Miss Universe Australia Monika Radulovic is determined to make a difference. Picture: Tim Hunter.

While many beauty pageant contestants mouth platitudes about wanting to change the world, Radulovic, whose reign ends next month, has been acting on her words and putting her psychology degree to good use to help teenage girls.

“Girls are so hard on themselves and we compare ourselves so much,” the young woman who placed fourth in the global Miss Universe pageant says.

“I’m 25 and I still find myself subconsciously comparing myself to people and I have to stop myself and say, ‘You are great the way you are’.

“I want to combine the fact I was once a teenage girl, the fact I studied psychology and the fact I have a social media following to help younger girls.”

“One of the greatest things I’ve been able to do since being crowned is to ... speak to people and tell them about lessons I’ve learnt that can help them,” says Monika Radulovic.Source:News Corp Australia

In recent months, she has been visiting high schools, including her former school, Blakehurst High, in a bid to change the mindset of impressionable young teens.

“I know how challenging high school can be, and even life after high school can be tricky,” she says. “One of the greatest things I’ve been able to do since being crowned is to go around to schools and speak to people and tell them about lessons I’ve learnt that can help them.”

She says her Miss Universe Australia title has given her an influence and authority she wouldn’t have otherwise.

“I just feel like they listen more because they think I am cool. I know that sounds stupid, but they sort of look up to me in a way, so if I can do anything that positively influences them, I will do it. My message, which is so cheesy and cliche, is to just be yourself,” she says.

Radulovic also speaks about the artificiality of celebrity beauty shots on Instagram and other social media, telling young girls that things are not always as they seem.

“I never thought in a million years that I would ever go and be Miss Universe Australia.” Picture: Tim Hunter.Source:News Corp Australia

“Being in the industry, you know it (social media) is fake,” she says. “People don’t look like that, but school-aged children don’t know that.”

Year 9 girls, aged 14 and 15, are a particular focus for her.

“Everyone knows Year 9 was ‘that’ year,” she says. “I’ve heard that from teachers as well. They have interventions and special talks for the Year 9 girls. Something happens in that year. Everyone is so catty and nasty.”

When she started university, Radulovic had thought to forge a career as a psychologist, only dabbling in modelling to earn extra cash. Then, wanting a break after four years of study, she embarked on a full-time modelling career.

“I never thought in a million years that I would ever go and be Miss Universe Australia,” she says. “I was working quite a bit as a model, but two years after I started, I became a bit restless and I thought there was only so much I could personally grow being a model.”

Looking for the next step, she decided to enrol in the Miss Universe Australia pageant in 2014, then again in 2015.

Monika models an evening dress at Miss Universe 2015.Source:Supplied

And in the obligatory bikini during the Miss Universe 2015 pageant.Source:Supplied

“I always loved modelling, but I wanted to give more of myself and my opinion. I wanted to use my degree and model, so Miss Universe seemed like a natural step.”

Her parents were a bit apprehensive to begin with, she says. “But they’ve said since it is the best decision I’ve made and they couldn’t be prouder of me.”

The opinion of her parents, Vinka and Goran, matters greatly to Radulovic.

When she was 18 months old, her mum and dad fled their once comfortable and secure life
in Bosnia because of the looming civil war. Leaving family, friends and their lifes’ possessions, they arrived as refugees in Denmark, where the three of them lived in a two-metre by three-metre bedroom.

“It was our world for nearly two years,” Radulovic recalls.

It was then that “Australia answered our prayers” and in 1994, when Radulovic was four, her family was granted residency here.

The family settled at Hurstville in Sydney’s south.

“It wasn’t easy at the beginning,” Radulovic says. “Imagine coming to a country when you have no money in your bank account because you spent it all to get to safety … where you have no job, no place to live, and no grasp of the native language. And, on top of all that, my mum was eight months pregnant with my brother when we arrived.”

Monika Radulovic, here at Western Sydney University, has been visiting high schools, in a bid to change the mindset of impressionable young teenage girls. Picture: Adam TaylorSource:News Corp Australia

It is this turbulent upbringing that makes Radulovic a beauty queen with a difference. She truly isn’t just a pretty face and feels it is her duty to help others. “Everything I do, I have my parents in the back of my mind and ask, are they going to be proud of me? They’ve sacrificed so much for me and my brother Stefan.”

Another person cheering on the brunette beauty from the sidelines is her fiance, Alesandro Ljubicic. Not for her a model or sportsman — the down-to-earth Radulovic is set to marry a down-to-earth artist.

“After the first year I entered and didn’t win — I got third runner-up — I thought, ‘That’s enough, I’m not meant to be Miss Universe’,” she recalls. “Alesandro was the one person who said to me, ‘You need to try for Miss Universe again’. He kept encouraging me and telling me, ‘You can do this’. To have your partner there supporting you is amazing.”

Many question the relevance of beauty pageants these days and argue that they are degrading to women, but Radulovic insists they can actually be the opposite.

“As an individual person, pageants really help your confidence,” she says.

“These girls are so proud of themselves after going up on stage. For some of them, it’s the first time they’ve walked a catwalk and they find it really empowering.

“As long as the girls want to do it and leave the stage feeling empowered and confident, I really can’t see why anybody should try and stop that.”

The Miss Universe Australia title has given Monika an influence and authority she wouldn’t have otherwise. Picture: Adam TaylorSource:News Corp Australia

Next month, Radulovic will hand over her crown to the next Miss Universe Australia.

Don’t, however, expect her to disappear off the radar. With new management — respected Sharon Finnigan, who guided Jesinta Campbell to the position she is in today — and a clear idea of what she wants, Radulovic is pegged for big things.

“It is such an exciting transitional period for me right now,” she says. “I’ve got a list of goals I have written down. I don’t really give it a time frame. I will just slowly work towards every single one.”

A media career also beckons.

“I wouldn’t say no to television. I’ve not tried acting, but if an opportunity arose, I’d give it a crack. I feel like I am growing every day with every opportunity that comes.”

Summing up her aspirations, she adds: “I’m reaching for the stars. I’ll go as far as I can go.
I’m a really hard worker and will keep pushing myself and continue to tick off the goals from my long list, and I will spread my message as far and wide as I can.”