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Robert Vincent Anderson OAM, known as Uncle Bob, a Ngugi Elder from Mulgumpin (Moreton Island), graduated in 1949 after enrolling in carpentry at the Central Technical College (which later became QUT) at the age of 15.

75 years after his graduation, Uncle Bob has a message for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people considering higher education.

“My advice to younger generations is to seize the opportunity to gain education. Consolidate your formal education with your cultural knowledge and you will feel whole.”

Born in 1929, Uncle Bob grew up on an Aboriginal reserve called Myora Mission at Moongalba on Minjerribah (Stradbroke Island).

He went on to lead the fight for Native Title of Mulgumpin, where his grandmother was born, and was successful in 2019. 

No stranger to the pursuit of Aboriginal rights, Uncle Bob campaigned on street corners across south Brisbane in the lead up to the 1967 referendum, and campaigned again on streets and at local markets in the lead up to the 2023 Voice to Parliament referendum.

When asked about his time studying, he said he felt like an “object of curiosity” being the only black man at the college while he studied, and even more so when he was the only one of his intake to graduate.

“Whenever I go back to QUT, see the Oodgeroo Unit and the teams of people and dedicated spaces there for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, I am amazed at how much has changed for our young people,” said Uncle Bob, who was awarded an honorary doctorate from QUT in 2000.

“It shows that the only constant is change, and when you analyse how change comes about, it is people who make change, and people who acknowledge what needs to be done, and create change in institutions. And now for me, it is quite remarkable to see all our wonderful people going to universities.”

QUT Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous Australians) Angela Barney-Leitch agrees that institutions have come a long way since the days when Uncle Bob was a student.

“Indigenous Australian student commencements have increased by 25 per cent since 2019, and we are now proud to have close to 1000 enrolled students each year,” she said.

“Uncle Bob was the first of more than 2000 Indigenous Australian graduates from QUT so far, and it continues to be a joy to learn of our graduates’ achievements and contributions to community.

“I encourage all our Indigenous Australian graduates, no matter how long ago you graduated, to reconnect with us and rejoin the alumni community, we would love to hear from you and see where your journey has taken you since graduating.”

Uncle Bob also stressed the importance of all Australians learning about First Nations culture and history as a standard part of education.

“As a society and a nation, we are walking together, talking together, and sharing a common destiny. Education should be something we share together,” he said.