Cameron Garnock was nearing the end of his Navy career and dreaming of a more settled life when a leg injury determined his next step.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Inspired by the positive attitude and hard work of his physiotherapists, and after four years of study, Mr Garnock will be among 53 of the University of Canberra's first Bachelor of Physiotherapy graduates on Thursday.
"I absolutely love it. I'm so glad I did it," he said.
Mr Garnock was serving in the Middle East in 2012 when he crushed his thigh bone. The injury led to a series of operations and considerable time in rehabilitation aided by physiotherapists.
With his wife also in the Navy, and a new urge to attend university, Mr Garnock made the transition from full-time work to full-time study.
"I'd spent a bit of time with physios before but not really that much, and there I was after a couple of leg operations and they were so positive and so goals-based and I found it really infectious and something that I wanted to get involved [with]," he said.
"It's a really full-on degree but very very rewarding. I think because it's vocational you do spend a lot of time looking at and dissecting the things that you really want to know."
Mr Garnock has already found employment at Sportscare and Physiotherapy Dickson
"The basic skills that we've learnt at university were so good and I guess applicable to this population that I'm seeing, the musculoskeletal population, that I feel like I've got all the skills that I need to progress as a physio," he said.
The University of Canberra's graduation ceremonies have been held at the Great Hall in Parliament House since Tuesday.
More than 2400 students received degrees in eight ceremonies.
