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Christian College’s 2020 Dux was Shaun Altmann.

His ATAR of 99.85 was the highest in the Geelong region. He also achieved a perfect study score of 50 in Software Development.

While he embraced many aspects of College life since starting in Year 7, his first love was always the technically-oriented disciplines, and he has continued to pursue his passion in those areas beyond secondary school.

“I was always a massive nerd at school, loving maths, coding, robotics, all the works,” Shaun said.

“From this love of making stuff that had a purpose, it only seemed natural to me to pursue a degree in Engineering.

“From this, I decided upon studying a Bachelor of Mechatronics Engineering (Robotics). In my first year of study in 2021, I’m finding it amazing! In the future, I would like to work with robots and AI, potentially even making humanoid robots that are able to move around and support people with all facets of life.”

Shaun found fulfilment not only through studying and excelling in areas he loved, but also in the range of extracurricular offerings, which included an opportunity to travel overseas to international robotics competitions. A former CCG teacher, Mr Brian Thomas, is a co-founder and world-accredited judge of the World Robo Cup competition, featuring soccer-playing robots. Brian oversaw the introduction of the World Robot Olympiad and the WRO Football competitions in India. The development of the football game was conducted by Christian College students at Villa Paloma.

A highlight of Shaun’s College journey.

Getting involved with the World Robo Cup competitions was one of the highlights of his College journey.

“At Christian College, there was an abundance of extracurricular opportunities, and there still is. I was lucky enough to be taught by Mr Thomas (Tommo), who took a group of us to compete in International Robotics Competitions in Year 10 and 11, including to Hungary.

“The whole experience was great – it taught me time management, how to react to problems immediately and effectively, and gave me a deeper appreciation for how people all think differently.” 

Shaun is still seen around Christian College and we are benefitting from his outstanding ability and expertise in software development. While he is studying at RMIT University, the College has also employed him as an intern to write code and programs to support staff, students and the College administration.

Getting involved with the World Robo Cup competitions was one of the highlights of his College journey.

“At Christian College, there was an abundance of extracurricular opportunities, and there still is. I was lucky enough to be taught by Mr Thomas (Tommo), who took a group of us to compete in International Robotics Competitions in Year 10 and 11, including to Hungary.

“The whole experience was great – it taught me time management, how to react to problems immediately and effectively, and gave me a deeper appreciation for how people all think differently.”

Shaun is still seen around Christian College and we are benefitting from his outstanding ability and expertise in software development. While he is studying at RMIT University, the College has also employed him as an intern to write code and programs to support staff, students and the College administration.