37 Notable alumni of
University of South Australia
Updated:
The University of South Australia is 1431st in the world, 29th in Oceania, and 23rd in Australia by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 37 notable alumni from the University of South Australia sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff.
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Penny Wong
- Occupations
- barristerpolitical adviserpolitician
- Biography
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Penelope Ying-Yen Wong is an Australian politician who is serving as the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the Government in the Senate in the Albanese government since 2022. A member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), she has been a senator for South Australia since 2002. Wong previously served as Minister for Climate Change and Minister for Finance and Deregulation during the governments of prime ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard from 2007 until 2013.
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Poh Ling Yeow
- Occupations
- painterchefactorreality television participant
- Biography
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Poh Ling Yeow is a Malaysian-born Australian cook, artist, actress, author and television presenter. She has hosted multiple cooking shows including ABC's Poh's Kitchen and SBS's Poh & Co. She has also published multiple cook books. She was the runner-up on the first season of Network 10's Masterchef Australia behind winner Julie Goodwin. Since appearing on season 1, she has made multiple comebacks to the series as a guest judge/mentor, returning as a contestant on the twelfth season in 2020 then a judge since the sixteenth season in 2024.
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Christopher Pyne
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with graduate diploma
- Occupations
- lawyerpolitician
- Biography
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Christopher Maurice Pyne is an Australian retired politician. He held various ministerial positions in the Howard, Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison governments, and served as a member of parliament (MP) for the South Australian division of Sturt from 1993 to 2019.
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Tkay Maidza
- Occupations
- singersongwriter
- Biography
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Takudzwa Victoria Rosa "Tkay" Maidza (/tiːˈkeɪ ˈmaɪdzə/ tee-KAY MY-dzə; (born 17 December 1995) is a Zimbabwean-born Australian singer-songwriter and hip hop artist from Adelaide, South Australia. She has been nominated for and won many awards, and released two albums: Tkay (2016) and Sweet Justice (2023). She collaborated with Flume on her 2023 single "Silent Assassin".
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Steven Marshall
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with Bachelor of Business
- Occupations
- business executivebusinesspersonpolitician
- Biography
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Steven Spence Marshall AO is a former Australian politician who served as the 46th premier of South Australia between 2018 and 2022. He was a member of the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia in the South Australian House of Assembly from 2010 until 2024, representing the electorate of Dunstan (known as Norwood before 2014).
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Indira Naidoo
- Occupations
- television presenter
- Biography
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Indira Naidoo is an Australian author, journalist, and television and radio presenter, of Indian South African descent who hosts the Compass show on ABC TV
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Paige Greco
- Occupations
- sport cyclist
- Biography
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Paige Greco OAM was an Australian Paralympic cyclist who won gold medals at the 2019 Paracycling World Track Championships in C1-3 women's pursuit and at the 2020 Summer Paralympics. She set a new world record of 3:52.283 in the 3000 metre individual pursuit at the Tokyo Paralympics.
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Lucy Gichuhi
- Occupations
- politiciancivil servantlawyeraccountantauditor
- Biography
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Lucy Muringo Gichuhi is an Australian politician who served as a Senator for South Australia from 2017 to 2019. Born in Kenya, Gichuhi worked as an accountant before entering politics. Gichuhi is a social conservative who has been vocally opposed to the legalisation of same-sex marriage.
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Angelica Cheung
- Occupations
- journalist
- Biography
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Angelica Cheung is a Chinese media executive and venture investor. She began her media career in Hong Kong in 1993, serving as editor-in-chief of Marie Claire Hong Kong and later as editorial director of Elle China, before becoming the founding editor-in-chief of Vogue China and launching its first issue in 2005. One of the most influential figures in China's fashion industry during her Vogue tenure, Cheung left the magazine after 16 years in December 2020. In 2021, she joined Sequoia Capital China as a venture partner, focusing on consumer and lifestyle sectors.
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Samantha Maiden
- Occupations
- journalist
- Biography
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Samantha Louise Maiden is an Australian political journalist. She is currently political editor for news.com.au, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia.
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Bob Day
- Occupations
- master builderpoliticiantechnicianplumberbusinessperson
- Biography
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Robert John Day is an Australian former politician and businessman who was a Senator for South Australia from 1 July 2014 to 1 November 2016. He is a former federal chairman of the Family First Party. Before entering politics, he worked in the housing industry, owning several businesses, and at one stage serving as president of the Housing Industry Association.
