It’s not every day a QUT student has to ask for an exam deferment because of NRL duties and a State of Origin call-up. But versatile Dolphins utility Max Plath has become an expert at balancing footy and study.
Max is almost over the line on his Bachelor of Business (Marketing) at QUT, but his final assessments have coincided with the biggest few weeks of his football career so far.
The 24-year-old made his Origin debut for the Maroons on May 27 at Accor Stadium in Sydney and on Monday he was also named in the Queensland squad for Origin II on June 17 in Melbourne.
Despite Queensland going down 22-20 in game one, Max put in an impressive performance, playing 63 minutes at lock and making 44 tackles.
But preparations for the massive game came at the same time as he was trying to study for his very last exam, which was also scheduled for this past weekend when he was busy playing with the Dophins in Townsville and thrashing the North Queensland Cowboys.
Luckily for Max, the QUT Elite Sport Program had his back and arranged a deferment.
“They’ve been great, really good communication and they’ve helped me so much with extensions,” Max said.
“It’s been a dream of mine, playing Origin, so that had to come first.
“The good thing about QUT is they provide that flexibility … and hopefully I can complete that exam soon.”
QUT Director of Sport Rosa Boyd said the QUT Elite Sport Program helped 300 student-athletes across more than 40 sports, with practical support including flexible timetabling and moving assessments when clashes occur.
“QUT aims to make university study a viable and manageable choice for the students we support through our Elite Sport Program,” Ms Boyd said.
“The faculty staff do a fantastic job in making sure, as much as possible, that students have flexibility around classes, timetables and assessments to meet their sporting commitments.
“The program enables students to grow, lead and succeed, both in their current sport and the real-world challenges beyond.”
Max’s six-year study journey at QUT has changed as his football career changed.
He started studying business straight out of high school (Iona College), then switched to sport and exercise science while playing under-21s and seniors with Wynnum Manly.
When his big NRL break came in 2023 at the Dolphins, he found studying an on-campus degree no longer suited his new professional football schedule.
So he opted to re-enrol in a business degree, but this time as an online student.
“I did really well at school in business and it was something I gravitated towards,” Max said.
“Both my parents are business owners and it was just something I was interested in …and six years later here I am nearly finished. It’s been a good ride.”
Provided he completes his final finance exam in time, Max will graduate in August at QUT’s mid-year graduation ceremonies.
“It’s going to be funny not having to submit anything anymore – I’m really used to assignments and stuff, so it’s going to be interesting to be on the other side when I’ve finished my undergraduate degree,” he said.
“There will be a bit of relief as well.”
Max said balancing football and university study had been a challenging but positive experience – and something he’s keen to continue in the not-too-distant future.
“It (combining footy and study) is hard – you have to turn down a lot of events and hanging out with friends, it takes a bit of sacrifice,” he said.
“But at the same time it’s rewarding. It’s been a good experience and doing it online through QUT has been awesome.
“I’m going to have the rest of the year off and just have a breather in terms of assignments and study and just focus on footy, and then hopefully come back to QUT for some sort of postgrad study – maybe dive into finance or property.”
Max said representing Queensland in Origin had been his dream since he was a kid.
But he’d almost written it off for this year’s first Origin clash, after most of the selection day passed without a call from Maroons coach Billy Slater.
“I was waiting all day for the phone call and it didn’t come until 8.30pm,” he recalled.
“I was just at home, playing cards with my brother and checking my phone every two minutes.
“This random number came through and there was Billy. He’s just such a role model of mine and he’s been such a legend of the game, and just to have a relationship with him and talk to him was just surreal. Hopefully I can represent Queensland with him again.”
The day after that phone call he was in camp at Twin Waters, and another nine days later he was walking out on to New South Wales turf in a maroon jersey.
“It was one of those moments where you just can’t believe it’s real,” he said.
“It’s probably a dream I thought would never really happen growing up, so just to get to that moment, I was so stoked.
“We stood there for the national anthem and my family and friends were in the section right in front of me. So I just took a couple of minutes to soak it in and say hi to them and then get ready to play.
“It was fast, the crowd was passionate … A lot of blue, I think it was about 80,000 Blues supporters there. It was just a surreal experience – I want to do it again!”
Back at the Dolphins, Max is already putting his business studies to use this year while doing work experience with club sponsor North Harbour at the property developer’s Milton office.
“The good thing about business is that it’s so broad, so you can really dive into other categories,” he said.
“I’m not exactly too sure yet what I want to do, but it’s good to have something under your belt and to keep learning and see what you like.”
People interested in studying business or any other degree at QUT can find out more about courses and careers at this year’s QUT Open Day on July 26. Program details are available online.
Athletes interested in uni can also check out the QUT Sport information tent at Open Day and learn about the Elite Sport Program, sports scholarships and the Elite Sport Entry Scheme for new students.
QUT Sport will also be running tours of on-campus sports facilities on the day, including the Virtual Sport Studio, QUT Fitness and Aquatic Centre and the QUT Esports Arena.
Main photo at top: Max Plath at Kayo Stadium at Redcliffe.
Media contacts:
Mechelle McMahon, QUT media officer, media@qut.edu.au
After hours - media@qut.edu.au / 0407 585 901
