Canon’s 2016 Honours Scholarship awarded to Declan O’Neill

Declan O’Neill, student at The University of Sydney, has been awarded Canon’s annual Honours Scholarship for 2016 for his outstanding efforts in the Marketing Honours program, specifically his pioneer research which looks into how humanised brands dictate consumer behaviour.


Effie Fox and Declan O'Neill

“An example of a humanised brand can be seen in the Energiser Bunny or M&M characters. How brands are personified directly relates to how consumers evaluate the brand. I hope that companies will be able to use my research findings to tailor their marketing efforts and connect with their consumers. The psychological side of how people interact with brands is really interesting to me,” said O’Neill.

O’Neill completed a Bachelor of Arts and Commerce last year, majoring in Marketing, International Business and Japanese. During the Honours program he has been able to enjoy the specialised nature of seminars and close counsel from professors including his supervisor, Dr Ülkü Yüksel.

“It has been an honour to win the Canon Scholarship – and the $6000 grant will allow me to apply greater focus on my studies rather than having to spend as much time working casually, and I’m hoping to even buy a new laptop”.

Effie Fox, HR and Communications Director, Canon Oceania, presented the award to O’Neill at Sydney University on Monday night this week.

“Canon is passionate about giving back to the communities in which it operates, which in this case means supporting students in their studies. We want them to be inspired by what they learn and help them to succeed in the marketing discipline long into the future. Declan is incredibly deserving of the Canon scholarship, and we looking forward to following his success, and where this project takes him.”

O’Neill hopes to apply his research learnings in a marketing position in an international firm, where he can choose a marketing speciality, handle a large portfolio of interesting clients and be exposed to exciting opportunities abroad.

About the Canon Honours Scholarship
The Canon Honours Scholarship Fund was established in 2003 to create a continuing annual scholarship of up to $6,000. The scholarship is awarded annually to a student accepted into the Marketing Honours program who demonstrates the greatest proficiency in their Marketing major units of study. 

The University of Sydney is the university of choice for over 50,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from around the world. The University of Sydney is committed to finding the best in people of potential from all social backgrounds, and plays a major role in its local, national and international communities.