By Clare BruceWednesday 13 Apr 2016Hope BreakfastCultureReading Time: 2 minutes
Laura Bennett was in fine company when she graduated at Macquarie University, in the company of celebrity film reviewers Margaret and David of At The Movies fame.
The Hope 103.2 breakfast presenter was presented with her master’s degree in future journalism on Wednesday, after 18 months of hard work fitting her classes and assignments in around breakfast radio shifts.
Being a passionate film reviewer, it was a little bit of serendipity for Laura that the famous Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton were also there, to be awarded with honorary doctorates for their many years of work in the media.
Inspiring Words From The Famous Film Critics
Honoured: Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton receive their honorary doctorates at Macquaruie University today.
The celebrated pair gave speeches encouraging the graduating students to value their education and follow their dreams.
Margaret Pomeranz spoke about her studies at Macquarie University in the 1970s, which included German – the subject that got her travelling to Europe, and led to her long-running career with SBS.
Surprisingly, David Stratton told the graduands that he never studied at university and didn’t even finish high school—but instead gaining his broad knowledge of the world from his obsession with films, watching around 10 per week from the age of 16.
He regretted that he hadn’t had a chance for a university education.
“Perhaps if I’d been better educated I might have made films,” he said, “and I undoubtedly would have been a better writer and more disciplined thinker than I am. But the knowledge I obtained from my obsessive hours in cinemas stood me in good stead.”
He completed his address by telling Laura and her fellow graduates to be passionate about the things that matter to them—an approach that had seen him through his life.
“Keep your passion alive,” he said, “and never forget that friends and family are essential elements for a happy and balanced life.”
A Master Of Future Journalism, Ready To Be ‘Queen’
Now that she’s officially a master of future journalism, Laura is now well versed in subjects like digital media strategies, web design, news writing, intercultural communication, radio and digital production.
She said it felt good to have completed the degree, after having “scheduled like crazy” to fit her studies in over the past couple of years.
“You just have to schedule everything in,” she said, of her busy routine. “Having crazy hours at Hope 103.2 (starting at 5am each day) works in my favour.”
With her Masters under her belt, Laura believes she now has the proper credentials to be labelled ‘Queen of Hopeland’.