The J.N.E. Award for Women in International Affairs valued at $1000 was established to support and empower women who are looking to pursue a career in international affairs. The award has been established in honour of the late Joanne Norma Ebbott, mother of Deakin alumna E. Ebbott, who is passionate and committed to facilitating the growth and encouragement of female representation in international affairs. There has been a growing awareness of the impact empowering women has on their respective communities. Let this award be a step in the right direction towards empowering women in Deakin’s community and Australia’s impact in international affairs today and for tomorrow.

To be eligible for this award, you must:

• be a female, domestic student (includes Australian and NZ citizens, residency visa holders and permanent humanitarian visa holders);
• be enrolled full-time in the second or third year of a Bachelor of international Studies (BIS) course at Deakin University, at a Geelong campus;
• be experiencing an area of hardship that impacts your ability to study;
• be open to attending a meet and greet with the donor.

Previous winners

2025 Maddison Hodges
2024 Athea Saducas
2023 Ashley Farmer
2022 Isabella Harry
2021 Alana Abbott

Award: eGift card and certificate

Associate Professor Hans Löfgren was an integral member of Deakin’s Politics and Policy group between 2001 and 2014, and an associate editor of the Australian Journal of Political Science. The prize is awarded annually to the best research dissertation produced by students enrolled in Honours (Politics and Policy Studies) or the Master of Politics and Policy.

Previous winners

2025 Jason Foster
2024 Kirsty Umback
2023 Melinda Narguet
2022 Anita Rank
2021 Olivia Peters and Hannah Mansfield
2020 Matt Osborn
2019 Amogh Chakravarthy
2018 Eloise Noske
2017 Linda Wollersheim
2016 Adam Mackay-Dickson
2015 Andrew Saunders

A prize of $500 is awarded for an outstanding graduating student of Journalism or International Relations.

Previous winners

2018 Luke Pelchen
2017 John Sapranidis
2016 Evan Chatelier
2015 Callum Houghton
2013 Grace Williams
2012 Andrew Thomas
2011 Liana Papoutsis

This award commemorates a young Museum Studies graduate, Ros Lawry, who died in tragic circumstances. Her parents, Jim and Fay Lawry, established an endowment for an annual prize. The Roslyn Lawry Award is awarded annually to a student enrolled in the Master of Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies who has achieved standards of excellence in his or her academic record and demonstrated a personal commitment to heritage/museum training. The recipient receives a generous cheque to fund further professional development and a framed certificate.

Previous winners

2025 Adelle Talarico
2024 Charlotte Botica
2023 Kate Harding
2022 Meghan Grech
2021 Madeleine Moore
2020 Isabelle Meister
2019 Justin Croft
2018 Amy MacKintosh
2017 Rachael Cottle
2016 Eugenia Pacitti
2015 Gavan O'Connor
2014 Susan Fayad
2013 Amy Barclay
2012 Jennifer Rowe
2011 Anna Welch
2010 Luke James
2009 Carmel O'Keeffe
2008 Helen Hunter
2007 Helen Laffin
2006 Sally Patfield
2005 Jannelle Mikkelson
2004 Roana O'Neill
2003 Meredith Blake and Fiona Salmon
2002 Brian Hubber
2000 and 2001 Brett Clowes

Award: eGift card and certificate

This prize is named after Emeritus Professor Stan van Hooft who has made a longstanding and sustained contribution to generations of Deakin's campus and online students and colleagues, and to the philosophy community, both nationally and internationally, over a span of almost four decades. Stan was appointed as a tutor at Deakin University in the University’s first year of teaching in 1978 and retired in 2014 after 36 years of service to Deakin University and its antecedents. It will be awarded to the highest-performing Honours student completing in one of the following Humanities and Social Sciences disciplines – Anthropology, Criminology, History, International Relations, Languages, Middle East Studies, Philosophy, Politics or Sociology. Selection is based on the weighted-average-mean of all the Honours units.

Previous winners

2025 Jess McKiggan
2024 Hope Kuchel
2023 Emma Carberry
2022 Matthew Millen
2021 Bessie Mikelsons and Scott McCarthy
2020 Angela Bennette
2019 NA
2018 Brielle Quigley
2017 Julia Milone
2016 Peter James Ziemer

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded to the Honours student with the highest thesis marks achieved in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences. The student may come from any of the School’s disciplines, including Anthropology, Criminology, History, International Relations, Languages, Middle East Studies, Philosophy, Politics or Sociology.

