4 minute read
Guided by professional opportunities and a focus on academic excellence, ANU graduand Geoffrey Liu feels he has not only gained an appetite to imagine but also a tangible ambition to pursue.
“I gained clarity of who I can be at The Australian National University (ANU). The environment at this University over the past four years has nurtured my ambition to better integrate academia with businesses in Australia and improve the nation’s economy,” shared Geoffrey, who is graduating from the ANU College of Business and Economics (CBE) with Honours in Statistics.
Last week, he was awarded the prestigious Tillyard Prize for personal qualities and contribution to the University.
I have changed the way I used to think... At ANU, I got to explore my ideas and ambitions without any interference.
Originally from Sydney, Geoffrey came to ANU in 2015 seeking excellence in higher education. This move has had “a positive and profound effect” on him.
“Ever since I started my first semester, I have changed the way I used to think back in Sydney. At ANU, I got to explore my ideas and ambitions without any interference. I had the elbowroom to think like an innovator and am now determined to revolutionise the Australian market,” Geoffrey said.
Aside from the lecturers, tutors and high level of engagement at CBE, the diversity of interstate and international students at ANU sharpened his thinking.
In addition to the knowledge that he has accrued, Geoffrey believes he has gained many professional attributes.
Through the CBE Internship Program, he was placed with the Housing and Homelessness Collection Processing Unit within the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), where he used his data and technical skills to solve policy issues relating to homelessness and housing in Australia.
“The internship with AIHW was transformational and led me to other important opportunities, including with the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and AlphaBeta, a strategy consulting firm that focuses on macroeconomic analysis. It is also through these experiences that I’ve learnt the value of data in policymaking,” said Geoffrey, who went on to co-found the ANU Data Science Society.
“Now that I’m graduating I can clearly see who I would have been if I hadn’t studied at ANU. I would be less informed, less innovative and a different thinker,” he emphasised.
The ANU College of Business and Economics offers an extensive range of specialised programs in Statistics. Click here for more details.