Students with a good academic record and who excel in football have until 1 October to apply for a University of Waikato Sir Edmund Hillary Scholarship. The scholarship encourages multi-talented individuals to achieve academic, leadership and sporting excellence. Successful applicants have all their course fees paid during their time at the University of Waikato and are provided with additional support to assist them balance their study and sporting commitments.
Football scholars are also provided with football-specific skills training and physical conditioning programmes.
Current football Hillary Scholars are Scott Hilliar, Che Bunce, Kate Carlton, Sarah McLaughlin and Kylie Jens. They’re studying a range of courses at Waikato – Che’s working on a Bachelor of Laws and Kylie is studying a conjoint Bachelor of Social Science and Bachelor of Laws, while Sarah, Kate and Scott are all doing Sport and Leisure Studies.
Double Hillary
Scott, who went to St Paul’s Collegiate in Hamilton, is also a Hillary scholar for athletics. He started running when he was “very young”, joining the Matamata Athletics Club, first as a sprinter and moving up to middle-distance. But right now, football is his focus and he made his debut for WaiBOP United last year.
Scott says having the Hillary scholarship means it’s a lot easier to focus on his academic and sporting life. “The team of Hillary scholars is tightly knit and because of this, the help from students and support staff has been highly influential in my success to date at uni. That support has included goal setting, time management and personal development, enabling me to grow as a leader in and out of my sport.”
Scott’s also part of WUFA, the Waikato University Football Academy. WUFA is New Zealand’s first and only fulltime training academy based at a University, where players can focus on football whilst studying for a world-class degree.
“WUFA has developed me into a better all-round player. The opportunity to be training most week mornings has enabled me to focus on areas of my game that need improvement. My team mates thrive off the success of every individual in the group, endeavouring to become better at what we do.”
Apply for a Hillary Scholarship now
The closing date for Hillary Scholarship applications is 1 October 2014. For online applications go to www.waikato.ac.nz/scholarships.
For further information about the University of Waikato’s Sir Edmund Hillary Scholarship Programme phone 0800WAIKATO (0800 924 528), email [email protected] or view www.waikato.ac.nz/Hillary or www.facebook.com/HillaryScholarsWaikatoUniversity.
Applications to the Waikato University Football Academy (WUFA) are also open, for information visit www.wufa.co.nz.
Supplied: University of Waikato.