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Tom Calma
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Studied in 1978
- Occupations
- diplomat
- Biography
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Thomas Edwin Calma, is an Aboriginal Australian human rights and social justice campaigner, and 2023 senior Australian of the Year. He was the sixth chancellor of the University of Canberra (2014-2023), after two years as deputy chancellor. Calma was the second Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person to hold the position of chancellor of any Australian university.
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Jessica Stenson
- Occupations
- marathon runner
- Biography
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Jessica Stenson is an Australian athlete who won the gold medal in the marathon at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. As a long-distance runner, she competes in distances from 5000 metres up to the marathon. She represented Australia at the 2012 London Olympics and 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in the marathon.
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Tess Madgen
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Tess Madgen is an Australian former professional basketball player. She played 14 seasons in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL).
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Tirana Hassan
- Occupations
- nonprofit administratorlawyersocial worker
- Biography
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Tirana Hassan is an Australian lawyer and social worker. She spent decades working in humanitarian aid and leading human rights investigations. She served as Amnesty International's crisis response director and later as the executive director of Human Rights Watch.
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Byron Sharp
- Years
- 1960s
- Occupations
- business theorist
- Biography
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Byron Sharp is a Professor of Marketing Science at the University of South Australia, known for his work on loyalty programs.
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Nick Champion
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- political adviserpoliticiantrade unionist
- Biography
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Nicholas David Champion is an Australian politician. He is a member of the South Australian Labor Party and has served in the South Australian House of Assembly since the 2022 South Australian state election, representing the seat of Taylor. He has served as the Minister for Trade and Investment, Minister for Housing and Urban Development and Minister for Planning in the Malinauskas ministry since March 2022.
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Corey Wingard
- Born in
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Australia - Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with Bachelor of Applied Science
- Occupations
- political advisersports journalistpoliticianmedia consultant
- Biography
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Corey Luke Wingard is an Australian former politician. He was a Liberal member of the South Australian House of Assembly from the 2014 state election, representing Mitchell until 2018 and Gibson until his defeat in 2022. Wingard served as the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. He was also Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing in the Marshall Ministry from 2018 to 2022. He previously served as the Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services.
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Janine Haines
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Janine Winton Haines, AM was an Australian politician who was a senator for South Australia from 1977 to 1978 and again from 1981 to 1990. She represented the Australian Democrats, and served as the party's leader from 1986 to 1990, becoming the first female federal parliamentary leader of an Australian political party. She was pivotal in "shaping the Australian Democrats into a powerful political entity that held the balance of power in the Senate".
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Kerrynne Liddle
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Kerrynne Liddle is an Australian politician and the first Indigenous federal member of parliament from South Australia. She is an Arrernte woman and member of the Liberal Party. She was elected to the Senate on the party's ticket in South Australia at the 2022 federal election, to a term beginning on 1 July 2022. She was a journalist and corporate manager before entering politics.
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John Gloster
- Occupations
- physiotherapist
- Biography
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John Gloster is a physiotherapist who works with cricket teams. He was appointed the physiotherapist to the Indian team in February 2005.
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Tom Kenyon
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with Bachelor of Applied Science
- Occupations
- political adviserwarehousemanpolitician
- Biography
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Thomas Richard Kenyon is a former Australian politician who represented the South Australian House of Assembly seat of Newland for the Labor Party from the 2006 election until his defeat in 2018. Kenyon left the Labor Party in 2021 to found the Family First Party.
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Rachel Sanderson
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with Bachelor of Accountancy
- Occupations
- accountantbusinesspersonpolitician
- Biography
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Rachel Sanderson is an Australian politician who represented the seat of Adelaide in the South Australian House of Assembly for the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia from the 2010 election to the 2022 election. Sanderson served as the minister for Child Protection in the Marshall Ministry.
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Jing Lee
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Jing Shyuan Lee is a Malaysian-Australian politician elected to the South Australian Legislative Council for the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia since the 2010 state election. She quit the Liberal Party on 10 January 2025. She was formerly the president of the Asia Pacific Business Council for Women.
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Essington Lewis
- Occupations
- civil servant
- Biography
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Essington Lewis was an Australian industrialist. He was the Director-General of the Department of Munitions during World War II.
