Atyaf Awad overcame all obstacles to begin studies at CQU Bundaberg

Born with a disability in a war-torn country, a young Bundaberg woman has shared her inspiring story of determination and respect.

Atyaf Awad (left) overcame all obstacles to begin tertiary studies at CQU Bundaberg.

Hope and positivity are palpable when talking to Atyaf Awad, as one would expect from any bright young woman embarking on her first year of a double-degree at the Central Queensland University Bundaberg campus.

But listening to Atyaf describe the challenges and setbacks she has overcome in her short life is to hear an inspiring story of how the human condition can triumph over all adversity.

Atyaf was born in Iraq in 2004, a year after the US invasion in search of Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction, a mission which history has not judged kindly.

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While she said she has mixed memories of her childhood, her abiding sense now when reflecting on that time is how foreign they are to the experiences of Australian children.

“I have good memories and bad memories, but I feel like now that I’m in Australia, I realise they are memories that not a lot of people experience,” Atyaf said.

Atyaf Awad (left) overcame all obstacles to begin tertiary studies at CQU Bundaberg.

Atyaf grew up in a town four hours’ drive from Baghdad, living in a single-room apartment she shared with her parents and five siblings, her home was crowded, as was the classroom she shared with 50 other children.

While she remembers enjoyable times with her family and friends, her overriding sense is one of terror brought on by the sounds of the conflict that engulfed her country.

“Most of my memories are negative, … like at night-time, you will hear all these shots being fired by guns all night long,” she said.

And what is more, Atyaf was born with a significant visual impairment and diagnosed in Australia as legally blind.

Her life changed in 2013 when her father, Dr Lafta Awad Atshan, an agriculture academic, won a scholarship to complete his PhD at CQU Bundaberg, with Atyaf and her family to follow a year later.

On arriving in Australia, Atyaf said she didn’t have a sense of relief at having left Iraq, only happiness at being reunited with her father and brother.

“We didn’t have an understanding of where we had gotten to, all we knew was that we wanted to see Dad,” she said.

Two years later, Atyaf, her siblings and mother had qualified for permanent residency, but in a cruel twist of fate her father was forced to return to Iraq in 2021 as his visa expired on the completion of his studies. He is still trying to get back to Australia.

“I was frustrated, I was upset because he had a job here,” Atyaf said.

“He was studying every day and treating people right, he wasn’t doing anything illegal.

“For the family it felt like it was breaking apart, but we tried to take it all together.”

Primary school was another tough experience for Atyaf, where she was bullied by other students for her disability and rudimentary English.

In the early years at Bundaberg High School, Atyaf was moved into a special education program, separating her from the first true friends she had made, but she said this was a change for the better and she gradually built a connection with teachers and was able to use resources to assist with her studies, including screen readers and magnifiers.

Atyaf formed a close bond with teachers in the Bundaberg High School Special Education program, including Melinda Stack (pictured).

The “odd one out” in the special education class for wanting to follow in her father’s footsteps and go to university, Atyaf first set her sights on nursing before realising her talents were in the field of business.

After graduating from high school in 2022, Atyaf began a Bachelor of Business and Bachelor of Accounting at CQU via the university’s STEPS program, a bridging course which provides students with the confidence, knowledge and skills needed to begin a university degree.

Hermina Conradie, Bundaberg Access Coordinator for the STEPS program, said Atyaf’s story was “testament to the skills, confidence, and personal growth that can be achieved through education”.

“We are all very excited to see what the future holds for her,” Ms Conradie said.

Atyaf is now working part-time in a fruit and vegetable show while she completes her studies, with dreams of becoming a financial planner.

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When reflecting on all the challenges she has overcome in her young life, Atyaf is full of gratitude for the sacrifices her parents have made to make her bright future possible.

“I’ve seen my parents sacrifice so much for us,” she said.

“It’s my turn to show them how much I respect them.”

Originally published as Atyaf Awad overcame all obstacles to begin studies at CQU Bundaberg