Paul Shaw, a student from England, recently joined fellow student, Freda Unusi, from the Soloman Islands, as the latest Brisbane International Campus (BIC) student to receive an offer to become a member of the prestigious and highly sought after Golden Key National Honour Society.

“When I opened the letter of invitation to become a Golden Key member, I was surprised and didn’t know what to think”, Paul said.

Freda chuckled as she recalled that “..it did not occur to me that this was such a prestigious and important society.

However, after speaking with Jennifer Liley, Sub Dean – Faculty of Informatics & Communication, Paul felt that it was something to be really proud of and would be an important asset on his resume to greatly improve his chances of finding employment.

Freda recalled the pride and excitement she felt after also speaking with Jennifer. “The grin on my face that day was from ear to ear. I was so happy. I felt that the hard work had started to pay off quite early.

The Golden Key National Honour Society, founded at the Georgia State University in 1977 and expanded into Australia in 1993, is an international not-for-profit academic honours organisation, founded for the purpose of recognising and encouraging scholastic achievement among students from all academic fields, and facilitates the establishment of professional and social contacts for high achieving students.

======= Photo above: Paul Shaw, currently working as a part time technical assistant at BIC, joins fellow IT student and Golden Key member, Freda Unusi, at her work station.

Dedicated to the achievement of excellence, the Society is interdisciplinary and unites the talents of the world’s brightest students. Being for life, membership is by invitation only and is offered exclusively to the top 15% of bachelor degree students.

In addition to having their scholastic achievements recognised and encouraged, Golden Key members are united with academic staff and administrators to develop and maintain high standards of achievement, are provided with the opportunity of economic assistance in the form of annual scholarships, and are offered career employment opportunities.

But it is not all serious work. By participating in their local chapter, members can access social events such as dinners, balls and sporting galas; lectures by high-profile speakers; voluntary community service activities; literary and art contests; and committee meetings.

“While it took me a while for it to sink in, I now recognise how valuable Golden Key membership will be when I leave student life and enter the full time employment market,” Paul concluded.

In addition to the career prospects, Freda is looking forward to pursuing her passions and other issues she feels strongly about, like saving ocean-going turtles, in this unique forum and with like-minded people.