Gene-ius mum of four proves perseverance is in her DNA

Despite now having a gorgeous brood of four, Ruth struggled with several infertility challenges, including an ectopic pregnancy and a miscarriage, before the successful births of her first two children.

Ruth had nearly completed a semester of university when she suffered a miscarriage at 11 weeks pregnant. "Luckily, I had finished all my final exams, but I did have one final assessment to do that was worth 40 percent of my grade," she says.

"I had an amazing, supportive lecturer who gave me that final push to finish the subject and continue with my studies, because I was quite depressed for some time… but it kept me going."

Towards the end of her second year of uni, Ruth once again had an ectopic pregnancy and surgery to have her left fallopian tube removed - which left her devastated.

Soon after, Ruth conceived her youngest baby, Chief. Throughout the pregnancy there was a niggling anxiety that something was going to go wrong, which added an extra element of stress, but she found support in UniSC's "inclusive, baby-friendly environment" and various student success services, including a psychologist through UniSC's wellbeing team who gave her "strategies to cope."

"I can't tell you how much time I spent in the parent's room, even on graduation day I spent most of the ceremony breastfeeding," Ruth laughs.

"Many of the friends I made at uni were also mums of young kids, and not having 'the village' or any extended family to help at home, I'm so grateful for the support of my supervisors and community I found."

Ruth completed an Undergraduate Research Fellowship and two Special Research Projects, earning a High Distinction and solidifying her love for genetics and research.

"I didn't know you could do research as an undergraduate, but I got a real taste of what it would be like to do a PhD and what postgraduate research is like," she says.