Isobel Cubong

Women of STEM Scholarship Winner

Award Date:

2025

STEM Interests

Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) Majoring in Mechanical Engineering.

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A Bit About Me

I moved to Perth from the Philippines when I was six and I distinctly remember facing challenges due to a language barrier. What I couldn't express in words I could through STEM and my dedication to community service, I quickly realised my actions can be just as powerful as words. I was a pro-active student who always sought to expand my knowledge and share it with others. I made it my mission to turn an unfamiliar environment into a place I can comfortably call home. Today I call Perth my home but I am still that student who wishes to share her love for STEM with community.

Questions and Answers

Tell us about someone who inspires you and why

How did you become interested in STEM?

What are you most looking forward to about studying STEM at university?

How will the Women of STEM Scholarship assist you?

Both my parents have been my greatest sources of inspiration. My Dad is a civil engineer who was able to find work in Perth and help our family move here. He showed me the opportunities within engineering, even making the difficult decision of moving to Australia by himself for work. He is the hardest worker I know and I feel so incredibly lucky that when I think of what engineer I aspire to become, I just have to look at him. Both my parents have always supported my extracurriculars, from driving me long distances or taking time off work, the sacrifices they made only inspired me to tackle every challenge and opportunity given to me because I know they gave up so much for me to have this privilege.

I loved maths and sciences from an early age and that fostered into pursuing extracurricular activities to deepen as well as share my passions. I was apart of and later captained the only all-girls F1 in School Team in the state. It involved using CAD to engineer our design, marketing our team to businesses for sponsorships and public speaking, this was a big influence on my desire to pursue a career in STEM. Winning States twice felt like a new horizon of opportunities opening up for me. In senior school, I became a mentor and tutor to help aid other students in math and science subjects as well as being chosen to represent WA in the National Youth Science Forum at the University of Queensland in 2024. By continuously surrounding myself with people dedicated to STEM as much as I am, I've placed myself an in environment that enables dreams and passions to keep growing.

University enables me to take that next step to expand my skills and knowledge. Beyond lectures and labs tailored to my exact interests, University provides industry opportunities that can help me connect with professionals in fields I've dreamed of pursuing for the past 6 years. It is a platform that brings me even closer to my dreams and experience a taste of the practical world. Gaining insight into the workforce, learning new concepts and principles and being surrounded by like-minded students and staff it is a place that allows dreams to fabricate into reality.

Cost of living pressures is hard on everyone and I believe is an unfortunate restriction for many people pursuing their dreams. I've recently moved to live close to campus and between juggling food expenses and student fees this scholarship has been extremely helpful. Furthermore, the recognition from this Scholarship has helped me to empower younger girls around me to pursue STEM and combat negative stigma's. Coming from a small school, not many girls could be found in maths or science classes so I hope sharing my success inspires them to step forward. I also wish to connect with the other amazing recipients and gain some inspiration for myself!

What job do you hope to pursue after graduating from university?

I wish to use my degree and contribute to the renewable energy sector. I've always known I wanted to use my skills to make the world a better place and energy production has always fascinated me. I wish to strengthen the research and development of green energy to have a cleaner environment and provide accessible energy sources for developing nations. Electricity can only be generated with machinery and moving parts so I want to tackle that challenge to help shape and power tomorrow.