20 September 2022 Lincoln leads the way to success in the real world

The Bachelor of Environmental Policy and Planning (Honours) graduate, who’s celebrating her achievements at a Graduation Ceremony on Friday 23 September, is now working as a Planner at Hayson Knell in Tauranga.

"My study prepared me well for working in a consultancy by giving me a broad understanding of the history of planning and the different planning contexts I would be working within," she said.

"I also gained exposure to the different Acts and regulations and went into working life confident about interpreting key pieces of information."

Rachael chose Lincoln because she liked the way the degree was structured in comparison to the offerings from other universities.

"Another factor was having lecturers with diverse career experiences and seeing them produce graduates who attain great roles."

Lincoln also gave her the opportunity to give back to the community.

She attended the university on a Future Leader Scholarship, which helped to develop her leadership skills through community service and led to her being a board representative for Lincoln and Districts Community Care from 2019-2021.

She was also involved in hosting community events as part of the scholarship, including one called Primary Focus, whereby wellbeing was promoted in the rural community via a special all-day event at Hororata Primary School.

Another extracurricular activity of Rachael’s included acting as Vice-President (in 2019) and President (in 2020) of the Handy Landys, a rural and agricultural-based volunteering club that aims to support farmers in times of need. The Handy Landys are run by the Lincoln University Students’ Association (LUSA).

"I loved being involved with the Future Leader Scholarship programme, especially organising the Primary Focus project, and being part of the Handy Landys Club exec," Rachael said.

Asked what she enjoyed the most about her time at Lincoln, she cited the university’s small size.

"You find yourself studying with people from a variety of degrees, which encourages good debate and leaves you with connections across a range of industries after graduating."

Although Rachael already received her Bachelor of Environmental Policy and Planning (Honours) earlier this year, the Graduation Celebration on 23 September was organised to acknowledge the hard work of Lincoln’s 2022 graduates, following the cancellation of the original ceremony in May.