Photo/Courtesy
Academic milestones often reflect years of persistence, adaptation and personal growth, especially for students navigating education across different cultural and linguistic environments.
For many young people in diaspora communities, higher education becomes both a professional pursuit and a personal journey of identity and resilience shaped by migration and lived experience.
Kgshak’s early life began in South Sudan before her family relocated first to Egypt and later to Australia when she was just six years old.
Arriving in a new country with a different language and unfamiliar cultural setting, she adapted through education and storytelling, eventually building a foundation that would shape her creative career.
A post by Seed Network on Instagram described her early transition and upbringing in Geelong, where she attended St Francis Xavier and Clonard College before advancing to higher education.
“Born in South Sudan, Kgshak journeyed from South Sudan to Egypt, then to Australia at just six years old, arriving in a new country with a new language and an imagination that simply refused to be quiet,” the post noted.
It added that her passion for storytelling was evident long before formal education shaped her academic direction.
“She grew up in Geelong, attending St Francis Xavier and Clonard College before studying at Deakin University, where she is now completing her Master's degree in Creative Writing. Long before any degree or literary award, though, Kgshak was already a storyteller, the kind of child who insisted on telling bedtime stories to her siblings before mum or dad even had a chance,” the post further stated.
Her journey into literature has since translated into critical recognition, with one of her early works earning significant acclaim within Australia’s literary circles.
The manuscript won the 2021 Dorothy Hewett Award for an Unpublished Manuscript before being published by UWA Publishing in 2022.
“The book went on to win the prestigious 2021 Dorothy Hewett Award for an Unpublished Manuscript and was published by UWA Publishing in 2022,” the Instagram post noted.
Kgshak Akec. Photo/Courtesy
It further highlighted the book’s growing impact in Australian literature, adding that in 2023 it was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award, one of the country’s most prestigious literary honours.
“In 2023, it was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award, one of the highest honours in Australian literature,” it added.
She is now completing a Master’s degree in Creative Writing at Deakin University, adding an academic milestone to a journey defined by migration, education and literary achievement.