MsHarshini Singh

I am a final-year MBA candidate at Deakin University and a 100% Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Scholarship recipient, with a scholarly and professional focus at the intersection of education, emerging technologies, entrepreneurship, innovation, and applied research. My academic trajectory has been consistently shaped by a pursuit of intellectual excellence and a desire to understand how knowledge, technology, and innovation can be translated into meaningful and scalable societal outcomes.

I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Entrepreneurship, graduating as the third-ranked student in my cohort. Prior to this, my strong academic performance within the Cambridge International curriculum established the academic foundation that ultimately enabled me to receive the Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Scholarship at Deakin University. These experiences have significantly influenced my approach to learning and reinforced my commitment to pursuing rigorous academic and research-oriented work.

My engagement with education and technology extends beyond academia. I founded Rural Tech Rise, an initiative focused on expanding access to emerging technologies and strengthening technological literacy among students and communities in rural India. This experience led me to develop a deeper appreciation for the role of education as an instrument of capability development, social mobility, and inclusive innovation, particularly within communities where access to technological resources and contemporary knowledge remains uneven.

I currently work with the Deakin SME Research Centre, where I contribute to the Centre’s operations, research activities, strategic initiatives, and broader engagement with industry and external stakeholders. My work has provided me with exposure to multidisciplinary research spanning energy transition, artificial intelligence, technological innovation, and Australia–India economic and knowledge partnerships. I have contributed to initiatives including the Battery Project, supported through Powering Australia, MAITRI, and the AVPN SEED AI initiative, each of which has broadened my understanding of how research can operate at the nexus of academia, industry, government, and community.

My emerging scholarly interests centre on the relationship between education, technological transformation, innovation, and human capability. I am particularly interested in examining how emerging technologies can be responsibly integrated into educational and organisational ecosystems, how innovation can be made more inclusive, and how research can move beyond theoretical contribution to generate measurable and enduring impact.