Jarred Van Riel

Jarred Van Riel - Class of 2017

Year you started attending PCACS (If Primary, who was your class teacher)  Started in 2009, Year 4 with Mr Gouldsmith.

Why did you (or your parents) choose this School for you to attend? My parents chose PCACS because we were pretty new to the area and wanted us to attend a private school. After attending one of the Welcome Morning Tours, they loved it and we started the following year. 

What were your favourite classes? I would definitely say Year 11 and 12 were my favourite years as the courses I chose I loved and the teachers were amazing, however in terms of favourite class, it would definitely have had to be Human Biology with Mr Singh.

What was your greatest achievement at PCACS? My greatest achievement was definitely being elected as the School's Head Boy in my final year at PCACS.

What did you think of the campus and extracurricular activities? Through my time at PCACS I have definitely seen the School change quite tremendously and I was pretty lucky to be at PCACS for the opening of the new gym, The Keith Lindbeck Centre. Overall the School is quite an amazing campus and students definitely have top notch facilities. In terms of extracurricular activities, there was definitely a lot to choose from when I attended. When I first began at PCACS I started in the Music Programme and played the saxophone. I played in the School Band throughout my whole time at PCACS and it gave me amazing opportunities including getting the privilege to perform at the Perth Concert Hall.

What are your favourite memories from PCACS? There were so many favourite memories, especially in my last few years, but I would have to say the best was School Camp when I was in Year 6 and we went to Rottnest Island. I had never been, and it was an exceptional trip and I felt very fortunate to attend.

After graduating I went straight into University studying a Bachelor of Biomedical Science at Notre Dame and this year 2020 is my final year, I will be graduating in December. Although I have enjoyed the degree, it’s not exactly my preferred career choice, so I am going back to Uni next year to study Paramedicine and hopefully become a paramedic. Life after school has definitely been hectic, I still work at the IGA in my local suburb and I take every opportunity to travel and catch up with friends. I was fortunate at the beginning of this year to receive a scholarship to undertake a Cultural Immersion Programme in Cambodia, in which I focused on the diversity of healthcare in a poverty-stricken community in Phnom Peng. It was definitely eye-opening and I enjoyed every moment whilst I was there and would love to go back when I get the chance. Further, I also started volunteering with St John WA as an Event officer and have now been successful in gaining a second job with them as an event medic. This role has seen me attend multiple games of footy at Optus stadium and many other concerts, one of interest was the recent Queen concert I got to attend. Although, currently we cannot travel, I plan in the future to take a trip to New Zealand and eventually Europe.