23 July 2004 V & O Degree c'est la vie for Cecelia

The 14th July – France's Bastille Day – was an appropriate occasion for Lincoln University viticulture and wine science student Cecelia Buckenham Baines to be presented with her latest academic award – a 2004 Bank of New Zealand Undergraduate Scholarship, valued at $3000.

It was across the world, in the Loire Valley of France, that Cecelia's passion to work in the grape and wine industry crystallised. She spent nine months there and worked for a time at Domaine La Moussiere in Sancerre picking sauvignon blanc and pinot noir grapes for the region's famous wines.

At Lincoln University the former Burnside High School student is studying for a Bachelor of Viticulture and Oenology degree, a qualification that will open employment doors in either side of the industry – growing the grapes or making the wine.

At the moment Cecelia says she particularly enjoys the viticultural activity and this year she did a vintage at Daniel Schuster Wines, Waipara.

"It's hard work but I like the practical skills involved”, she says.

Now in the third and final year of her degree, Cecelia should finish her studies in October and she says her ambition after that is to travel overseas again and experience vintages in a range of wine producing countries.

"Of course ultimately I want to come back to New Zealand and work in the industry here. It's got so much going for it – it's a comparatively young industry but it's vibrant, confident and we have shown that we can compete with some of the best producers in the world."

Born and brought up in Canterbury, Cecelia has had a successful academic career at Lincoln University winning both a JMH Tripp Agricultural Scholarship and a Freemasons University Scholarship in addition to her latest award.

"I am so grateful to the scholarship providers," she says. "The awards are really helpful financially and I would encourage other students to consider applying for awards appropriate to their fields of study. The University's scholarships office is always helpful in pointing you in the right direction."

Ian Collins, Journalist, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand