Receiving the GJK Facilities Scholarship enabled Isabelle to stay at uni despite the many challenges life threw at her.
Isabelle Mountjoy-Austen has overcome a lot of obstacles to get to where she is today. Her strength and determination have remained solid as she has navigated her way through life and education.
Growing up the second eldest of seven children in a single-parent family meant that she had to share parenting responsibilities with her mother, which added significant stress to her studies. She completed year 12 over two years during the COVID-19 lockdowns and was helping homeschool her siblings as well.
“I remember being in an online English class and my little sister was just running around my bedroom,” Isabelle says. “It was stressful but when you have so many siblings you don’t know any different. You just get used to it.”
When she was in year 8, Isabelle started going to women in STEM events because she had natural flair for maths and science. She worked extremely hard to complete VCE and is now in the third year of a four-year Bachelor of Engineering (Aerospace Engineering) (Honours) at RMIT.
Isabelle describes her first year of uni as pure chaos. “When I first moved from Bendigo to Melbourne for uni I lived in student accommodation in Footscray because it was all I could afford. Then that caught fire and I was moved into the CBD. I ended up moving four times that year.
Isabelle at the 2025 RMIT Scholarship Dinner with RMIT Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Alec Cameron.
“On top of that, my partner’s mother was diagnosed with cancer, and we lost her that year as well. We were close and she was a huge support to me,” she reflects.
After such a tumultuous first year at uni, Isabelle vividly remembers the relief she felt when she found out she had been awarded the inaugural GJK Facilities Scholarship. “I was in the car driving back to Bendigo and I received the email. It’s such a lot of money and I just couldn’t believe it. It changed my life.”
When she first started uni, Isabelle only had $50 left over after rent to live on each week. Now, after receiving the scholarship, she can afford to treat herself occasionally and look after her mental health.
“Being able to actually fully function and not just be constantly in the pattern of a being a broke uni student has increased my overall mental health,” she says.
When she’s not studying, Isabelle is hanging out with her “nerdy” friends and doing things that aren’t related to maths and science. She loves playing Dungeons and Dragons and other board games, as well as seeing musical theatre and reading.
As the first in her family to attend university, she knows firsthand the barriers faced by students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Through her casual work with RMIT’s equity team on the Schools Network Access Program (SNAP) she now helps others navigate those same challenges.
The program partners with eligible schools to support students whose academic potential may not be fully reflected in their results, offering adjusted entry criteria and guidance on university pathways. “A lot of these kids don’t know anyone who’s been to uni,” Isabelle says. “I was the same. Now I get to be that person who shows them it’s possible.”
Isabelle is now looking for a summer internship. She would love to work in flight testing, which involves pushing aircraft components beyond normal conditions to ensure maximum safety – like bending a wing far beyond what it would experience in flight.
I find it fascinating to be part of a process that ensures planes won’t fail, even in extreme scenarios. I’d love to be in any role that helps make flying safer. It’s just so cool.
Isabelle is extremely grateful for the life-changing scholarship. “I met the donor [Elias Stamas, CEO of GJK Facility Services] and he's not in aerospace engineering so he doesn’t really know what I do, but he is the nicest human alive and showed so much interest in me.
“I think it’s so special that there are people who believe in the power of education and want to give back. Sometimes it feels like education is behind a paywall and many people can’t see a way around it. Giving people the opportunity to go uni is just a very generous thing to do.”
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