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Giang Nguyen
- Years
- 1985-.. (age 41)
- Occupations
- chess player
- Biography
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Giang Thu Nguyen is a Vietnamese-Australian chess player and mathematician. She is a senior lecturer in Applied Mathematics at the University of Adelaide. In chess, she is a Woman FIDE Master (WFM), and has represented Australia in many Chess Olympiads. She has won the South Australian women's championship four times, and the South Australian (open) championship once.
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Tammy Franks
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Tammy Anne Franks is an Australian politician who was elected to the South Australian Legislative Council for the SA Greens at the 2010 state election. Franks has sat as an independent since May 2025.
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John Hardy
- Occupations
- radiographerbusinesspersonaircraft pilot
- Biography
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John Laurence Hardy AO is an Australian aviator and businessman who founded the aviation company Airnorth in 1978 and Hardy Aviation in 1991. He was Administrator of the Northern Territory from November 2014 until October 2017.
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Michelle Lensink
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- In 1991 graduated with Bachelor of Applied Science
- Occupations
- physiotherapistpolitical adviserpolitician
- Biography
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Jacqueline Michelle Ann Lensink is an Australian politician representing the South Australian Division of the Liberal Party of Australia in the South Australian Legislative Council since 26 June 2003. Lensink served as the Minister for Human Services in the Marshall Ministry between March 2018 and March 2022.
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Bob Such
- Occupations
- lecturerteacherpolitician
- Biography
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Robert Bruce Such was a South Australian politician. He was the member for the seat of Fisher in the South Australian House of Assembly from 1989 until his death in 2014. He defeated Labor MP Philip Tyler at the 1989 election and was a member of the Liberals until 2000 when he became an independent. Such was Minister for Employment, Training and Further Education, and Minister for Youth Affairs, in the Brown Liberal government from 1993 to 1996. He served as Speaker of the South Australian House of Assembly for the Rann Labor government from 2005 to 2006. Such was joint Father of the House with Michael Atkinson from 2012.
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Wawira Njiru
- Occupations
- businessperson
- Biography
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Wawìra Njirū, is a Kenyan social entrepreneur, nutritionist, and philanthropist, who is the CEO of Food for Education, an organization that serves a hot, nutritious and affordable school meal to over 500,000 public primary school children in the urban and peri-urban areas of Kenya
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Mark Parnell
- Occupations
- lawyerpolitician
- Biography
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Mark Charles Parnell is an Australian former politician and parliamentary leader of the SA Greens in the South Australian Legislative Council. He was the first SA Greens representative to be elected to the Parliament of South Australia, at the 2006 election. He was re-elected for another eight-year term in the Legislative Council at the 2014 election. Parnell announced he would retire at the 2022 state election, but resigned from the parliament early to give his successor (Robert Simms) an "opportunity to make his mark in Parliament ahead of the election".
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Stephen Yarwood
- Enrolled in the University of South Australia
- Graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- urban plannerpolitician
- Biography
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Stephen Yarwood is an Australian urban futurist and the former lord mayor of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, serving from 2010 to 2014.
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Robert Lau Hoi Chew
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Robert Lau Hoi Chiew was a Malaysian politician. He represented Sibu in the Parliament of Malaysia from 1990 until his death in 2010, and served as Deputy Minister of Transport from April 2009 until his death. Lau was also a vice-president of the Sarawak United Peoples' Party (SUPP).
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Andrew Baines
- Occupations
- film producerpainterfilm director
- Biography
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Andrew Baines is an Australian artist based in Adelaide, South Australia, known for his "quasi-surrealist" paintings of politicians in exposed positions and bowler-hatted office workers on beaches, and "living statues". He does a lot of work for charities, particularly those focussed on the plight of homeless people.
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Ted Howard
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Ted Howard, born as Edwin John Harney, was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party, and the father of cabinet minister Mabel Howard. He had been a prominent member of the New Zealand Socialist Party, a precursor to the Labour Party.
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Abdulla Sodiq
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Abdulla Sodiq, popularly known as Sobé, is a Maldivian politician who served as the first mayor of Addu City, Maldives. He was elected mayor in February 2011 for a three-year term as mandated by the newly instated Decentralization Act. He was reelected on February 1, 2014. His tenure ended in 2021 and succeeded by the current mayor Ali Nizar.
