Mater Research Group Leader and Mater Foundation Senior Research Fellow Dr Samudragupta (Sam) Bora's research student, Theresa Chin, has graduated from The University of Queensland’s Honours program with outstanding results.
Theresa has been awarded the prestigious McElwain Prize for the Best Individual Research Thesis in Psychology for her thesis on brain function in children born with heart defects.
Theresa is sincerely humbled and incredibly proud of her recognition.
“This prize means a great, great deal to me in personal and professional aspects. With this prize, I am able to truly say that hard work pays off. I have made full use of all the opportunities that I have been so lucky to have,” she said.
“Without the constant guidance, insight and support that I have received from my thesis advisor Dr Bora, the Neurodevelopmental Follow-Up and Outcomes research group members, close friends and family, I could not have completed this thesis successfully.”
Theresa’s thesis profiled three types of brain function in children born with heart defects—working memory, cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control and was highly commended by the examiners.
Dr Bora, Theresa’s thesis advisor, also found her to be extremely hardworking, enthusiastic and truly passionate about clinical research.
“While working in my team Theresa clearly demonstrated strong work ethic and team spirit, and most importantly she never failed to impress me! She is definitely one of my superstar students,” Dr Bora said.
Dr Bora’s advice to his students is to “be collaborative, be responsible, be humble and respectful of other researchers, and most importantly look after your own mental health and those around you.”
Theresa plans to continue her studies in the field of brain development and children’s health with an offer to undertake her doctoral training through the Faculty of Medicine at The University of Queensland in conjunction with Mater Research.
Congratulations to Theresa on her fine academic achievement and equally to Dr Bora for fostering such excellence in research for our future scientists.