Scholarship helps soon-to-be psychologist take final step
St John of God Casa Venegas NSW Service Manager Niki Alexopoulos has been selected as one of 24 recipients of a scholarship to further her education.
3 May 2023
Niki, who has worked in St John of God Health Care’s not-for-profit homelessness and mental health support service, Casa Venegas, for six years, is using the Sister Bridget Clancy Scholarship for the Empowerment of Women through Education to finish her Master of Professional Psychology at Macquarie University.
“This scholarship is very significant for me because not only is it funding my final year of studies, its financially supporting me to do my eight-week placement, which is a long period of time that I won’t be able to work,” Niki said.
“Any psychology degree is an expensive and long process. I’ve been studying part time for nine years, completing my psychology undergraduate degree, honours and now masters, while working full time and looking after my children, so I appreciate the support I’m getting to achieve my goal.”
The scholarship, which was first offered in 2021 in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Sister's foundation, seeks to continue the legacy of the visionary and courageous women who founded St John of God Health Care in Australia.
The scholarship was open to female caregivers undertaking studies focused on leadership development or related to women's health.
Niki said she enjoyed applying her learnings and research into her everyday work to support vulnerable people in the community.
“I love the balance between learning, research and applying that to real life situations, for example, creating processes and procedures, or adjusting how we work with vulnerable people, that’s backed by research,” she said.
“One of our strategies at Casa Venegas is service and program excellence, but in order to say that we are providing this to our clients, we need to show and demonstrate how we are doing so and have the research to back it.
“The goal of my studies is to not only become a registered psychologist, but to enable St John of God Health Care to continue to run services with evidence-based practices that are supporting vulnerable populations in our community.”
Niki said working for Casa Venegas, operated by St John of God Social Outreach, while studying has reinforced her passion for working in mental health and supporting vulnerable communities.
“St John of God Social Outreach funds a number of much-needed services to support the most vulnerable, with the work we do a true example of our Values in Hospitality, Compassion, Respect, Justice and Excellence,” she said.
“I am passionate about delivering the highest quality services to our clients to help them achieve the best possible outcomes and live their most fulfilling life.
“We need more of these services, and expanding Casa Venegas beyond western and inner Sydney would be the ultimate dream.”
You may be interested in