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Sultan Ahmed Saleh Al-Hammadi was Highly Commended in the Academic Excellence: Undergraduate (Coursework) category of StudyAdelaide’s International Student Awards.

From Oman in the Middle East, Sultan recently completed his Bachelor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (Honours) with a GPA of 7.0 – the highest possible GPA to achieve.

During his time in Adelaide, Sultan has continued to earn top marks for his studies, while balancing volunteering commitments as a Peer Assisted Study Session leader; ³ÉÈË´óƬ Union volunteer; and treasurer of the Omani Student Society of South Australia (OSSA).

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Tell us about your international student award.

None of the many obstacles I faced during my academic journey stopped me from being the person I am today. I consistently set high goals and standards, and have strong will, determination, and discipline that I have learnt from my mentors.

In November 2018, I received a Summer Research Scholarship from the Australian School of Petroleum and Energy Resources. The research project I became involved in was called 'Psychological Aspects of Oil and Gas Decision Making'. Throughout the project, I developed MATLAB programs that capture participants' true beliefs while limiting the effects of biases. I also helped my colleague in creating and distributing recruitment flyers using Adobe Photoshop.

In February 2019, I completed a training session to become a Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) Leader at the ³ÉÈË´óƬ. This provided me with the necessary skills to facilitate and lead weekly tutorial sessions for groups of students in different courses. I also participated in many volunteering activities with the Adelaide University Union, contributing to the setup of events and managing hygienic food handling. I also helped to guide new students around the North Terrace campus of the University.

Another big achievement is that I became a student representative of the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering in 2019 and 2020. My main task was to establish a direct and more structured channel of communication between students and staff.

I was chosen to be the treasurer of the Omani Student Society of South Australia (OSSSA) in 2019. My role involves ensuring that the events held by the society are run smoothly and within budget. In 2020, the society started an initiative called 'Draw a Smile'. This involves visiting refugee families and supporting them financially along with other volunteering work. I am also part of the Robogals club, where we visit schools and promote engineering and science to young girls around Adelaide.

I have also participated in different fundraising events, such as Steptember - a charity that helps people with cerebral palsy. Another thing that I do regularly is blood donation since my blood type (B+) is quite rare. In 2020, I started donating money regularly to an orphan and a whole family in different countries through the Emirates Red Crescent. Whenever I find an opportunity to volunteer and/or help others, I invest myself in it, as for me, life is about helping each other.

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What is your goal once you have completed your degree?

I was fortunate to receive a full scholarship from Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) during my bachelor studies. This helped greatly with securing a graduate position with the company. My dream is to one day become like my older brother, who is a successful electrical engineer. I want to be someone who is capable of teaching as well as training others in the necessary knowledge and skills to be an accomplished engineer.

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What do you miss about your home country?

While in Adelaide, I mainly missed my family, along with my gaming setup. But thankfully, there are lots of things to do in Adelaide, such as walking along Christies Beach.Ìý

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Quickfire questions!

Zoom or in-person?

Zoom classes.

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Adelaide Hills or Adelaide’s beaches?

Adelaide’s beaches of course!

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Home delivery or home-cooked?

Home delivery as I can barely cook an omelette.

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3 things you won’t miss about COVID-19 restrictions?

• COVID-19 case count each day
• Face masks
• Anxiety

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3 things you won’t forget about COVID-19?

• Family phone calls
• Home-cooked meals
• Boredom