. By working tirelessly and with the help of all of the above entities I’m proud to have been able to receive this scholarship, the biggest achievement of my life so far.”
The benefits of the New Colombo Plan that will form part of my proposed program include:
- A travel allowance of $2,500 to contribute to costs associated with travel to and from Japan.
- An establishment allowance of $2,500 to contribute to the costs associated with settling into Japan.
- A monthly stipend of $2,500 to contribute to basic living costs in Japan (approx. $45,000 total over the 18 month program).
- Health and travel insurance for the duration of the overseas Scholarship Program.
- A dedicated Case Manager for the duration of the Scholarship Program who provides services including pre-departure briefings, advice on health and travel insurance, advice and assistance relating to accommodation, and payment of allowances.
