Vignette 49: Nurturing Rhodes scholars

The University has produced over 110 Rhodes Scholars since its first student was honoured in 1904. As the oldest postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, it supports students with intellect, character, leadership skills, and a commitment to service. The Rhodes Scholarship was established in 1902 by Cecil Rhodes with the purpose of promoting unity among English speaking nations. Over the years, the scholarship’s criteria have been modified, and now students from all countries qualify to apply.

Among our University luminaries is Lord Howard Florey, a 1921 alumnus who, alongside his colleagues, earned the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1945 for pioneering penicillin development. The University has achieved several firsts in Rhodes Scholarship, including the first female recipient from South Australia, the first, First Nations Rhodes Scholar, and the first Aboriginal medical student to receive the scholarship.

The University’s excellence and leadership are echoed through its Rhodes Scholars, ensuring a resource of brilliant Adelaide thinkers in all fields of study.

The University of Adelaide: 150 Years of Making History.  Nurturing excellence. p.72