Nutritionist Maddy Bento comes from Goondiwindi, a rural town on the Queensland and New South Wales border, about four hours from Brisbane. Growing up, Maddy only knew about the mainstream universities, and she enrolled before discovering Endeavour.

“I moved to Brisbane to study at a big university and got so homesick. I was in huge lecture halls with hundreds of students of all different professions, and it was overwhelming,” Maddy said. “I heard about Endeavour from a friend. When I transferred, I loved Endeavour’s close-knit community, the camaraderie, the clinic and the lecturers! They respected me, and I felt like I could ask questions. I wish I’d known about Endeavour and its flexible study options earlier.”

For naturopathy student, Briana Surkitt studying at Endeavour meant moving to Melbourne, the closest campus to her hometown of Warrnambool. When the pandemic struck, she moved back home again. Now, Briana is finishing her clinical practice on campus.

“With everything going on in the world, I am grateful I could keep studying online and not delay my course,” Briana said. “Last year, in my first clinic block, studying remotely gave me insight into telehealth. Returning to campus this year added immensely to my confidence as a practitioner.

“One of the biggest challenges as a regional student is time management with the travel to campus, but the weeks have flown by, and, again, I’m so grateful for the experience of face-to-face clinics. I can practise my skills, and my relationships with other student practitioners and supervisors are second to none. It’s good having a community of like-minded people surrounding you,” Briana said.

As a solo parent to three boys, Naturopath Tara Hansen also understands the importance of time management. When she decided to study naturopathy, she opted not to move from Busselton to Perth in Western Australia because it would mean disrupting her whole family. Instead, she adapted, driving two and a half to three hours (one way) to get to campus.

“If I can do it, anyone can,” she laughed. “You just need passion, and you’ll make it work. I travelled to and from Perth back twice a week and had to call on family and friends to support me. Before my degree, I thought if I asked for help, it was a sign of weakness. But I had no choice. Asking for help makes you vulnerable, but I found people are very willing to help you if you ask. I wouldn’t have got through without my support crew.”

Tara also had to be very organised. She downloaded her lectures and listened to them while driving. Briana agrees that making the most of your travel time with informative podcasts and the like is vital.

“Also embrace summer school, especially for on-campus subjects and to save travel time. If you can, and it works for you, book clinic days back-to-back,” Briana said. “Also, schedule time for rest, and don’t feel guilty about it – it’s essential.”

While more subjects are online, students must complete some practical components in person. Tara found flipping to a positive mindset helped her manage.

“I changed my thinking to, ‘I get to do this amazing clinical practice, and it will be complete in 12 weeks.’ It helped me put things in perspective and be grateful for the opportunity to be around the other students and supervisors.”

Maddy struggled with her health during her time at Endeavour. “All the lecturers, admin and peers were so supportive,” she said. “They held me accountable and didn’t stretch boundaries but supported me when I needed it. Endeavour also has a free mental health hotline you can call.”

“My top tip is to be respectful and develop relationships with your peers and lecturers,” Maddy said. “These people will be your professional peers, and it’s important to have supportive relationships through uni, especially when you’re far from home!”

After finishing her degree, Maddy moved back to the country and is using her knowledge and experience to help people living in regional Queensland.

“When you’re studying, own that you’re from a regional background and take your experiences and knowledge while still being open to new ideas, information and concepts,” Maddy said. “See how things work in the city and see if you can make things better for regional areas. There are quirks of being from a regional place, like using your country town attitude to help you through and help others.”

Briana added, “Don’t compare your experience to others too much. If you’re passionate about natural health and thinking of studying, don’t let anyone hold you back and don’t expect your experience to look the same as anyone else’s,” she said. “Adapt the study to your life and take your time if you need. The course is flexible, so take on what you can.”

Once Briana graduates, she plans to take some time off to travel. “Then I’ll jump straight into clinical practice in my hometown, which is not what I expected starting this degree, but I truly love the feeling of helping people one-on-one,” she said. That’s on top of her business By Blu Naturopathy, where Briana creates organic herbal tea blends as a useful tool for people to reach better health with simple steps.

“There are people in my local community who I definitely want to help to reach optimal health and give them more insight into all the treatment options available to them, including the power of nutrition as well as herbal medicine and supplementation,” Briana said. “I also have a passion for educating people around our way of treating and practising and showing them that it’s not fringe anymore and should be integrated into everyone’s lives.”

Back in Busselton, Tara runs her business, The Conscious Naturopath. Many of her clients from the Endeavour student clinic still see her using telehealth, and she’s building her local client base quickly. “There’s a real need for naturopathy services in my region even though there are already some well-known practitioners here. Local people have asked me how I did it, and I always reply, “If you’ve got the drive, you’ll make it happen. Reach out to others who have done it before, and don’t be scared to lean on others.”

Briana sums it up this way – “Embrace it and know you’re not alone.”

Interested in a career in Natural Health?

Want to pursue your passion for Natural Health? Learn about our range of Bachelor Degrees.