Previous Winners

2025 Jess McKiggan
2024 Emily Taylor
2023 Melinda Narguet
2022 Matthew Millen
2021 Penelope Odell
2020 Thomas Alexander and Angela Bennette

Award: eGift card and certificate

Named after the first anthropology academic at Deakin, Dr Malcolm Crick, this prize is awarded to the highest-scoring third-year student completing an Anthropology major. Performance will be based on the combined results of all Anthropology units.

Previous winners

2025 Nicole Malm
2024 Rohan Dodds
2023 Tom Horniblow
2022 Cassandra Hilton-Wood
2021 Julius Skiba
2020 Fiona Tribe
2019 Lachlan MacKenzie
2018 Benjamin Waine
2017 Dominic Baker
2016 Finn Woodward
2015 Luke Bearne
2014 Sonja Boehm
2013 Alexandra Aaron
2012 Catherine West
2009 Connie Warren
2008 Adrian Trifilo
2007 Sally Crane

Award: eGift card and certificate

The prize for Arabic will be awarded to a second or third year student who has shown commitment to his or her study of the language, as well as genuine interest in the culture of the Arabic-speaking world demonstrated through participation in the activities of the language program at Deakin. The award specifically recognizes academic achievement and also enthusiasm, motivation, and commitment to the language.

Previous winners

2025 Charlie Flower
2024 Catherine Brace
2023 Brodie Keating
2022 Belques Sohrabi
2021 Kenan Mujcic
2020 Sarah Leslie
2019 Paul Broussard
2018 Damian Berger
2017 Jay Ryder
2016 Erin Sutherland
2015 Zahida Quashem
2014 Keqi Zhang
2013 Matthew Malone
2012 Alessandro Tamagnini

The prize of $500 is awarded to the student with the highest result achieved in the unit Chinese 3B (AIC382) in each year of offer and will be decided upon the release of results at the end of Trimester 2 of each given year. This prize commemorates Dr Lin Zheng’s life-long commitment to education and her commitment to encouraging students to be enthusiastic about learning the Chinese language and culture and is donated by her family and her classmates at Beijing Normal University.

Previous winners

2025 Phuong Nhi (Nina) Tran
2024 Fei Yao
2023 Yasaman Dehbozorgi
2022 Marnie Harrington
2021 Jacquiline Rogers
2020 Frank Liu
2019 Angela Chan

Award: eGift card and certificate

The prize for Chinese will be awarded to a first year student who has shown commitment to her or his study of the language as well as genuine interest in Chinese culture demonstrated through participation in the activities of the languages program at Deakin. The award specifically recognizes academic achievement and also enthusiasm, motivation, and commitment to the language.

Previous winners

2025 Ben Fok
2024 Thi Phuong Yen Tran
2023 Parwana Salihe
2022 Thomas Roberts
2021 Xanthia Gregory
2020 Sarah Johnson
2019 Mabel Handreck
2018 Molly Pethick
2017 Catherine Butchart
2016 Sarah Robertson
2015 Brett Hall
2014 Sarah Whelan
2013 Valentina Yakimov
2012 Hannah Polson

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded to the first year student with the highest combined mark in the two Criminology Level 1 units in any one calendar year, with no mark below 80%. At the end of Trimester 2, Criminology academic staff will combine results from the units ACR101 and ACR102 for all students receiving a High Distinction in each unit.

Previous winners from both level 1 and 3 categories

2025 Talea Russell
2024 Amy Bregazzi
2023 Portia De Vere
2022 Alannah Sweerts
2021 Rebecca Tilse, Allegra Andrews Dennison and Sarah Wilkes
2020 Alyssa Hawkins, Carly Rosenberg
2019 Sarah Dyson, Kyra Byrne and Samantha Nally
2018 Lana Silber and Emily Chalmers
2017 Mikaela Street and Lauren Shell
2016 Gary Jeffery and Kate Wilson
2015 Carsten De Jong and Rachael Maxwell
2014 Eleanor Crawshaw and Hayley Karnis
2013 Daniel Ryan and Taylor McCaw
2012 Sally Kennedy and Aliya Tierney

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded to the third year Criminology student with the highest combined marks in Criminology Level 3 units in any one calendar year, with no mark below 80%. At the end of Trimester 2, Criminology academic staff will combine results from the units ACR301 and ACR302 for all students receiving High Distinctions in each unit.

