Degree opens doors to global opportunities

Australian Leadership Awards scholar from the Philippines, Jaime Manalo IV, had never been overseas when he applied to study a Master of Communication (Communication for Social Change) at The University of Queensland (UQ).

A year later, Jaime was travelling the world and presenting his research at The International Conference on Information and Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D) in London, and rubbing shoulders with one of his heroes Tim Berners-Lee, creator of the World Wide Web.

Mr Manalo, who now works at the Philippine Rice Research Institute, returned to Brisbane today (20 July) for his graduation.

“During my time at UQ, so many doors have opened. I did my practicum in Central Vietnam with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and presented my paper on e-readiness assessment of five top rice-producing provinces of the Philippines at the ICTD 2010 Conference in London,” Mr Manalo said.

“I also tutored undergraduates, which was great opportunity to develop my teaching skills, and completed a summer research scholarship with the Centre for Communication and Social Change.

“I found the Master of Communication (Communication for Social Change) by searching online. I did my research; nowhere else in Australia offered a course that balanced the practical and the theoretical so well, nor did anywhere else have small classes and such notable professors.

“The internship in Vietnam was very challenging but I have learnt so much from it; it gave me new perspectives and skills in cross cultural communication. Throughout the course, every assignment challenged me to learn and grow, as did the professors. But it was the other students and their extraordinary range of experiences that I learnt most from, I feel.”

Mr Manalo was a Dean's Scholar and his paper “Theorising ICT4D in Philippine Agriculture: Deriving from trends, setting directions" was finalist in the Best Paper competition during the 24th National Rice Research and Development Conference in the Philippines. The same paper was also presented in the "Regional Conference on New Media for ASEAN Development” in Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University, Thailand. He also wrote a paper on youth migration for the World Bank Essay Competition that was highly commended.

He said his reason to study at UQ was to deepen his understanding and further hone his skills in the field.

“I now am more confident in my approach to my work. I know the theoretical underpinnings as well as the practical considerations of what I am advocating for, and this means I am better at managing stakeholders. I feel I can legitimately contribute to the field now,” Mr Manalo said.

“I love my work. I see real change in the poorest of communities in the Philippines. People are empowered to make decisions about their future and the future of their family. Our work matters.”

Mr Manalo plans to return to UQ to complete a PhD so he can attain his dream of teaching at the University of the Philippines.

The Master of Communication (Communication for Social Change) is convened by the Centre for Communication and Social Change, the only centre in Australia that specialises in Communication for Social Change through collaborative research, postgraduate programs, consultancies, professional development courses, and an annual award.

The School of Journalism and Communication and the Centre for Communication and Social Change proudly congratulates Mr Manalo and all students graduating in July.

Media: Siena Perry (siena.perry@uq.edu.au, 3346 3465)