UniSQ law graduate is heading to Oxford

University of Southern Queensland (UniSQ) law graduate Justin McGovern is packing his bag for the UK after being awarded a highly coveted 2024 World Universities Ramsay Postgraduate Scholarship from The Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation.

Mr McGovern was one of 31 young Australians to receive the scholarship, which provides up to $90,000 per year to support coursework and research.

Thanks to the scholarship, he will have the unique opportunity to pursue a Bachelor of Civil Law at the renowned University of Oxford in England – a dream for many aspiring legal scholars.

Mr McGovern, the first UniSQ law graduate to take a place in the Bachelor of Civil Law at Oxford, will commence his postgraduate degree in September.

Upon completing his degree, Mr McGovern aspires to a career at the Bar, advocating for fundamental freedoms, defending the rule of law, and shaping public discourse on the Western tradition.

“It is a real privilege to be embarking on this journey amongst a cohort of brilliant young scholars who will make outstanding contributions to various fields at the world's great universities,” Mr McGovern said.

“I am incredibly grateful to our benefactor, the late Paul Ramsay AO, whose extraordinary generosity and deep commitment to living life as a man for others has made this incredible opportunity possible.

“As a Ramsay Postgraduate Scholar, I am deeply cognisant of the rich inheritance that the Western tradition has bestowed upon us and look forward to deepening my knowledge of jurisprudence, political theory, and the philosophical foundations of the common law amidst the dreaming spires of Oxford.”

Originally from Toowoomba, Mr McGovern graduated from UniSQ in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws (First Class Honours).

He has most recently worked as a Senior Associate specialising in public law at Sydney law firm Maddocks.

He has also served as Chief of Staff to an Assistant Attorney-General of Australia, is a commissioned officer in the Royal Australian Air Force (Specialist Reserve) and is an accomplished choral singer.

Find out more about studying Law at UniSQ.