Previous winners from both level 1 and 3 categories

2025 Anika Guenov
2024 Joshua Spain
2023 Jorja Brown
2022 Mikayla Tidd
2021 Rebecca Tilse, Allegra Andrews Dennison and Sarah Wilkes
2020 Alyssa Hawkins, Carly Rosenberg
2019 Sarah Dyson, Kyra Byrne and Samantha Nally
2018 Lana Silber and Emily Chalmers
2017 Mikaela Street and Lauren Shell
2016 Gary Jeffery and Kate Wilson
2015 Carsten De Jong and Rachael Maxwell
2014 Eleanor Crawshaw and Hayley Karnis
2013 Daniel Ryan and Taylor McCaw
2012 Sally Kennedy and Aliya Tierney

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded to the history major student with the highest combined mark in the two first-year history units (AIH107) The Modern World: Nations, Empires, Ideologies, 1860s to 1930s; and (AIH108) The Modern World: Globalisation and Fragmentation, the 1940s to the 21st Century.

Previous winners

2025 Zoe Male
2024 Ella De Haan and Jessica Vear
2023 Eva Hargitay
2022 Chelsea Pinkard
2021 Isobelle Morgan and Tyleah Wade
2020 Frances Henry
2019 Stephanie Kleores and Kam Shue Tang
2018 Scott McCarthy
2017 Bessie Mikelsons
2016 Madeline Barker
2015 Gabriel Scomazzon Ward
2014 Mark Hoysted
2013 Daniel McCaughey
2012 Astrid Lasich

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded for the best result by a third-year student undertaking the Units (AIH350) History from Here; (AIH305) Sex, Race, Gender: Empires, 1750-1950; and (AIH383) Global Disasters.

The prize commemorates Associate Professor Michele Langfield, a longstanding former Deakin historian who began teaching at the Faculty of Arts, Victoria College in 1989 before it became Deakin University, until her retirement in 2011.

Previous winners

2025 Kerri Bassett
2024 Eva Hargitay
2023 Aiden Archer and Isabelle Bennett
2022 Izzi Morgan
2021 Susan Stephen
2020 Julian Bedford
2019 Bessie Mikelsons
2018 Jake Fenton
2017 Cassie Hyland
2016 Allison Savige
2015 Roslyn Teoh
2014 Patrick Smithers
2013 Sharon El Hitti
2012 Shelise Robertson

Awarded to the academically outstanding history major student who has excelled in the unit (AIH238) Australia in the Age of Total War 1914-1945.

The prize of $500 is sponsored by The Families and Friends of the First Australian Imperial Force [FFFAIF] and commemorates John Laffin who was an Australian military historian, teacher and journalist, who established the FFFAIF.

Previous winners

2025 Jayden Younger
2024 Mia Borowitz
2023 Peta Segbedzi
2022 Mandy Grant
2021 Sophie Briggs
2020 Christopher Wheeler
2019 Emma Johnson
2018 Bessie Mikelsons
2017 Tina Horsfall

Award: eGift card and certificate

The Indonesian prize will be awarded to a second or third year student who has shown commitment to his or her study of Indonesian as well as genuine interest in the language, as demonstrated through participation in the cultural and community activities of the Indonesian program at Deakin. The award specifically recognizes academic achievement but also enthusiasm and willingness to promote the language and culture of Indonesian.

Previous winners

2025 Jeremy Lewis
2024 Isabel Smith
2023 Tex Hallam
2022 Sophie Dawson
2021 Genevieve Pop
2020 Angus Cormick
2019 Hannah Mansfield
2018 Monique Drake
2017 Holly Johnson
2016 Mark Core
2015 Anna Haintz
2014 Monique Agnew
2013 Vanessa Crea
2012 Rhian Soedarsono

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded to the highest performing first year International Relations student. Results from the two Level one units will be assessed, and the highest performing student will be recommended for the prize. The judgement will be made by the Discipline Convenor in consultation with International Relations academic staff.

