The Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia (RASWA) Foundation has announced first-year Murdoch University student Lauren Rayner as the recipient of the 2018 Bendat Family Youth Scholarship.

The RASWA scholarship is awarded to a young Western Australian who is enrolled in a Bachelor Award course at an Australian university in an agricultural-related discipline - enabling them to continue their studies.

Originally from the rural town of Brookton, Ms Rayner is currently studying a double degree in Animal Science and Crop and Pasture Science, and has always been passionate about agriculture and farming.

“Agriculture brings people together from all over the world with different ideas, practice and specialties,” Ms Rayner said.

“I particularly have a love for the stud merino industry, through judging and learning how to class sheep, how to judge sheep in the show ring and also how to prepare a stud sheep for a show.

“This also comes with a strong interest in genetics through wool and meat characteristics in sheep.”

Ms Rayner’s scholarship application involved four criteria: personal attributes; planned future involvement in agriculture; community involvement and the proposed course of study.

“There are so many opportunities and career paths I could take after I finish my degree at Murdoch University. This could be in the direction of becoming a wool or livestock agent,” Ms Rayner said.

“It is a great time to be in the wool industry at the moment as the price has recently peaked at $20 a kilogram.”

Ms Rayner will allocate the funds received from her scholarship towards her university accommodation and reading materials, as well as extra-curricular learning activities.

“These funds from RASWA will give me the opportunity to be more involved in camps and workplace learning at Murdoch University and travel to different areas and enterprises of agriculture that I would love to be involved in,” Ms Rayner said.

“One area I am particularly interested in learning more about is agronomy, which has a wide range of different aspects including soil health and plant health; use of pesticides; fertilisers and herbicides; plant genetics and consultation.

“I think agronomy and livestock work very well together and it is vital to understand the importance of healthy pastures and crop production in terms of being able to identify pests and also the high impact Australian grain has on the economy.”

An added benefit of the scholarship is the opportunity for Ms Rayner to participate and network in selected RASWA events including the IGA Perth Royal Show.

Senior Lecturer in Agricultural Science and Food Production within the School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Dr Graham O’Hara said Ms Rayner had commenced her tertiary studies with very strong academic performances in her units.

“I believe Lauren has excellent suitability for her chosen double degree and she clearly is very engaged with learning all she can about the many diverse components involved in modern agriculture,” Dr O’Hara said.

“Lauren’s passion for agriculture is obvious from the moment you first meet her, and her strong interests in learning about the science that underpins productive animal industries are clearly part of what drives her successful studies.

“Her farming background, coupled with her keen enquiring intellect, provides her with the best ingredients for academic success for a career in agriculture.”