Scholarships welcomed
Forty-nine women in trades training among those to be helped by grants
UCOL Te Pu¯kenga students have received more than $44,000 in scholarships to help them with costs associated with study.
Sixty-five scholarships, funded by UCOL Te Pu¯kenga and local donors, were presented last month. Among them were 49 Women in Trades Grants, established last year to encourage and enable more women to enter the trades. Many recipients spoke about how the grant enabled them to purchase new tools, which have helped them hone and advance their skills.
For nursing student Megan Love, receiving the Soroptimist International Scholarship validated the hard work she had put into her studies after the pandemic pushed her into a career change.
“I was very surprised to receive the scholarship,” she says. “It’s a good feeling and makes all of the study worth it. It was nice to receive the recognition and I’m grateful to receive the funds. I live in Levin, so the money will help me with travelling to Palmerston North for class and my upcoming placement, as well as the cost of text books.”
Love previously worked as a corporate travel agent for seven years. She was working in London at the start of the pandemic, but its impact on the travel industry led to her losing her job and quickly returning to New Zealand before the border closed.
She then worked as a call centre advisor on the Covid Healthline, which sparked her interest in a career in healthcare.
“Working on the Healthline introduced me to the healthcare sector and began my growing desire to work in a role where I could combine my interest with human anatomy and be able to help people. I spoke to some of the nurses who I worked with, and they encouraged me to look into it further.”
Love is now excelling in the Bachelor of Nursing programme, consistently achieving A grades.
Ben Barr, Danielle Smith, and Talitha Mao-Adams were named the inaugural ManawaTech ICT Scholarship recipients. This new scholarship was awarded in partnership with the Manawatu¯ Tech Collective (ManawaTech) — an industry-led non-profit organisation supporting the region’s technology hub. As well as financial support, recipients have access to networking and internship opportunities within the local technology industry.
Originally, only one ManawaTech ICT Scholarship was to be awarded, but the calibre of applicants was so high UCOL Te Pu¯kenga and ManawaTech decided to fund two more.
Barr says it feels amazing to receive the scholarship.
“I work full-time as well as study, and it has been quite a hard lifestyle balance. Receiving this scholarship means I won’t have to work so much and focus more on my study,” he says.
“The networking side of it has been unreal.”