Previous winners

2025 Sarah Gilroy
2024 Rori Polkinghorne
2023 Jack McInerney
2022 Joel Moss
2021 James Traill
2020 Lily Kittelty
2019 Sian Kavanagh
2018 Sam Graham
2017 Sam Rotiroti
2016 Ms So Jeong Yoo and Jarrad Elmer
2015 Carly James
2014 Matthew Bucki-Smith
2013 Rose Smith
2012 Daniel Hussey

Award: Book voucher and certificate

Awarded to the student with the highest combined mark in the two introductory Middle East Studies units (AIE153 and AIE154) within a calendar year.

Previous winners

2022 Elijah White
2021 Melinda Narguet
2020 Sophie Weaver
2019 Bessie Mikelsons
2018 Timothy Sisarich
2017 Claudia Vasey
2016 Erin Mollet
2015 Sophie Thompson
2014 Stephanie Brown
2013 Benjamin Scott
2012 Eugene Ryan

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded annually to the highest achieving student completing the Middle East Studies unit (AIE258) Critical Issues in Middle East Politics, when completed in the same calendar year, and who has contributed significantly to the learning experience of their peers.

Previous winners

2025 Benjamin Justin
2024 N/A
2023 Simeon Guenther
2022 Daniel Blandthorn
2021 Reuben Macdougall Di Manno
2020 Jake Porter
2019 John Karounos
2018 Andrew Photopoulos
2017 Adam Kahlberg
2016 Evan Chatelier
2015 Nigel Waddington
2014 Emily Ebbott
2013 Michael Watson
2012 Ryan Struk

Award: eGift card and certificate

Named after founding Deakin Philosophy professor, Professor Max Charlesworth, this prize will be awarded to the best third year student completing a Philosophy major. Performance will be based on the combined results of all Philosophy units.

Previous winners

2025 Lucas Pfieffer
2024 Haley O'Connor
2023 Stephen Pigott and Remi Hudson
2022 Aiden Meyer
2021 Michael Ellis
2020 Lauren Pedersen-Hor
2019 Paula Sheldrake
2018 Declan Melia
2017 Cassie Hyland
2016 Scarlett Croce and James Mitchell
2015 Liam Kelly
2014 Michael Mitchell
2013 Ezra Warren
2012 Lisa Couacaud

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded to the student with the highest combined result for the two first-year units in Philosophy, (ASP108) Critical Thinking; and (ASP129) Love, Sex and Death.

Previous winners

2025 Julian Cooke
2024 Jared Lemon
2023 Kayla Douglas
2022 Tracy Sauso-Bawa
2021 Thuy Anh Nguyen
2020 Lachlan Barker
2019 Richard Dorian

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded to the second or third-year student with the highest combined result completing a Politics and Policy Studies major including (AIP347) Media and Politics: Campaign Strategies; (AIP301) Political Parties and Social Movement, and another 6 AIP/AIE coded units, who has demonstrated a commitment to democratic engagement and active citizenship in class and extra-curricular activities.

Previous winners

2025 Grace Cox and Maria Dudko
2024 William Davies
2023 Harrison Puts
2022 Matthew Schembri, Senan Caulfield and Dua Haider
2021 Michael Killen
2020 Mark Muntz
2019 Natalie Cheong
2018 Keelen Jones
2017 Francesco Margheriti
2016 Rachel Grant
2015 Lauren Quayle and Brian Wheeler
2014 Linda Wollersheim and Ayela Thilo
2013 Trisha Villagonzalo and Mathew Howard
2012 Josh De Kruiff and Jayne Weepers

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded annually to the highest-performing student in a Politics, Philosophy and Economics degree (including combined programs), judged by the highest average final mark across the Politics, Philosophy and Economics units.Award: eGift card and certificate

Previous winners

2025 Rory Ansori

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded annually to the highest-performing first-year student who has completed both Sociology units ASC101 (The Sociological Imagination) and ASC102 (The Sociology of Everyday Life).

Previous winners

2025 Elena Lamaris

Award: eGift card and certificate

Awarded annually to the student majoring in Sociology, who achieves the highest performance across (ASC308) Social Theory Rewired: Power, Passion and Post Humanism, and at least one other third-year Sociology unit.

