Runge Scholarships help “make King’s available to all”
An exceptionally generous donation from Dr Ian Runge and Mrs Sue Runge will create the Runge Scholarships with the purpose of helping to “make King’s available to all”.
Dr Ian Runge (King’s 1970-73) is a Fellow of King’s College and Chair of the College’s Board of Fellows. He is an engineer and economist who pioneered the METS (Mining, Equipment and Technology Services) Sector in Australia, including founding the world’s largest publicly traded mining technology enterprise.
Dr and Mrs Runge have endowed the Runge Scholarships to support the initiative of the College to “make Kings available to all” – a phrase coined by the College’s longest-serving Master, the Rev. Professor “Hubie” Trigge, in 1955 and which continues to inspire the College today.
Dr and Mrs Runge share the belief “that, in addition to a tertiary education qualification, the experience of college life provides an important contribution to the personal growth of all aspiring future leaders in Australia and elsewhere”.
Their donation is one of the largest in the history of King’s College. It is expected that it will support scholarships for up to four King’s students at any one time up to the aggregate amount of $60,000 p.a. and endure for 30 years.
This initial donation will form part of a more comprehensive project by King’s to attract worthy students to the College who might not otherwise have the means to attend.
The Head of College, Dr Don Markwell AM, said: “The College is deeply grateful for the visionary, exceptionally generous, and inspiring initiative of Ian and Sue Runge.
“This will truly create life-changing opportunities for students of promise for many years to come, with immense benefits to them, the College, and society at large.
“The College shares Ian and Sue Runge’s hope that this initiative will inspire others to do what they can to ‘make King’s available to all’, as Hubie Trigge so beautifully expressed it”, he said.
The Runge Scholarships will be awarded by the College to students who are admitted as resident students of King’s College and who:
- are Christian, or demonstrate a commitment to the Christian ethos and values of the College,
- are commencing or are engaged in degree study at the University of Queensland in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths), Education (Science), Business, Economics, or Law, or another field that enhances the growth of a free-enterprise economy and the advancement of society,
- otherwise might not be able to attend King’s for financial reasons, and
- are likely to benefit significantly from the opportunity to attend King’s through the Scholarship, including through broader horizons, personal growth, and development as future contributors to society at a senior level.
The Runge Scholarships will ordinarily support two students entering the College each year, and support them in their first and second years at the College (extension from year 1 to year 2 being dependent on readmission to the College, good behaviour, and satisfactory academic results, at the discretion of the Head of College).
The Runge Scholarships will ordinarily fund 50% of the Scholar’s College fees. The Head of College has discretion to modify this in exceptional cases, including to provide for the equivalent total annual award funding to be split amongst more than two incoming students. All Runge Scholars must make some contribution to their College fees from other sources, and not rely entirely on the Runge Scholarship.
The Runge Scholarships will be actively promoted by the College to prospective students, including throughout regional Queensland and in state high schools.
The Runge Scholarships will be awarded for the first time for new students entering King’s College in 2027. Applications close on 30 October 2026.
Information about the Runge Scholarship for prospective applicants is at www.kings.uq.edu.au/scholarships-bursaries/.
If you too would like to help “make King’s available to all”, creating life-changing opportunities for students, please visit www.kings.uq.edu.au/giving/.
