Mandy McKenzie

Mandy McKenzie

Graduate Research Topic

Title: How friends respond to young women experiencing intimate partner violence.
Years: 2017 - 2020
Supervisors: Prof Kelsey Hegarty, A/Prof Laura Tarzia, and Prof Vicki Palmer.

What has happened in your career since you completed your GR?

I gained employment in the Department of General Practice and Primary Care as a research fellow. I have appreciated the opportunity to apply what I have learned about research skills and have undertaken several qualitative studies, published articles, presented at forums, successfully applied for research grants, and been involved in supervising Honours students.

What was the best thing about your GR?

Other than research skill development, the thing I enjoyed the most was building relationships with other graduate researchers. Through my GR studies, I enjoyed lots of intense discussions about research theory and ethical issues, shared writing sessions and retreats and gained a sense of belonging to a research community.

What is one piece of advice you would give to current GR students?

Reading and writing take time, so schedule blocks of time to focus. It helps to print articles out to read in a café or somewhere away from your computer screen, or participate in ‘pomodoro’ writing sessions or retreats with other students, where you can enjoy being with others while progressing your studies.