Previous winners

2025 Chantelle Doyle
2024 Annette McIntosh
2023 Haley O’Connor
2022 Imran Fazal
2021 Hamish Tanian
2020 Jenna Trakman
2019 Leesa Nicholls
2018 Jessica Kruger
2017 Annie Jolly
2016 Neil Klemm
2015 Melinda Boyd
2014 Sarah Grave
2013 Erin Mulcaire
2012 Starr Edwina Brenton

Award: eGift card and certificate

The Spanish Level One student prize will be awarded to a student who has demonstrated commitment to, and who has excelled in, his or her studies of Spanish, on completion of their first year. The recipient will have demonstrated a genuine interest in the language through participation in the cultural and community activities of the Spanish program at Deakin. The award recognises academic achievement but also enthusiasm, motivation, and commitment to the language and cultures of the Spanish-speaking world. At the end of Trimester 2, Spanish academic staff will determine the prize recipient. Judgement will be made by the Spanish Program Coordinator in consultation with Spanish academic staff.

Previous winners

2025 Hamish Masters
2024 Tyrone Andrikopoulos
2023 Christine Beveridge
2022 Jai Butler
2021 Su James
2020 Katie Fries
2019 Xiluva Mandisa Manganyi
2018 Alison Gobbart
2017 Sasha Mykytenko
2016 Richard Donald
2015 Michael Holst

Award: eGift card and certificate

The Spanish Level Two/Three student prize will be awarded to a student who has excelled in his or her studies of Spanish, on completion of either second or third year (one award only). The recipient will have demonstrated sustained improvement in Spanish language-acquisition, and a genuine interest in the cultures and societies of Spain and Latin America. The award recognises academic achievement but also enthusiasm, motivation, and commitment to the language and cultures of the Spanish-speaking world. At the end of Trimester 2, Spanish academic staff will determine the prize recipient. Judgement will be made by the Spanish Program Coordinator in consultation with Spanish academic staff.

Previous winners

2025 Giulia Benatti
2024 Yuki Shimamura
2023 Lilli Rice
2022 Amy Van Der Merwe
2021 Tiffany Hales
2020 Uisce Goriss-Dazeley
2019 Brandon Beaton
2018 Sasha Mykytenko
2017 Holly Johnson
2016 Karena Dalla Rosa
2015 Giulia Hoogenbosch

Sponsored by Dr Linda Young for outstanding achievement based on academic merit to an Emerging Scholar in Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies.

This prize was established in 2022 and is generously sponsored by Honorary Fellow Dr Linda Young, Course Director 2005-2014, in Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies. She is a material historian of the 19thC British World, having worked in various museums and as a heritage consultant. She has special expertise in the Australian international exhibitions 1879-94, historic house museums, and Australian jewellery.

The prize of $1000 is awarded annually to a graduand from the Master of Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies (A768), Master of Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies (Professional) (A768I), Master of Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies (Brandenburg dual program) (A768B) (inclusive of pipelining course offerings within this discipline) who achieved outstanding academic achievement throughout the Internship and/or Research Capstone units (APE700 Internship A, AIX701 Research Paper, AIX704 Minor Thesis A, AIX705 Minor Thesis B, AIX702 Major Thesis A, AIX703 Major Thesis B) units.

Previous winners

2025 Jewel Oreskovich
2024 Jodi-Maree Christie
2023 Emma Michaelis
2022 Sarah Reddington

Awarded:  Book voucher and certificate

Awarded to the highest performing first year Geography student. This prize has been discontinued.

Previous winners

2021 Miriam Mediouni and Nicole McKechnie
2020 Zoe Lau
2019 Naomi Knight-Sadler

The Renee Erdos Memorial Prize is awarded to the best honours student in the Faculty of Arts and Education for the A400 Bachelor of Arts (Honours), more than half of whose honours program has been undertaken off-campus.

Previous winners

2024 Hope Kuchel
2023 Melinda Marget and Ryan Dodson
2019 Simran Jesse
2017 Bradley Underhill

Awarded to an outstanding student for their approved Masters or PhD thesis which best contributes to advancing knowledge of racial, religious, social or ethnic prejudice in any time or place, or to advancing knowledge of multiculturalism or community relations in Australia.

Previous winners

2024 Hao Zheng
2012 Clare Land 
2011 Amy Nethery

Awarded to the best achieving student for their approved MA or PhD thesis in the area of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Previous winners

2024 Catherine Pryor
2015 Philip Kemp

Awarded to the best overall academic record by a new graduate in a Humanities and Social Sciences Discipline.

Previous winners

2024 Hope Kuchel
2015 Sonja Boehm