Dean Vuilleumier

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About Me

Hi, I'm Dean - a Bachelor of Business Management student at UQ, originally from South Africa. I spent the first fifteen years of my life there before moving to Australia, and I grew up in a multicultural home (my other half being Swiss), so navigating different cultures, languages, and ways of seeing the world has been part of my life since day one. I know firsthand what it feels like to start over somewhere new, figure out how things work, and build a sense of belonging from scratch. That experience never really leaves you, and it's a big part of why I care so much about making sure students feel supported and seen - especially those navigating a system that wasn't built with them in mind.

Outside of study, I'm a Peer Educator with the No taboo, there is support for you campaign and a volunteer with BEL Buddies. Those roles, and honestly just saying hi to people across campus, have given me some of the most honest conversations I've had at university - students surprised to find out how much free support UQ actually offers, men quietly wondering where they fit in the wellbeing conversation, people who've been sitting on something for weeks and just needed someone to make it feel okay to bring up.

One thing that keeps coming up in those conversations is the idea that you need to be in crisis before you can ask for help. I don't think that's true, and I don't think we should be okay with it. I want seeking support to feel as normal as a dental check-up - something you do because you're a person, not because everything has gone wrong.

I'm passionate about self-development, genuinely curious about other people's experiences, and apparently not what people expect when they picture someone who talks openly about counselling and mental health check-ins. I think that's exactly why I want to be here.