Without a scholarship, Blake Winder believes he wouldn't have a diploma or a career in nursing.
The Wimmera-Mallee export was living in Brisbane when COVID-19 made him lose his hospitality job.
Unable to access Centrelink support, he made the decision to move back in with his family, where a relative informed him of the scholarship opportunity.
"Studying at SuniTAFE in Mildura with a Destination Australia scholarship has given me and many other students the opportunity to further our education, the chance to stabilize our surroundings, and the ability to open doors to new horizons, which could not be dreamt possible six months ago," he said.
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"Without the scholarship I wouldn't be able to study. It would be impossible. The workload I have at the moment and my personal life is massive. But the scholarship has turned the whole thing around for me.
"I didn't think it would work, that I wasn't good enough. But the fact that I tried means that anything is possible. The scholarship has given me light at the end of the tunnel."
Blake has now completed the first year of his Diploma and hopes to study paramedicine in the future.
Applications are now open for the 2021 Destination Australia scholarship at SuniTAFE.
The scholarships are valued at $7500 per semester, which is $15,000 for a one year course, and $30,000 for a two year course.
The Destination Australian scholarship is part of an Australian government initiative to attract and support students to study in regional Australia.
To be eligible students must be either an Australian citizen, permanent resident of Australia, permanent humanitarian visa holder, or New Zealand citizen.
International students that hold a student visa for the duration of study can also apply.
To apply, students must complete an application to study and SuniTAFE and lodge a scholarship form on the SuniTafe website. Applications close January 3.
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