The 46 year-old mother of two studied for more than a decade while working full-time. Originally from Warren, Kerrie is now based in Dubbo and works at the Narromine Shire Council as the director of infrastructure and engineering services. 

Kerrie stood shoulder to shoulder with the other graduates at the University’s Clive Berghofer Recreation Centre on April 20, passing a cheering crowd of proud family, friends, USQ staff and community members.

While studying externally may have taken a while, Kerrie said graduating felt like a “huge sense of relief.”

“Finishing was a huge relief.. I’ve been studying for a long time. So it’s taken a while to settle in,” she said.

Kerrie said she had a “huge contingent” of loved ones with her at the graduation.

Some of the things that Kerrie has learnt from the degree was “strategic thinking and planning ahead” which she said were necessary to be successful.

“And studying allows you to hone in on those skills.. I’ve said to both of my children that you can never stop learning.. you can never know enough,” she said.

While University wasn’t the be all and end all for everyone, Kerrie urged those people that do have that interest to give it a go.

“It’s definitely achievable.. I did mine externally and while it’s not always easy… there’s no excuse not to do what you want to do,” she said.

Valedictorian, Bethany MacDonald addressed her fellow graduates at the morning ceremony.

“USQ has equipped us with the knowledge and tools we need to excel in our chosen fields, and provided us with opportunities to put our skills into practice,” she said.

“As we each reflect on what we’ve achieved over the past few years we know just how hard we’ve worked, and how much support and guidance we’ve been blessed with.”

The graduates also heard from guest speakers USQ Astrophysicist Professor Jonti Horner and former Chief of Airforce Air Marshal Geoff Brown AO.