When it comes to exercises, recent USC graduate Eden Cassidy of Murrumba Downs enjoys the mathematical kind just as much as the physical.

Eden, 21, who is now a Health and Physical Education (HPE) teacher at Tully State High School in Far North Queensland, was thrilled to combine both interests with a dual degree at USC.

After completing high school at St John Fisher College at Bracken Ridge, Eden tackled a combined Bachelor of Secondary Education/Bachelor of Recreation and Outdoor Environmental Studies, majoring in Health and Physical Education and Mathematics.

“I chose the dual degree because I thought it would give me lots of options of pathways I could go down, not just for when I completed uni but further down the track as well,” she said.

“My study has enabled me to not only find a full-time teaching job this year, but also to move up to Far North Queensland and have some wonderful opportunities.

“I am enjoying all the new challenges of being a first-year teacher. The staff and students at Tully are great, which ultimately makes coming to work something I look forward to.

“Being a HPE teacher, I have had the added benefit of attending different sporting events with the students outside of school, which was always fun.”

Eden, who also teaches mathematics, said working online during COVID-19 restrictions had been a different experience.

“It will probably prove to be very beneficial in the future, as we all had to learn and adapt to new ways of teaching through technology,” she said.

During her USC degree, the biggest highlights were study trips to Fraser Island.

“We had the opportunity to go every semester, and you don’t get a better classroom than that,” she said.

Eden is the second Cassidy sibling to graduate from USC. Her sister Mahalia completed a Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (Honours) in 2018.