Max Cooper

Class of 2014

What year did you begin and graduate Navigator College?

I started in 2010 in Year 8 during the swamp land era, finishing Year 12 in 2014.

What have you been up to since leaving Navigator College?

I moved to Adelaide in 2015 to complete a Bachelor of Medical Science, majoring in Vision Science, followed by Masters in Optometry with ocular therapeutic endorsement and later a post graduate certificate in Glaucoma. In 2019 I co-authored a paper in electroretinography to develop an international normative database to facilitate the diagnosis of certain retinal diseases.I’ve since mainly worked as a locum Optometrist across regional Australia. While back in Adelaide I’ve dipped the toes in specialised contact lens fitting in paediatric patients at the Women’s and Children’s hospital as well as outreach work at the Hutt St Centre and in remote Nepal.

What is your favourite memory at Navigator College?

Free septum piercing by Lombey in Year 10 Science (do not condone).

What is your biggest achievement so far?

Bought a one way ticket and a crusty motorbike and travelled across Vietnam and Laos in 2017

What advice would you give to current students at Navigator College?

Prioritise your relationship with yourself and others just as much as your career goals, and don’t feel like you have to be pigeon holed into a single job or profession.