Elite sport boost: 54 QUT students awarded sport scholarships
Brisbane Roar soccer players Grace Kuilamu and Alicia Woods, national beach sprint rower Samuel Forbes, road racing cyclist Lachlan Miller and Australian judo representative Ilan Cloete are among 54 QUT students to be awarded new sport scholarships for 2025.
The students are all part of the QUT Elite Sport Program, which provides wellbeing, academic and financial support to more than 300 students from nationally-recognised sports.
This year’s scholarship recipients include 14 students who have received $10,000 scholarships in partnership with the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) and the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS), and the inaugural recipient of the $3000 QUT AusCycling Scholarship.
QUT has a long history of supporting student athletes, with the university this year announced as the first gold tier member of the AIS’s Elite Sport Education Network (ESEN).
QUT Director of Sport Emily Rosemond said the 54 new scholarships awarded for 2025 took the university’s total number of current students studying on sports scholarships to 131.
“We’re pleased to be partnering with leading elite sport organisations including the AIS, QAS and AusCycling to support high-performing student-athletes,” she said.
“These partnerships align with sport industry expectations and enable us to deliver integrated academic and sporting outcomes.”
Brisbane Roar forward Grace Kuilamu is one of two Roar women to be awarded QUT-AIS Scholarships for 2025.
She and midfielder Alicia Woods have just completed the 2024/25 season with the soccer club, with the Roar finishing seventh on the ladder.
They have also both been selected in the Young Matildas under 20 squad over the past year.
Grace, 18, began her Bachelor of Engineering at QUT this year after being attracted to the university by QUT’s ‘hands-on’ learning and the support it offered athletes.
She said she also had family members who’d previously studied engineering at QUT.
“I decided to study engineering at QUT because I heard about their flexibility in accommodating individuals who cannot attend class or submit assessments on time, especially athletes,” she said.
“The QUT-AIS Scholarship will help me focus purely on my studies in engineering and my footballing career, without the worries of financing student loans.
“This will allow me to excel in both aspects and continue to strive to reach my dreams, without anything holding me back.”
Grace has now completed two seasons with Brisbane Roar FC and been re-signed for 2025/26.
“Although we were not able to get the result we wished for (this season), I can definitely say it’s been an amazing season with such great people I will always remember,” she said.
“As for the rest of the year, I'm looking forward to hopefully continuing to join the Young Matildas in their venture to the first qualifying round for the AFC (Asia Football Confederation) tournament.
“I am also very excited for the 2025/26 A-League Women's season to begin in September, and I can confidently say we will be striving for finals in the coming season!”
Rower Sam Forbes has also been awarded a QUT-AIS Scholarship to help him balance his sport and study commitments.
He is in his second year of a Bachelor of Business / Bachelor of Laws (Honours) – a choice he said was influenced by his family’s high regard for the QUT Law School, as well as the university’s reputation for providing sports scholarships support.
“I honestly do not think I would be able study and compete full time without the QUT-AIS Scholarship,” he said.
“It really takes the pressure off, financially and academically. The support network is so strong and really helps me facilitate my goals both inside and outside the classroom.
“This year, my highlights so far have been winning two Rowing State Championship races in the Open Mens 4- and 8+, and winning the Australian National Championships in the U21 M2-.
“Whilst cycling is not my primary sport, I also recently raced the Tour de Brisbane, managing to qualify to represent Australia at the Gran Fondo World Championships held in Lorne, Victoria, later this year.
“My goals for the remainder of the year includes participating in two (separate) gruelling weeks of rowing selection trials, with the goal of representing Australia at either the World Championships in Rio de Janeiro, or the Commonwealth Beach Sprint Rowing Championships in Barbados.”
Road cyclist Lachlan Miller is the inaugural recipient of the QUT AusCycling Scholarship – a $3000 leg-up that will help with his cycling and Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) / Bachelor of Mathematics.
The QUT Elite Sport Program is also helping with flexible study arrangements so that he can spend part of the year racing in Europe with the Dutch Food Valley Cycling Team.
He’s one of two Australian riders on the team, and was looking forward to meeting his team mates when he flew out for the Netherlands last week.
“I am very fortunate that, as a member of the QUT Elite Sport Program, I receive off campus support and am able to defer my exams if the timetable clashes with my overseas racing block,” he said.
“In 2024, I was able to successfully combine multiple racing blocks across Europe and Asia whilst still successfully completing all my units.”
QUT-AIS Scholarship recipients for 2025
- Ilan Cloete, Bachelor of Engineering / Bachelor of Business – judo
- Samuel Forbes, Bachelor of Business / Bachelor of Laws (Honours) – rowing (beach sprint)
- James Hardy, Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) – gymnastics (artistic)
- Alistair Hoole, Bachelor of Laws (Honours) – gymnastics (artistic)
- Grace Kuilamu, Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) – football (soccer)
- Brendan MacDonald, Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Psychology) – squash
- Thomas Neill, Bachelor of Business – swimming
- Harley Sinclair, Bachelor of Business – beach volleyball
- Alice Williams, Bachelor of Biomedical Science – water polo
- Alicia Woods, Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Psychology) – football (soccer)
QUT-QAS Scholarship recipients for 2025
- Elloise Doolan, Bachelor of Justice / Bachelor of Laws (Honours) – swimming
- Abbi Spooner, Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) – rugby union (7s, 15s)
- Oscar Timm, Bachelor of Business – sailing
- Darcy Watter, Bachelor of Business/Bachelor of Laws (Honours) – rowing
Inaugural QUT AusCycling Scholarship
- Lachlan Miller, Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) / Bachelor of Mathematics – road race cycling
Pictured at top of page (clockwise from left): Grace Kuilamu celebrates a winning goal (photo supplied by Brisbane Roar), Sam Forbes, Lachlan Miller, Ilan Cloete and Alicia Woods.
QUT Media contacts:
- Mechelle McMahon, media@qut.edu.au
- After hours, 0407 585 901 or media@qut.edu.au
