Graduates do their university proud

01-08-2010 | Rebecca Harper

For the second year running, Lincoln University graduates dominated the National Bank Young Farmer of the Year contest.

This year's competition, in Gore from July 8-10, saw seven grand finalists from around the country battle it out for the right to be called the 2010 Young Farmer of the year.

Representing the Tasman region, Oamaru's Grant McNaughton, 26, emerged victorious, while youngest competitor and local hope Peter Gardyne, 22, from Chatton, took second spot. Aorangi's Andrew Scott, 28, a sheep and beef farmer from South Canterbury, claimed third.

Six of the seven grand finalists were graduates of Lincoln and for the second year in a row all top three placegetters were past students of the university. Lincoln alumni have now won the title 21 times since the competition began in 1969.

Lincoln Vice-Chancellor Professor Roger Field said he was "absolutely delighted" for the six Lincoln graduates.

"It's very satisfying for the university. It's a very intense competition across a wide range of activities and to be that successful is a great credit to the university and the staff that taught them.

"They're also a credit to themselves because I know they all put in a significant amount of time ... success does not come by chance, it comes by innate ability and hard work."

As for the reason behind such success, Field said he believed the university equipped its graduates with skills that were appropriate to the modern nature of farming and provided a hands-on learning experience.

As well as practical skills, graduates had a strong grounding in management, finance and economics, enabling them to be successful in both business and the competition.

"We still use on-farm practices as an important part of the qualification and learning ... but clearly work them out appropriately in the classroom in those disciplines that underpin agribusiness," he said.

Obviously it is a recipe that works and Field said he could see no reason why Lincoln could not continue its strong representation at the competition. "Not only are these graduates successful in the competition, but they are very employable in the industry.

"Agriculture and its associated industries are very sophisticated and we are producing graduates to meet the increasingly sophisticated needs of an important part of our economy."

The university is a key sponsor of the contest and Field said the prizes offered provided future development opportunities for the winners. As overall winner, McNaughton received a scholarship for study towards a Specialist Masters of Professional Studies or entry to the Kellogg Programme. He also won the individual Agri-growth Challenge, receiving an international exchange scholarship for a three to four week study tour to an overseas university - either Cornell (US), the University of Copenhagen (Denmark) or the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

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