THREE of the south-west’s brightest young people have started their university studies with a helpful boost.
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Mortlake College’s Charmarelle McCarroll, Brauer College’s Nick Young and Portland Secondary College’s Clare Oakley have all been awarded scholarships from the Macpherson Smith Rural Foundation, worth $75,000.
Seven scholarships are awarded to young community leaders across the state each year and included $45,000 financial support as well as access to mentoring and leadership programs. The scholarships aim to make tertiary study accessible to outstanding youth by reducing or removing financial barriers.
It also aims to improve the availability of skills in rural areas by providing scholarships to students who plan to return to a rural community after graduation.
Miss McCarroll was presented with her scholarship at Mortlake College yesterday, with Macpherson Smith Rural Foundation executive officer Pete Eksteadt there for the handover.
He said there were nearly 200 applicants from across the state, and schools were allowed only two nominations.
“Charmarelle’s contribution to the Mortlake community was very strong on paper. In her written application she came across as very humble and was keen to give back to the community that had supported her,” Mr Eksteadt said.
“The final part of the process was an interview. We were told that Charmarelle has been recently bereaved and the panel was completely blown away by the way she conducted herself while still grieving for her father.
“It was a high-pressure situation and she showed courage, strength and commitment.”
Miss McCarroll, who is studying biomedicine at Australian Catholic University’s Fitzroy campus, said the scholarship had helped her focus on her studies without having to worry about her finances, but said the most beneficial part of it was the mentoring.
“My mentor is a Deakin student studying medicine, which is what I eventually want to do,” she said.
“His advice and support has been invaluable. So far everything has been going well, I miss the country, but am enjoying everything the city has to offer.”
Mr Ekstead said mentoring was a vital part of the scholarship and played an important role in keeping students enrolled.
“It can be quite isolating and lonely for rural kids and figures show they are more likely to drop out in the first year,” he said.
“The mentoring side of the scholarship gives them the support they need to get through those difficult moments in the first year.”