Rewind a few years, and you would have found Keisha Nash crying in the shower.

The former vice-captain of Mornington Secondary College had received what she considered a “really bad” year 12 result, an ATAR score of 63.65.

Yet today the 23-year-old is studying medicine at one of Australia’s most in-demand schools, a place packed with school duxes who received ATARs of 99 or even higher.

Keisha Nash is one of the success stories of a new program getting more indigenous students to study medicine. Credit:Jessica Hromas

The Torres Strait Islander worked her way into a science degree via a bridging course. Then she was able to snap up a coveted place studying medicine at Monash University through a program that allows Indigenous students to bypass strict entry criteria.