This is my second year as National President of CAPA. This year, I look forward to continuing to ensure that CAPA is the authoritative voice on postgraduate issues on a national level.
Prior to becoming National President, I served as CAPA’s General Secretary in 2017 and Media Officer in 2016. I have also held several roles at Monash Postgraduate Association, including presidency in 2017/18.
I am a PhD student at the Monash University School of Social Sciences, at which I commenced in 2015. My dissertation argues that the sexual division of domestic labour is promoted by news reporting of scientific findings pertaining to sex differences.
Hi there!
I’m Rachel and I’m looking forward to working towards CAPAs goals as General Secretary for the rest of 2018 and contributing at a national level in this role. I’m a doctoral student in business at Vic Uni and currently hold the Vice President role at VUPA on the back of many student representation and committee roles at Vic Uni since 2013. My background spans project management in property; governance and board roles; business strategy and consulting; lecturing and teaching. I adore ideas with a sense of adventure and working in diverse groups.
Hi there! I’m new to CAPA in 2018. My background spans the hard sciences and the fine arts, primarily digital arts and science communication.
I have a Bachelor of Visual Arts as well as a Bachelor of Science, and am currently studying the Master of Science Communication at the ANU. I am especially interested in diverse thoughts and ideas, and novel interdisciplinary approaches to solving problems.
I am a huge advocate of mental health and wellbeing, inclusiveness, accessibility, acceptance and transparency. This goes hand-in-hand with being an active college representative for PARSA (the ANU’s postgraduate body), and in being the current president of the ANU Science Communication Society.
I look forward to working with the CAPA team throughout 2018 to ensure our affiliates have a visible presence and united voice on a national platform.
Hello my name is Marguerite Biasatti and I am your elected CAPA Disabilities Officer for 2018.
I am a proud member of multicultural and diverse Australia, with parents from Southern Norway and Northern Italy.
I am currently enrolled in the Doctor of Social Work program at the University of Sydney where my research explores the experience of postgraduate students from Europe in Australia.
As a professionally qualified clinical Social Worker (UNSW), my experience in working in University Counselling Units’ has provided up to date knowledge to support postgraduate students who identify with a disability.
I am currently the Disabilities Officer at SUPRA (Sydney University Postgraduate Representative Assocation).
In my position at CAPA, I will aim to provide a ‘snapshot’ of information about university based support services for postgraduate students who identify with a disability. At present, we do not have this information and this will provide a basis to review how our universities’ can best support postgraduate students who identify with a disability.
I am currently studying a Doctor of Medicine (MD) at Melbourne Medical School, and am also the LGBTIQ+ Officer for the University of Melbourne Graduate Students Association (GSA). I am very excited to advocate on behalf of queer-identifying postgraduate students at a national level as part of CAPA’s executive team, and to support our affiliate organisations to develop inclusive practices and spaces for people of diverse sexualities and genders.
Romana-Rea Begicevic is a cancer researcher as a Higher Degree by Research PhD student at Curtin University in the School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences within the faculty of Health Sciences. She is a postgraduate student member of Curtin University Council having been elected by the postgraduate students for a one-year term commencing April, 2018.
Romana commenced her studies at Curtin University in 2012 and is very passionate about representing her peers, holding positions at the university such as Research Vice President and President of the Postgraduate Students Committee, Curtin Student Guild. At the national level Romana has represented postgraduate students as Western Branch President and the current national Women’s Officer at the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations (CAPA). She is committed to the postgraduate students academic and research excellence, wellbeing and career success.
As a researcher, Romana’s project focuses on ways in which to target vulnerabilities, in highly aggressive pancreatic cancer stem cells, to eliminate them. She holds a Bachelor of Science (Human Biology Pre-Clinical), Honours in Biomedical Science and is a current PhD student.
