Bradley Roberts has been named WA Student Scientist of the Year at the 2026 Premier’s Science Awards, recognising his research in pharmacogenetics, helping to personalise mental health treatment for young people.
The Premier’s Science Awards, now in its 25th year and held on 21 September, recognises and celebrates outstanding scientific research and engagement in Western Australia.
The Student Scientist of the Year award recognises an outstanding postgraduate student who has demonstrated a commitment to science at an early stage and shows great promise in reaching the highest levels of excellence.
Bradley’s PhD research, conducted at the Perron Institute and The University of Western Australia, uses pharmacogenetic testing to personalise antidepressant treatment for young people with depression, with individualised biological evidence to inform the selection and dosage of a medication more likely to be effective and well tolerated.
As first author of the GENE-YD feasibility pilot study, the main body of work of his PhD, his findings will be published soon in the Nature portfolio journal Translational Psychiatry. The work has attracted major funding and international collaborations, and is supporting the growth of precision psychiatry in WA through local industry and healthcare partnerships.
Findings from studies including the GENE-YD project have informed a new implementation study, PGx-ADAPT, funded by the Stan Perron Charitable Foundation. PGx-ADAPT is a collaborative project across metropolitan and rural WA to co-design and pilot a model for implementing PGx-guided antidepressant prescribing into primary care.
Perron Institute Board member Paul Anderson, CEO of Orthocell, and Minister Stephen Dawson, Minister for Science and Innovation and Medical Research, presented the award. Orthocell was an event sponsor.
In his awards speech, Bradley said: “Wow, this is a real honour. A PhD is never done in silos, and I’ve been incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by outstanding supervisors, including [Professor] Jenny [Rodger] here tonight with me, and colleagues and collaborators at the Perron Institute and UWA and beyond.
“Most importantly, though, I would like to acknowledge and thank the young people and families contributing to my research.
“I’ve been fortunate to hear from young people navigating the mental healthcare sector, the people that our research actually aims to impact. And I want to thank them for sharing such personal and at times very vulnerable experience of their mental health with us.
“It’s a genuine privilege to do this work and to be trusted to listen to those experiences and carry them thoughtfully into research.
“And it’s a reminder as to why making care more personalised matters.
Congratulations to all the other finalists in the room, it’s a privilege to be in the same room as you all, and to witness the fantastic work that everyone is doing, so thank you very much.”
Congratulations, Bradley!
In 2026, the Premier’s Science Awards recognised 12 local scientists across ten categories and the People’s Choice Award.
You can watch the livestream here: https://vimeo.com/event/6078384/a9da1e31b3, the Student Scientist of the Year award category starts at 02:35:44.
View the WA Government announcement on 22 September for the Student Scientist of the Year category here:
Thank you to the WA Government, the event organisers and all the sponsors, also including UWA.
Photo caption L-R: Steve Arnott (Perron Institute CEO), Brad Roberts, Prof Jenny Rodger (Head of Brain Plasticity Research and Co-Lead of Youth Mental Health Research), Rob McKenzie (Perron Institute Board Chair).