A passion for education and a lifetime of impact

"It is a true honour to be recognised, but the real reward of a career in education is that you get to change lives"

A lifelong commitment 

Driven by a strong belief that education is the most powerful lever of hope and purpose for humanity, her lifelong commitment to international education has changed thousands of lives.

“It is a true honour to be recognised, but the real reward of a career in education is that you get to change lives,” Professor Quester said.

Having taken time to pause and reflect on her more than four-decades long career, Professor Quester says education is the greatest gift someone can give.

“Education is about the opening of doors, doors that would not even be there for most people without it.

“It makes such a difference to people’s future and I feel that tremendously at each graduation ceremony.

“Students may not all have the courage to step across that threshold, but by opening their mind, we open their future, and give them a choice. And with each individual embracing what is possible, the world is just that little bit different, and better, as a result.”

The belief that education can transform potential into progress is at the heart of Professor Quester’s philosophy. Even as the world experiences rapid technological change, she is quick to remind us that innovation is fundamental to the human condition.

“For all the grand debate and trepidation about innovation and technology, none of these machines can do anything without the people behind them. It is why Swinburne is laser focused on bringing people and technology together to build a better world,” Professor Quester said.

Professor Pascale Quester presents a Swinburne Children's University graduation certificate.

Transforming lives through education

One of her passions is Children’s University, a program that transforms lives by sparking aspiration in schools where many students will be the first in their family to attend university.

“Children’s University digs deep into areas where people don’t even know what to aspire to,” she says.

“All of a sudden you have these little kids running around in mortarboards who go, ‘Wow… this is me. This could be me.’ Of course, it doesn’t have to be them, but it can be them if they want to. That, for me, is the magic of it.”

When asked about her career into education, she reflects on it being somewhat accidental.

“It was not by design. I was doing my Masters in the US and was given a stipend, provided I taught French. My parents didn’t finish high school, there are strictly no teachers in my family. But I loved the process, having students who spoke no French at the start of the course and could speak some French at the end.”

That spark led to a career where teaching and research became “two sides of the same coin”.

“It’s truly a gift that keeps on giving,” she says. “I still talk to people who were students in my first cohort. Some went into academia, others in industry and others in politics. They got their passion and self-belief from me and that is an incredibly special thing.”

Underlying her passion for transforming lives through education is a fierce commitment to supporting international students and advocating for their critical importance to Australia’s future.

Professor Pascale Quester speaks to graduates of the Children's University program.

Shaping the future

“To the extent that I can, I want to influence the public narrative around international education. I have been a foreign student myself and, like so many of our international students today, I have always invested enormously in the places where I have studied,” she says.

“Australia needs international students to fill the tech skills void. We know Australian students are not studying STEM. If we continue to demonise and blame international students, we condemn our national future to economic decline.”

“We really need all governments and politicians to think beyond the next election cycle if we are to create real and lasting change in the higher education system.”

For Professor Quester, it comes down to one simple truth.

“A society is built on the strength of how educated its population is,” Professor Quester said.

“There will be no solution to closing the gap without more Indigenous Australians in education. There will be no gender equity until women and girls all have equal access to education.

“The untapped potential of Australia is enormous, and education is the single most important investment we, as a society, can make.”